BREAKING NEWS: Senate Democratic Leaders Tout Attempt To Pass Federal Ban On Bump Stocks
Senate Democratic leaders hold their weekly press briefing.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Thank you.
00:05All right, good afternoon to everyone.
00:08I'm proud to be joined by Senators Murray, Stabenow, and Rosen.
00:13So later today, the Senate's going to have a chance to make our community safer.
00:20That is if Republicans still believe what they said a few years ago.
00:24Martin Heinrich will come to the floor and attempt to pass a federal ban on bump stocks.
00:32I'm also proud to support it.
00:35As you know, the MAGA Supreme Court reversed a Trump ruling to ban bump stocks, a radical
00:41decision that endangers our communities and law enforcement.
00:46Last week's decision is another warning that this MAGA Court is going off the deep end
00:52on issue after issue, aligning with the most extreme elements of the hard right.
00:58I'll let Senator Rosen explain how deeply heart-wrenching this decision is, as she knows
01:04too well.
01:06So today's UC, it's not a life-saving, it's not a simple choice, it's a life-saving one.
01:13I beg our Republican colleagues to truly reflect on the ramifications of today's UC.
01:21On reproductive freedom, yesterday I took the first step for the Senate to vote on the
01:26Reproductive Freedom for Women Act, led by Senator Murray, and co-sponsored not just
01:31by me, but every single female Democratic Senator.
01:35The measure affirms a woman's fundamental right to choose, calls for enshrining the
01:40protections of rowing to law, which most Americans support.
01:45As Majority Leader, I'll work with my colleagues to bring it to the floor as soon as possible.
01:50Our crusade on reproductive rights will continue when we return to session after the July 4th
01:57break.
01:58As we approach the anniversary, two-year anniversary, of Roe v. Wade being overturned, this month
02:04was meant to be one of bipartisanship, when the Senate came together to protect the rights
02:09of millions of Americans' reproductive freedoms.
02:13Could have been a month when both sides came together to pass common-sense legislation
02:17protecting reproductive care, like contraception and IVF.
02:22Could have been a month when we put to rest the worries of millions of Americans across
02:26America enduring attacks on their reproductive freedoms in the aftermath of Roe.
02:32But instead, June has been a month of MAGA Republicans showing their true colors as their
02:38attacks on women, on families, on reproductive rights comes to light.
02:44They were told by some of their right-wing pro-life leadership, keep your mouth shut.
02:50We're going to force them to vote.
02:51If they don't want to talk about it, if they run away from questions when you ask them,
02:55they're still going to have to vote.
02:57And that's what matters most to the American people.
03:01In the last few weeks, Senate Republicans have shown that for all their attempts to
03:06sound moderate on reproductive care when it comes to voting, they choose MAGA extremism
03:11over the American people.
03:16So when Republicans blocked federal protection for contraception a few weeks ago, they chose
03:22MAGA extremism over the American people.
03:25When Republicans blocked federal protections for IVF a few days ago, they chose MAGA extremism
03:31over the American people.
03:33And when Donald Trump to this day continues to brag about working with the Senate Republicans
03:38to confirm three hard right vehemently anti-choice Supreme Court justices to eliminate Roe, that's
03:44choosing MAGA extremism over the American people.
03:48But we're telling our Republican colleagues, you cannot run away from the truth.
03:54Your record on women's health care is outright abysmal, shameful, and out of step with most
04:00Americans.
04:01Senator Murray.
04:02Thank you.
04:03Leader Schumer.
04:04You know, the American people have seen a really sharp contrast when it comes to reproductive
04:09rights over the past few weeks.
04:12Democrats introduced legislation to protect the right to birth control.
04:16Republicans voted no.
04:18Democrats introduced legislation to protect the right to IVF.
04:23Republicans voted no.
04:24And don't forget twice we have tried to pass legislation restoring Roe.
04:29And twice Republicans refused.
04:31So yesterday we introduced a bill that simply says women should be free to make their own
04:37health care decisions.
04:39It couldn't be more basic.
04:40I mean, if you care at all, even a little, about letting women make decisions about their
04:45own pregnancies that are right for them and their families, you should support that bill.
04:50Republicans are probably going to try to spin this, but make no mistake, we are going to
04:54put them on the record.
04:56If Republicans want to call this a messaging bill, well, the message is simple.
05:01Here is who stands for reproductive freedom, and here is who does not.
