Judiciary Community Committee hearing on gun violence and an initial statement will be given by former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords who was shot two years ago in arizona. Her husband, mark kelly will testify and wayne lapierre, executive Vice President and ceo of the nra. [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] [no audio] we have more than 200 people here today and hundreds more watching on our Committee Web cast. I expect everybody in this room to be respectful of the senators and the witnesses speaking about this very serious subject. I do not want applause for or against any position. The Capitol Police have been notified to remove any audience interference in an effort to have orderly conduct for that. That is a warning i give the many hearings. We will hear a lot of perspective on gun violence. I will give opening statements. But we have a former member of congress here, Gaby Giffords who will give a brief message and believed and captain kelly, thank you for your help in bringing your wife here. Ms. Giffords ok. Thank you for inviting me here today. This is an important conversation for our children, for our communities, for democrats and republicans. Speaking is difficult but i need to Say Something important. Violence is a big problem. Too many children are dying. Too many children. We must do something. It will be hard but the time is now. You must act. Be bold, be courageous, americans are counting on you. Thank you. Captain kelly, do you want to help . We will give you a few moments. [no audio] [no audio] we will return to the hearing. I think former congressman giffords and her husband. We will be calling up the witnesses shortly. Senator grassley and i will give our opening statements. On december 14, americas part was brokered 120 was broken when 20 Young Children and dedicated educators were murdered. This is the First Judiciary Committee in of the 113th congress. I want everybody here to join the discussion as part of a collective effort to find solutions to help insure that no family, no school, no community ever has to endorse such agree this tragedy again. We have to come together today as americans seeking common cause. I hope we can forgo sloganeering. It is too important for that. We should be here as americans. Every american abhors the recent tragedies. In just the last two years, an Elementary School in connecticut, a Movie Theater in colorado, a sacred place of worship in wisconsin, in front of a Shopping Mall in arizona, americans are looking to us for solutions and for action. This committee is a focal point for that process. I have introduced with having Law Enforcement agencies to enforce restricting gun trafficking. Others want to ban ammunition clips and others have proposed modifications to the background check system to keep guns out of the wrong hands while not unnecessarily burdening law abiding citizens. I am a lifelong vermonter. I know Gun Store Owners in vermont. They follow the law. They conduct background checks to prevent getting guns to those who should not have them. They wonder why others who sell guns to not have to follow the same protective rules. I agree with these responsible business owners. If we could all agree that criminals and those adjudicated mentally ill should not buy firearms, why should we not try to plug the loopholes in the law that allows them to buy guns without background checks . It is a simple matter of common sense. If we agree the background check system is worth while, shouldnt we try to improve its content and use it so it can be more effective . What responsible gun owner objects to improving the background check system . When i bought firearms in vermont, i go through the background check. I would expect everybody else, too. At the outset of this hearing, i note that the Second Amendment is secure and will remain secure and protected. In two recent cases, the Supreme Court has concerned that the has ruled that the Second Amendment secures a fundamental individual right. Merrick and have the right to self defense. They have the right to have guns in their homes to protect their families. No one can take away those rights or their guns. The second man that rights are the foundation on which our discussion rest. They are not at risk. What is at risk is lives. Lives are wrist when responsible people fail to follow laws to keep guns out of that hands of those who use them to commit murder, especially mass murders. I ask we focus our discussion on additional statutory measures to better protect our children and all americans. I say this as a parent and the grandparent. Ours is a free society, and open society. We come together today to consider how to become a safer and more secure society. No one begrudges the government assistance provided to victims of mass tragedies made possible by those law we passed after the bombing in oklahoma city. The bill introduced last week against gun trafficking will soon prove helpful and i believe it will become an accepted part of our free more. It, too, is commonsense reform. It fills a hole in our Law Enforcement arsenal. So that purchasers who procure weapons for criminals can be prosecuted more effectively. Last thursday, the u. S. Attorney for minnesota was nominated and we have two from his state on this committee. He nominated the u. S. Attorney to direct the committee. We will join a good faith to strengthen our Law Enforcement against gun violence and to protect Public Safety. As a responsible governor and someone who cherishes all of our Constitutional Rights, as a senator who has sworn an oath to uphold those rights, as a father and grandfather, and as a former prosecutor who has seen the results of gun