Malliotakis Takes Balanced Approach To End Gun Violence, Protect 2nd Amendment

Statement

Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11) today released the following statement regarding the firearm legislation voted on in the House of Representatives last night.

"This is a serious issue that requires a thoughtful bipartisan approach to address the seemingly unending series of heinous mass shootings while protecting the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens--particularly at a time when crime is skyrocketing in America's cities.

"To be clear, I believe the Democrats' omnibus package was wrong, constitutionally-suspect and, unlike the process proceeding in the United States Senate, represented a partisan overreach rather than thoughtful consensus-building. That's why I voted against the Democrats' omnibus bill last night.

"That said, after consulting with the NYPD and the reviewing the impact of the individual pieces of legislation on my constituents on Staten Island and Southern Brooklyn, I elected to vote for bills preventing the trafficking of illegal guns into New York City and establishing new federal offenses for illegal gun trafficking via straw purchasers and cracking down on ghost guns. Taken together, H.R. 2280 and H.R. 3088 would assist the NYPD in dealing with the flow of guns from other states as the NYPD has seen a 300% increase in ghost gun interceptions. I also voted for H.R. 5427 to codify President Trump's Order banning bump stocks and devices that turn legal weapons into machine guns. Finally, I voted for H.R. 3015 to require purchasers of a specific group of semi-automatic firearms, including AR-15s, to be 21 years of age, as they are already required to be in my district. The perpetrators in the Uvalde, Buffalo, Parkland, and Sandy Hook shootings were all under 21 years old. These measures were each supported by law enforcement officials serving those I represent.

"Unfortunately, the Democrats passed, over my objection, legislation that I believe unduly burdens the rights of law-abiding gun owners and impedes their ability to protect themselves and their families with so-called safe storage laws. Talk to any law-abiding gun owner and they will tell you that in order to protect themselves and their property they need to have quick access to their firearms. Requiring multiple steps to access their legal firearm can be the difference between life and death in a life-threatening situation. I also voted against H.R. 2510 because it would make almost every handgun illegal in the United States. Nothing could be more offensive to the personal rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment.

"A bipartisan group of lawmakers is actively working on a more balanced approach to address this issue in consultation with law enforcement and mental health professionals to bring forth reasonable, practical, and constitutional solutions that are workable in practice. House Democrats should give it consideration."

Yesterday Malliotakis also pushed a vote on H.R.7967, the Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act, legislation that would hold prosecutors accountable and create transparency by letting the public know how many cases prosecutors are declining to prosecute, the number of offenses committed by career criminals, and the number of criminals released.

Malliotakis added: "Over the past two years, we've seen a disturbing trend in progressive district attorneys in cities across the country who are refusing to prosecute violent criminal offenders. Why create more laws when the ones we have aren't being enforced?"

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