Brady/MMM Commends Kerry, Kucinich for Standing up to the NRA
Originally published at Join Together
Brady/MMM Commends Kerry, Kucinich for Standing up to the NRA
10/27/2003
Press Release
The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence
United With the Million Mom March
1225 Eye Street
Washington, DC 20005
www.bradycampaign.org
Contact:
Peter Hamm
Phone: 202-898-0792
Washington, DC - Michael Barnes, President of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence united with the Million Mom March, issued the following statement commending Senator John Kerry and Representative Dennis Kucinich's comments on gun issues in Sunday's presidential debate:
"Senator John Kerry and Representative Dennis Kucinich demonstrated very strongly last night at the Democratic debates that candidates need to show they won't stand for the extremist gun lobby's assault on America's basic gun safety protections. I want to commend the two candidates for using their concluding remarks to call attention to the radical efforts being pursued by the extreme gun lobby right now in our nation's capitol. The gun lobby's push to end the ban on assault weapons and to secure sweeping legal immunity for the gun industry are shameful and should be stopped."
"The ban on assault weapons will expire next year if the president and Congress fail to act. An overwhelming majority of Americans want to keep AK-47s and UZIs off our streets and out of our neighborhoods. Candidates for public office should stand with the majority of Americans for sensible safety protections. America's families need leaders who will fight the gun lobby's radical agenda. Thank you, Senator Kerry and Representative Kucinich, for standing with the American people."
Following are excerpts of the concluding remarks made by the two candidates in last night's Democratic Presidential Debate in Detroit:
Senator Kerry: "There's a front-page story in today's Washington Post that says that Democrats are going to try to run away from the issue of gun safety.
"I don't think that we can get elected nationally if we are not prepared to stand up against powerful special interests and make it clear that, whether it's the NRA or any other special interest, we're prepared to stand for our principles.
"All across this country, we have too many people who die each year from guns. So let me make it plain: I am for the assault weapons ban. I'm for the Brady Bill. I'm for making sure we stand up for gun safety in this country. We cannot be a party that retreats in an effort to try to court votes and not save lives."
Representative Kucinich: "This afternoon I met with a group of Detroit area activists who are called "To Save Our Sons and Daughters. Their sons and daughters had experienced death by great violence, usually by guns. And in the union hall where we met, there were pictures of the children spread across card tables and what they called me there to talk to me about is the war at home. The war at home.
"We have weapons of mass destruction we have to address here at home. And we need to address these problems here in our cities, and that's what my candidacy for President is all about."
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