violence firsthand in graphic detail, undertake these efforts in the hope that this hearing can build consensus around common sense solutions. Previous measures to close gun show loopholes or to improve the background check system have been bypassed. I hope in this new congress, further improvements will also become bipartisan. We could act together as americans. I have said what kind of measures i can propose. I will ask other senators to come forward and do as well. I will ask our witnesses what legislative proposals that support to make america safer and i think everybody here. For joining in todays discussion. Senator grassley . Mr. Chairman, thank you as well for this hearing. Thanks to everybody here who is here particularly our witnesses. What happened at newtown shocked our nation. We will never forget where we were or how we reacted when he learned that 20 very Young Children and six adults were killed that day or if we forgot about that specific incident, you dont forget about all the tragedies that have happened recently. As a grandfather and great grandfather, i cannot imagine how anyone would commit an evil act like that. I cannot ever begin to know what it would be like to be a relative of one of those slain children we pray for the families who continue to mourn the loss of loved ones. We pay for we pray for all victims of violence and guns by guns and otherwise. Violent crimes and those who commit them are a plague on our society, one that has been with us for far too long. We have looked at these issues before but i welcome this renewed discussion. I think the need for the Judiciary Committee to hold hearings after new town is very clear. All over america, people were appalled by what happened to those ball marble and precious victims. We all want sensible actions that could reduce the likelihood of future crimes. We have extended a special welcome to former congresswoman giffords who was doing what a conscientious representative should do and a whole lot of us do, taking the pulse of constituents to represent them in congress. She was representing the people of her Congressional District when gunmen opened fire. The shooting was a horrible tragedy of her determination to overcome her injuries, progress toward rehabilitation and continued contribution to society are an inspiration or at least should be to all of us. I thank her for being here today and with her husband, captain kelley. Although new town and to some are terrible tragedies, the deaths in newtown should not be used to put forward every gun control measure that has been floating around for years. The problem is greater than just guns alone and i think the chairmans speech indicates that as well. Any serious discussion of the causes of gun violence must include a complex reexamination of Mental Health as it relates to Mass Shootings. Society as a whole has changed as well and that statement is that it is difficult to measure but there is a lack of civility in American Society and that has grown considerably in the last couple of decades. You see it here in the congress as well when we are partisan and do not treat each other with the respect that we ought to. There are too many video games that celebrate mass killing of innocent people, games that despite attempts at industrys self regulation, find their aunt find a way into the hands of children. One videogame released in november, 2009, which has sold over 22 million copies was, for foreign distribution, because the opening level depicted shooting innocent civilians in an Airport Security line. This game was specifically cited in a manifesto of the norway mass shooter as part of my training simulation. Carrying out his attacks. Where is the artistic value of shooting innocent victims . I share of Vice President joe bidens disbelief of manufacture denial that these games have no affect on realworld violence spread above all, we should not pass legislation that will not reduce mass killing. Banning guns based on their appearance does not make sense. The 1994 assault weapon ban did not stop columbine. The Justice Department found the ban ineffective. Scholars have indicated that refining or expanding social legislation will not cut gun violence. I also question the limitation on magazine capacity. Those can be circumvented by carrying multiple guns as many killers have done. We hear that no one needs to carry larger magazines and those that hunters used to shoot deer is but an attacking criminal, and like a deer, shoots back. I do not think i think we may be able to Work Together to prevent straw purchasers from trafficking in guns. The oversight work i conducted on illegal operation fast and furious shows there are some gaps in this area of law that should be close. Beside legislative proposals, the president recently took 23 executive actions on guns. Without knowing exactly how they are worded, we cannot find fault with them. And we probably should not fall find fault with a lot of his actions. Despite this administrations claim to be the most transparent in history, the text of these actions is still not posted on the white house website, only very brief spate months about what they do. All those executive actions could have been issued years ago or after the tucson shooting or after aurora. Why only now . One statement directs the cdc to continue studies on gun violence. Congress has never prohibited cdc from researching gun violence rather, congress prevented federal research to advocate or promote gun control which some government researchers have been doing under the guise of taxpayer supported science. Had Congress Prohibited by gun violence research, the president could not legally directed cdc to conduct research. I was