Fighting America’s Gun Epidemic

Hello Friend,

We're just 33 days into the new year and an alarming 1,090 men and women have already been killed by gun violence across the country. This is an epidemic that demands immediate action.

There is no perfect solution for ending all gun violence, but we know from the experiences of other countries that a combination of small but practical policy solutions can severely reduce it. That is why we need to strengthen our background check system and eliminate the exploitation of its weaknesses by those who want to do harm. We also need to crack down on the illegal gun market by improving gun tracking data and ban powerful assault weapons and high-capacity magazines designed to inflict as many deaths as possible.

This month, I introduced the bipartisan NICS Denial Notification Act with my colleague, Congressman Patrick Meehan. The legislation will help law enforcement better enforce current gun laws and ensure that guns stay out of the wrong hands. The bill establishes an alert system to notify state and local law enforcement when criminals break the law attempting to acquire a gun. It also calls for a federal study of background check denials, which will help develop a risk-assessment tool for law enforcement to use in identifying denied gun purchasers who pose a higher risk for future violence.

While I am proud to support President Obama's executive actions on gun violence, I believe now it is time for Congress to heed the president's call to take action. Gun violence is an everyday reality for many Americans, and that reality needs to change.

Moving forward, I will continue to do all I can to push for commonsense gun laws that reduce gun violence. Join me in changing the gun violence epidemic in our country by sharing this message on Facebook, Twitter, or forwarding this email to others.

Sincerely,

Mike Quigley