RELEASE: Gottheimer, 100+ House Democrats Call on Speaker Johnson to Work Together & Address Gun Violence

WASHINGTON, D.C. — This week, U.S. Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5), a member of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, joined 130 House Democrats calling on Speaker Johnson to listen to the prayers of millions of Americans and take bipartisan action to end gun violence.

The letter follows the deadly school shooting at the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

Gun violence is the leading cause of death for children, teenagers, and law enforcement. In Speaker Johnson’s tenure as Speaker of the House, gun violence has killed nearly 75,000 people and injured more than 55,600. 

“Will this generation of Republican leaders pray not only for the victims, but also for the strength to end gun violence? Will this generation of Republican leaders look their children and grandchildren in the eyes knowing that they worked to protect them from the leading cause of death for kids and teens? Will this generation of Republican leadership protect kids from gun violence while praying, or at school, or in the grocery store, or at a parade…? Will this generation of Republican leaders join Democrats in action to protect our kids?” the Members wrote in a letter to Speaker Mike Johnson.

The Members continued, “Your actions and inactions will be judged for eternity both by all those who follow you in public office and by what Lincoln called ‘a just God.’ Join us in the essential cause of protecting American children from the brutal and unnecessary horrors of any more gun violence.”

For decades, Republicans and Democrats have worked together to pass bipartisan bills to help prevent gun violence:

• In 1934, Congress passed the National Firearms Act to regulate machineguns, silencers, sawed off shotguns and short barreled rifles because they were the weapons of choice for gangsters.
• In 1993, Congress passed the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act which required background checks. 
• In 1994, Congress passed the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act, which temporarily restricted access to certain classes of extraordinarily dangerous firearms and large capacity magazines. 
• In 2022, Congress passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act which expanded background checks for 18–20-year-olds, cracked down on gun traffickers, closed a loophole exploited by domestic abusers, funded school mental health and encouraged the expansion of state red flag laws. 
• These bills saved lives, but more action is needed. 

Full text of the letter to Speaker Mike Johnson can be found here and below: 

Dear Speaker Johnson,

Since you were elected as Speaker of the House on October 25, 2023, more than 74,640 people in our country have been killed and another 55,601 have been injured by gun violence. In response to the devastating school shooting in Minnesota while children were gunned down in prayer, former Republican Representative Trey Gowdy asked the question that millions of Americans are asking you: “I mean, how many school shootings does it take…” before we do something?

Gun violence is the leading cause of death for children, teenagers and law enforcement. This crisis is unsustainable and will be addressed by this generation of leaders or the next, but we are not bound to endure this pain forever.

In previous generations Republicans have joined Democrats in combatting gun violence.

In 1934, Congress passed the National Firearms Act to regulate machineguns, silencers, sawed off shotguns and short barreled rifles because they were the weapons of choice for gangsters. Leaders acted and saved lives.

In 1993, Congress passed the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act which required background checks. Leaders acted and saved lives.

In 1994, Congress passed the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act which temporarily restricted access to certain classes of extraordinarily dangerous firearms and large capacity magazines. Leaders acted and saved lives.

In 2022, Congress passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act which expanded background checks for 18–20-year-olds, cracked down on gun traffickers, closed a loophole exploited by domestic abusers, funded school mental health and encouraged the expansion of state red flag laws. Leaders acted and saved lives.

While each of these laws has reduced gun violence and saved lives, more action is needed now.

Scripture shows examples of leaders like Moses and David standing up to evil to protect their people. Their prayers were not passive but supported them to action.

Will this generation of Republican leaders pray not only for the victims, but also for the strength to end gun violence?

Will this generation of Republican leaders look their children and grandchildren in the eyes knowing that they worked to protect them from the leading cause of death for kids and teens?

Will this generation of Republican leadership protect kids from gun violence while praying, or at school, or in the grocery store, or at a parade…?

Will this generation of Republican leaders join Democrats in action to protect our kids?

Republicans are not bystanders in the gun violence epidemic. You control the White House, House and Senate. The President ended the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, made guns that fire like a fully automatic machinegun legal, and diverted law enforcement dedicated to fighting gun violence to other roles. The House and Senate are off to a terrible start spending $1.7 billion to make silencers, sawed off shotguns and short barreled rifles less expensive and proposing devastating cuts to the law enforcement agency that fights gun violence.

In your heart, we are sure that you already know the right thing to do. Former Representative Trey Gowdy, reflected on the terrible school shooting in Minnesota saying, “The only way to stop it is to identify the shooter ahead of time or keep the weapons out of their hands.”

As members of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, we have been working tirelessly on polices that keep people safe including keeping firearms out of the hands of those who are a danger to themselves or others; giving law enforcement and the courts the ability to intervene before a crisis has taken place; and restricting access to firearms and devices that are unacceptably dangerous like ghost guns, bump stocks or other devices and firearms that shoot dozens of rounds in seconds. 

Your actions and inactions will be judged for eternity both by all those who follow you in public office and by what Lincoln called “a just God.”. Join us in the essential cause of protecting American children from the brutal and unnecessary horrors of any more gun violence.

Sincerely, 

MEMBERS OF CONGRESS

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