taken aback when the president cited the declaration of independence and constitution as sources of government power to restrict gun order shipwrights pri the constitution, in fact, create a limited federal government. It separates powers among branches of the federal government and preserve state power and federal power pretty framers believe the structures would adequately control the government so as to protect individual liberties but the American People disagree. They fear the constitution gave the federal money government told so much power, it could be tyrannical and violate individual rights of the bill of rights was added. Each of those rights, including the Second Amendment, was adopted to further limit government power and protect individual rights. President obamas remarks turned the constitution on its head. He said the right to worship freely and safely, that right was denied to sikhs in oak creek, wisconsin. The right to assemble peacefully was denied to those in oregon and moviegoers in colorado. That fundamental set of rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness or rights that were denied to College Students at Virginia Tech and High School Students in columbine an Elementary School students in newtown. This is not so. Except for its prohibition on slavery, the constitution only limits actions of government, not individuals. The right to peacefully assemble protect individual rights to organize, protest, and seek to change government action. That right is trivialized and missed characterized as protecting shopping and watching movies and those Constitutional Rights are not the source of governmental powers to enact legislation as the president suggested. In fact, just the opposite. They were included in the bill of rights because throughout history, governments have wanted to shut up those who would criticize government, to suppress unpopular religions, or disarm people. The president cited constitutional protections of individual rights as the basis for expanded federal power or lives of private individuals. This is the same president who exceeded his power under the constitution to appoint recess appointments. No wonder millions of americans fear the president might take executive action and congress may enact legislation that could lead to a tyrannical federal government. I cannot accept the president s claim that there will be politicians and special interests warning of tyrannical allout assault on liberty, not because that is true, but because they want to gin up fear. This understandably leads many citizens to figure that their individual rights will be violated. That extends well beyond the Second Amendment. It should be a matter of deep concern to all of us. The constitution for 225 years established a government that is a servant of the people, not the master. As we consider and debate legislation arising from these tragedies, i hope we will proceed with proper understanding of the relationship that the constitution established between government power and individual liberty and i hope we will pass those bills that will actually be effective in reducing gun violence i welcome the witnesses and look forward to this hearing, thank you very much. I would ask that captain mark kelly and chief James Johnson, mr. Carter and ms. Williams appear, sit behind europe stand behind your chair since were in for the panel one time. Please raise your right hand. Do you solemnly swear that the testimony you are given is the truth, altered, and nothing but the truth, so help me god . Let the record show that the witnesses have been sworn in. Take your seats and i will suggest that i will call on each witness and try to keep to very strict time and call on each one to give their testimony and then we will open for questions and the usual way, alternating on both sides. Our first witness is mark kelly. He is a retired astronauts and u. S. Navy capt. And he recently cofounded americans for responsible solutions. Says an Advocacy Group that promotes solutions to prevent gun violence and protect responsible gun ownership. He did it with his wife, former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Capt. Kelly, please go ahead, sir. Thank yo for inviting me here today. I look forward to a constructive and constructive dialogue with your committee. I want to take the opportunity to congratulate gays friend jeff flake as you know, our family has been immeasurably affected by gun violence. Gabys gift for speech as a distant memory. She struggles to walk. She is partially blind. A year ago, she left the job she loved, serving the people of arizona. In the past two years, we have watched her determination, spirit, and intellect, per disabilities. We are not here as victims. We are speaking to you today as americans. We are a lot like many of our fellow citizens following this debate about gun violence where moderates. , gaby was a republican long before she was a moderate. We take the responsibilities that come with it very seriously. We walked with horror when the news breaks to yet another tragic shooting. After 20 kids and six of their teachers were gunned down in their classrooms at sandy hook elementary, we said this time must be different. Something needs to be done. We are simply too reasonable americans who have said enough. On january 8 of 2011, a young man walked up to gaby at her constituent event in tucson, leveled his gun, and shot her through the head. He then turned it down the line and continued firing. In 15 seconds, he emptied his magazine. It contained 33 bullets and there were 33 wounds. As the shooter attended to reload, he fumbled, woman grabbed the Next Magazine and others restrained him. Gaby was the first victim. Chr