Congress is back in session after its Independence Day recess, resuming the contentious debate over gun reform that prompted House Democrats to stage a sit-in last month. House Speaker Paul Ryan gave a press conference today to address what many see as a frustrating lack of congressional action, taking a copy of the constitution out of his pocket to underscore a key reason why Republicans haven’t budged on gun reform: the second amendment.
“We are not going to compromise the constitution,” Ryan said. “We are not going to infringe upon anyone’s rights without due process.”
Massachusetts Congressman Michael Capuano, who participated in the sit-in, spoke to Boston Public Radio Wednesday to weigh in on the future of gun legislation.
“We’ve had dozens of meetings and conversations and group calls, trying to figure out what’s next,” he said. “Most importantly, we respectfully asked the Republican leadership to put these [gun control] bills on the Floor. Defeat them if they want to, but at least give us the opportunity to vote on them, and I’m not sure that’s going to happen. They’ve talked about putting a few bills on the Floor, but those bills are shams, to be perfectly honest. They pretend to do something, but in fact, don’t.”
Though he believes Republicans are hampering the voting process, Capuano doesn’t see the sit-in, which could put Democrats in hot water, as an obstruction.
“We came here to vote on legislation. That’s what we’re trying to do. The intent is not to disrupt. The intent is to simply allow a vote,” Capuano said. “Even if [Republicans] allow the vote, they have the votes to defeat us. That would satisfy me —at least let them go home and explain that to their own voters. In the meantime, we’re trying to get along, in the sense of at least trying to get issues on the floor for a debate, and we’re going to continue doing that. Disruption is not the first choice; it is the last choice, and at the moment, I personally think that we’ve made our point, where the entire country is talking about this issue.”
To hear the full interview with Congressman Capuano, click on the audio link above.
