releases: https://medium.com/@RepBetoORourke/thoughts-on-sutherland-springs-793ab9af8317?source=rss-964ef69221bc------2
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| url | title | date | year | month | party | chamber | state | member_name | bioguide_id | domain | scraper | source | date_source | text | has_text | collected_at | updated_at |
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| https://medium.com/@RepBetoORourke/thoughts-on-sutherland-springs-793ab9af8317?source=rss-964ef69221bc------2 | Thoughts on Sutherland Springs | 2017-11-06 | 2017 | 2017-11 | Democrat | House | TX | Beto O'Rourke | O000170 | medium.com | legacy | Thoughts on Sutherland Springs Amy and I have struggled to explain to our children what happened in Sutherland Springs yesterday. And why this happens so often in our country. Another mass shooting, this time in our home state of Texas. I can’t help but admit to them that, for the time being, our country has decided to meet these acts of terror and mass murder as though they were natural disasters. Maybe we don’t know how to process something that is so completely out of line with the way the world is supposed to work. Or maybe this kind of terror is so common that we just assume that this is how the world actually works, and so it doesn’t really move us to change it. As a country, we are saddened, heartbroken. But, unless it happens directly to us or our family, we are also numb to it in any meaningful way. Lots of prayers offered. Words of condolence and encouragement. Collectively we conclude: this kind of thing just happens in our country. Just hope it doesn’t happen to us. There has got to be a more effective way to respond. Here are my thoughts. They begin with acknowledging that beyond God’s power, beyond fate and providence, we have a responsibility to each other. To protect each other, our children and the lives of those around us. These are human acts of terror and violence. There is a human solution to them beyond offering prayers. We know that guns designed to kill as many people as possible as quickly as possible — designed for use by militaries to kill enemy soldiers — will be used by some to kill people quickly, efficiently and effectively when they are sold to civilians in our communities. We know that without extensive background checks, applied to everyone, those who should not own firearms will have them and use them to kill others or themselves. We know that this country — with poor standards and access to mental health care; more intensely riven by partisan invective and divide than at any time since the Civil War; with more people feeling more isolated and separated than ever; missing the community and common purpose that used to define much more of our national experience — is not a healthy country. We also know that making laws to act on this knowledge is incredibly difficult. The focus on re-election, the acute sensitivity to pressure from the gun lobby, the acknowledgment that there is no one sure solution to prevent all gun violence and mass murders, stops most legislative efforts before they ever get started. The House of Representatives and the Senate owe this country a real discussion, debate and vote on these issues. In the five years I’ve been a member of Congress, despite my best efforts and those of millions of my fellow Americans, the leadership in those institutions has refused to do anything. Beyond the bills I’ve co-sponsored, the gun violence action we took on the floor of the House last year to try to move our colleagues out of their complacency and towards action, I will continue to do my best to find more ways to meet this crisis with the urgency it deserves. I’ll leave you with this — while in San Antonio exactly one week ago, families from Moms Demand Action shared their stories and told me that Las Vegas or Sandy Hook, Orlando or Aurora could happen here or anywhere if we didn’t act. Unfortunately, they were right — and it only took a matter of days. That’s why I want to work with you and everyone who is willing to join us to make sure that this does not continue to happen. In our towns, in Texas, or anywhere. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |