Defending Right to Bear Arms

Floor Speech

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Mr. CARTER of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to show my support for the Second Amendment and draw attention to its importance. I would like to start by emphasizing a line from the Second Amendment. `` . . . the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.''

Let me repeat that: `` . . . shall not be infringed.'' I emphasize this point because today there are many efforts to infringe and abridge this essential right. There are a lot of misconceptions surrounding the Second Amendment, but let me make it clear, the Second Amendment enshrines the right to self-protection in defense of liberty for all Americans.

The right to protect yourself is not given to us by our government. As part of the Bill of Rights, the Second Amendment was not intended to comprehensively define the scope of our right to bear arms. Rather, it serves as a prohibition on certain actions our government can take to infringe on that righ

The Biden administration, however, misunderstands this point. In a statement last week, the White House stated that the Second Amendment limits the type of people who could own a gun. Further, it continues to seek to restrain Americans' rights through other actions.

A recent example is the administration's move to strictly regulate stabilizing braces that have allowed disabled individuals to more easily enjoy their constitutionally protected right.

Americans bought 15.1 million guns during the 7-month period from March through September of 2020, which was a 91 percent leap from the same period in 2019. The FBI also processed more background checks for gun purchases in just the first 9 months of 2020 than it had for any previous full year.

Americans want to be safer, and guns give them that sense of security. In spite of that fact, my colleagues across the aisle have made it their mission to restrict this liberty in the name of safety.

However, there is no link between the number of guns and gun violence in the U.S. The number of guns in America rose nearly 50 percent between 1993 and 2013. During the same period, gun homicides fell by nearly 50 percent.

In fact, violent crime has been decreasing for decades, despite an increase last year, during which we also saw calls for defunding the police. In 2019, the violent crime rate fell to the second lowest total rate since 1971, and the murder rate was less than half of what it was at the 1980 peak.

Restricting the Second Amendment is simply not the answer. This right, preserved in our Constitution generations ago, cannot be taken away from ourselves and future generations. We must protect from intrusions on our right to protect ourselves, no matter how hard the left works to strip us of this principle.

Madam Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in standing up for our Second Amendment right to bear arms.

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