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Mr. BLUMENTHAL. Mr. President, I wish to begin by saying my thoughts and prayers, similar to those of so many Americans, are with Boston today, with the families and loved ones of those who have lost lives or been injured. I offer my deepest condolences to the families of those victims and my sincere gratitude to the courageous first responders, including many of the runners who courageously went to the aid of people who were grievously injured and some maimed by this horrific act of terror. Whether we call it a terrorist act or an act of terror or simply a criminal murder, it is certainly to be condemned and investigated as thoroughly and promptly as possible. I know the full resources of the Federal Government have been devoted to this purpose.
We are an open society. We appear soft-hearted to people who want to do harm to a democracy. We are vulnerable because we are a democracy and we are open. We have resolved that we will not become totalitarian or antidemocratic; that we will remain a free and open society. That is the wonder and strength and uniqueness of America, the greatest Nation in the history of the world.
Horror has brought us to this debate, the horror of gun violence, the horror of what has happened in our schools, our streets, our neighborhoods, in places where the public is admitted, indeed welcomed, whether it is movie theaters or places of worship or schools, places where the public has access and where, therefore, all our citizens, most especially our children, are vulnerable.
Last week when we opened this debate we spent a lot of time talking about victims. Senator Murphy and I spent a lot of time on the Senate floor discussing Newtown and the victims of that unspeakable and unimaginable tragedy. Today we remember another similar tragedy, facilitated by the same extraordinarily dangerous weapons in the hands of people who should not be permitted to have firearms or guns. Six years ago today, Seung-Hui Cho used two semiautomatic handguns and nine 10- and 15-round magazines to kill 32 innocent victims and injure 23 at Virginia Tech University. Many of those weapons he used were purchased online. Others were purchased at local stores without a background check.
As somebody who has seen my own State grapple with this tragedy, I extend my condolences to the families of Virginia Tech victims--some of their families were here earlier today--and all who have felt the impact of this absolutely senseless slaughter, as senseless and unspeakable as what happened in Newtown just 4 months ago.
I wish to recognize the leadership of our two Senators from Virginia and their efforts to prevent another Virginia Tech. As he discussed earlier, Senator Warner has been actively engaged in efforts to bring research and resources together to make our schools and campuses safer. His leadership has been extremely important. Colleges and universities play an extraordinarily important role in my own State of Connecticut. I know they are constantly working to keep their campuses safe. The School and Campus Safety Enhancements Act included in the gun violence legislation currently before this body would be an important step toward giving these very institutions of higher learning what they need to protect our students and support the kind of research that is necessary to develop new means and possibly new technology, new tools that our institutions of higher learning but also institutions of learning across-the-board, beginning with our elementary schools, need to do better.
I am proud to be cosponsor of this legislation. I look forward to working with my colleagues to ensure its passage. Senator Kaine spoke so powerfully and eloquently on the floor earlier today, showed such grace under pressure--which is one of the definitions of courage--in responding to the Virginia Tech tragedy. He has worked to deal with the wounds. He has resolved to learn from Virginia Tech and indeed he worked as a Governor to seek safer campuses across Virginia and across the country. He fought to put in place commonsense laws that would prevent shooters such as Seung-Hui Cho from having access to the arsenal he used 6 years ago. I thank Senator Kaine for helping to lead the effort for a ban on high-capacity ammunition magazines such as the ones used at Virginia Tech and used at Newtown and used in so many other shootings across the country over the years. With his support, I plan to offer a high-capacity magazine ban, on behalf of Senator Lautenberg, in an amendment to the gun violence legislation currently before the Senate.
I am proud to be working with others, such as Senator Feinstein, Senator Schumer, and my colleague Senator Murphy, in that effort. I encourage my colleagues to work with me and Senator Kaine to pass commonsense legislation as we mark the tragedy at Virginia Tech and we remember the victims of Newtown.
I thank the families of the victims of these shootings from all across the country who have come to Washington over these past days, and indeed weeks, working so hard and so diligently, working through their grief and pain, doing something that is so difficult for them so others can be spared this pain and grief.
Many will face difficult votes, perhaps as early as tomorrow. We have approached the cusp of these vital and historic votes. Many of these votes will be difficult for my colleagues. But as difficult as they are for them--and for many whose difficulty I respect--let's remember how difficult it has been for those families of the victims to come here to look you in the eye as they have done and say: Let's now do something about gun violence. That is what I heard in the wake of Newtown, as early as the evening that horrific tragedy occurred. Let's do something about the guns.
We have the opportunity to do something about the guns. As Gabby Giffords said to the Judiciary Committee just weeks ago: Be bold. Be courageous. America is counting on you.
That is her urging to us. That is our obligation and our historic opportunity.
I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
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