Source: United States Senator for New Jersey Cory Booker
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement:
“I applaud President Biden for taking action to make our children and communities safer through this executive order, which includes increasing the number of background checks conducted before firearm sales, expanding the use of red flag laws, supporting law enforcement efforts to identify and apprehend shooters, and strengthening accountability for gun manufacturers.
“Today’s executive order is an important step forward that will save lives, but executive action alone cannot solve this problem and there is no substitute for legislative action. Throughout my time in the Senate, I have worked with my colleagues on many of these issues, including legislation to implement universal background checks, prevent gun manufacturers from advertising to children, and increase states’ ability to develop red flag laws.
“We owe the victims of gun violence and their families real justice and the promise that no other family will have to go through what they have been through. That means that Congress has to muster the political will to pass laws that will truly help protect our communities and save lives.”
Since his early days in public service, Booker has seen the devastating impact of gun violence first-hand. He is the only Senator who goes home to a low-income community that is disproportionately affected by violent crime caused by the easy availability of guns. As a result, Booker has been a forceful advocate for common-sense gun safety laws during his time in the Senate. He first introduced the Federal Firearm Licensing Act in 2019. He has also introduced the groundbreaking Break the Cycle of Violence Act that would provide federal grants to communities for evidence-based gun violence intervention and joined colleagues in introducing an Assault Weapons Ban. He was also a part of a bipartisan group of 20 Senators who signed on to a framework outlining the proposal to address the gun violence epidemic that resulted in the passage of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act in 2022.