Durbin Discusses Preventing Gun Violence With Former Rep. Gabby Giffords

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, met with former Representative Gabby Giffords and Emma Smith, Executive Director forGIFFORDS Law Center, to discuss laws, policies, and programs to prevent gun violence.

"It's always a pleasure to meet with former Congresswoman Giffords and her team at GIFFORDS. Gabby turned immense trauma and pain into selfless action in all 50 states, and we had a productive conversation on the path forward to continue tackling the issue of gun safety reform during a second Trump Administration. Gun violence is a stain on America, and together we can work to rid it from our communities," said Durbin.

Photos from the meeting are available here.

Durbin has led efforts in Congress to combat gun violence. Durbin was a strong supporter of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA), which cracks down on straw purchasing and gun trafficking, expands background checks for buyers under 21 years of age, takes steps to close the "boyfriend loophole," supports state red flag laws, and offers billions in funding for counseling, mental health, and trauma support forvictims of gun violence.

Durbin is also a staunch advocate for the Assault Weapons Ban and additional gun safety measures. Since BSCA was signed into law, Durbin has held a full committee hearing on public safety and gun safety laws in a post-Bruen America; filed an amicus brief in opposition to legal challenges in U.S. v. Rahimi, in which the Supreme Court ultimately ruled to uphold a ban on firearm possession for domestic violence offenders; condemned the Supreme Court decision in Garland v. Cargill, which ruled a bump stock does not convert a rifle into a machine gun; and introduced legislation to curb firearms trafficking enabled by weak American gun laws, among other efforts.

-30-

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Tweet