Portland, Maine - Today, City of Portland Mayor Michael Brennan joined his Mayoral colleagues from across the country in calling on President Barack Obama and members of the U.S. Congress to pursue sensible gun laws. In an open letter to the President and Congress, Mayor Brennan along with Mayors from New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Sacramento and dozens of other communities called for reasonable changes to gun laws and regulations including enacting a ban on assault weapons and other high-capacity magazines, and the strengthening of the national background check system and penalties for straw purchase of guns.
“My heart goes out to the community of Newtown. The burden of grief may seem impossible to bear for the
families of Sandy Hook and I hope that as we as a nation come together to share in their grief of this unfathomable loss, we are able to lift some small piece of the load off their shoulders,” stated Mayor Brennan. “I am encouraged by President Obama’s commitment to addressing gun violence and hope that Maine’s Congressional Delegation joins him in this effort. The simple fact of the matter is that reasonable laws and regulations can make a difference in our effort to reduce gun violence.”
The text of the letter is a follows:
Dear Mr. President and Members of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate:
Again and again and again, Americans are stunned by senseless acts of violence involving guns. Friday’s tragedy targeting young children in Newtown is incomprehensible. Too many times this year, mayors have expressed shock at a mass shooting. Even more frequently, many of us must cope with the gun violence that occurs on the streets of our cities.
Through The U.S. Conference of Mayors we have sent our condolences to the victims, their families, and their community. We know that Newtown First Selectman Patricia Llodra and Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy continue to do everything possible to help the families of those killed and the entire community cope with so much loss and pain.
The Conference has been calling for sensible gun laws to protect the public for more than 40 years. Mayors and police chiefs from cities of all sizes have worked together in this effort over the years.
We urge you to take immediate action: the President to exercise his powers though Executive Order and Congress to introduce and pass legislation to make reasonable changes in our gun laws and regulations. Specifically we call on you to:
Enact legislation to ban assault weapons and other high-capacity magazines being prepared by Senator Dianne Feinstein and others;
Strengthen the national background check system and eliminate loopholes in it; and
Strengthen the penalties for straw purchases of guns.
We know that preventing gun violence – whether it is a mass shooting in a school or a murder on a street corner – will take much more than strengthening our gun laws. We need to reverse the culture of violence in our nation so that a violent act isn’t the first response to settling a difference or compensating for a wrong. We support the idea of a establishing a bi-partisan Commission that looks at the broader issues of violence in our country. We need to strengthen and more adequately fund our mental health system so that we can identify troubled individuals earlier and get them the help they need. But strengthening our gun laws should not have to wait for these other actions to occur. The time for action is now!
We believe that with this latest national tragedy and the high incidence of gun violence that continues to plague our streets, we have reached a tipping point. The nation’s mayors pledge to work with you to build a safer America for our children and all of our citizens.
No comments:
Post a Comment