Must-See Moments From Today’s Congressional Hearing on Mass Shootings
The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Wednesday about the devastating effects of mass shootings in the United States. The mayor of Highland Park — the site of the July 4th shooting that killed 7 people — testified before the committee. But her words didn’t resonate with all the senators. See for yourself.
A Powerful Opening Video
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) opens the congressional hearing with a powerful two-minute video. The last slide reads, "This video was more than twice as long as it took the Highland Park shooter to fire 83 rounds."
A Heart-Wrenching Testimony
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) went on to share powerful testimony where she showed how easy assault weapons are to obtain, painted a picture of the victims' parents who couldn’t identify their children, and criticized the leading cause of death for young Americans.
GOP Avoids The Bigger Issue
While Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) made the “guns don’t hurt people, people hurt people'' argument, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) insisted that increasing law enforcement would prevent mass shootings.
Highland Park Mayor Takes the Stand
Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering sums up the U.S. mass shooting issue: "We know that there are mental health issues in other counties ... What's the differentiating factor? Combat weapons.”
Cornyn Scrolls His Phone
When it came time for witnesses to give their opening statements, Sen. Cornyn appeared to be more interested in his phone.
“ENOUGH”
Several attendees at the Senate hearing on mass shootings hold up signs with the names of gun violence victims followed by "ENOUGH" while Sen. Cornyn speaks.
