House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called for the creation of a special committee on gun violence Monday, in the wake of the mass shooting at a country music festival in Las Vegas Sunday evening.
WATCH SANDERS DISCUSS GUN LEGISLATION:
In a letter written to House Speaker Paul Ryan, she argued Congress needs to pass the King-Thompson legislation — spearheaded by Democratic Rep. Mike Thompson of California and GOP Rep. Peter King of New York — which would expand the background check system to cover all commercial firearm sales, and establish the committee in an attempt to prevent future instances of gun violence.
“I urge you to create a Select Committee on Gun Violence to study and report back common sense legislation to help end this crisis,” Pelosi wrote. “The bipartisan committee would make recommendations to prevent unspeakable tragedies such as the mass shooting in Las Vegas and to restore confidence in the safety of our communities.”
At least 58 people were killed and more than 500 were injured during the attack. Pelosi said that strides need to be taken to prevent gun-related fatalities in the United States, adding that nearly 12,000 Americans have died in mass shootings in 2017.
“Congress has a moral duty to address this horrific and heartbreaking epidemic,” she said. “Charged with the solemn duty to protect and defend the American people, we must respond to these tragedies with courage, unity and decisive action.”
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