05:06And if Republicans want to pretend there is no threat to reproductive rights, well, no
05:10one is falling for that shtick.
05:13Not when so many Republicans support extreme fetal personhood laws that treat a frozen
05:19embryo the same as a living, breathing person.
05:23Not when Republicans are listening to quote-unquote experts who think birth control like IUDs
05:29are the same as abortion.
05:31Not when they have written something like Project 2025, which I spoke about earlier
05:36today.
05:37It is a literal plan for Trump to attack abortion nationwide.
05:42And we certainly are not going to let Republicans off the hook when we are already living with
05:47the painful reality inflicted on women by Republicans' anti-abortion extremism.
05:53Truly heartbreaking stories have been making national news ever since Dobbs.
05:58We've seen them all.
05:59We will never forget them.
06:00And as I said at our HALP hearing a few weeks ago, a forced pregnancy does not have to make
06:06headlines to make someone's life a living hell.
06:10This is not going to go away.
06:12If Republicans are going to force women to stay pregnant, we are going to force them
06:17to be honest with the American people about their extreme position.
06:22And Democrats are going to keep fighting to restore the rights the American people have
06:27been so clear that they want back.
06:33Monday is the two-year anniversary of the decision to rip away women's reproductive
06:39freedoms in this country through the Dobbs decision made by the Trump Supreme Court.
06:45So now, at this moment, my daughter has fewer freedoms than I have had.
06:51My two little granddaughters have less freedoms in making their own decisions than I had.
06:59This is serious.
07:00It's not a sideshow.
07:02It's not a side issue.
07:04It's a fundamental issue.
07:05And since the fall of Roe, they've continued their assault, as we've heard, on access to
07:12birth control, to IVF, to severe and total restrictions on abortion.
07:19In fact, today, one out of three women of childbearing age live in a state with extreme
07:27and dangerous Trump abortion bans.
07:31And they want that to be everywhere.
07:35That is the goal, whether it's legislatively or by using a hundred-year-old law to try
07:42to create a way for Trump to do it administratively.
07:47In our state of Michigan, two years ago, we worked really hard.
07:50We put together a ballot initiative, put it on the ballot to protect our reproductive
07:57freedoms in Michigan, to make our own decisions.
08:00And it passed.
08:01Overwhelmingly, it passed, including creating not only a re-election of our governor, Democratic
08:09governor, but for the first time in 40 years, a Democratic House and Democratic Senate.
08:14Why?
08:15Because they wanted to make sure those freedoms were protected.
08:18And the state laws were changed, and it became very clear.
08:23So people in Michigan think we're OK.
08:26But unfortunately, with a national abortion ban or Donald Trump re-elected and doing something
08:32administratively, we're not OK.
08:35Nobody's OK in this country.
08:38Not one state, whether you're in a state that has state laws or a state constitution
08:44protecting your freedoms, or whether you're in a state that does not.
08:49The reality is that none of that will matter.
08:54And every woman in every state is at risk.
08:58So this is an all-hands-on-deck moment.
09:02My colleagues and I have been working with President Biden and Vice President Harris
09:05to protect our reproductive freedoms.
09:09And that's why, frankly, we have been holding the votes that Senator Schumer talked about
09:13in terms of the right to birth control.
09:16Can't believe I'm saying that in 2024, the right to birth control in our country, the
09:21right to IVF to start or expand your family.
09:26And they have stopped us at every step.
09:29And now we're going to see.
09:31The next vote will be on protecting the basic reproductive freedoms for women in this country,
09:38and we'll see where they stand.
09:40For us, we know where we stand.
09:43Democrats are working every day to defend our freedom to make decisions about our own
09:49health.
09:50Not a politician.
09:52Not a judge.
09:55The women of this country should have the freedom to make our own decisions about our
10:00own health, our lives, and our futures.
10:04And we're not going to give up until we have those freedoms fully protected.
10:08Well, thank you, Senators Schumer, Murray, and Stabenow.
10:18But before I turn back to the issue of reproductive rights, I want to quickly address the Supreme
10:23Court's recent decision on bump stocks.
10:27My community, my city, my state were forever changed on 1 October and saying that banning
10:34bump stocks solves a fake problem.
10:38It's disgraceful and it's offensive.
10:41We lost Nevadans that day.
10:4360 people were killed in the largest mass shooting in American history.
10:48Families were torn apart.
10:50For us, the carnage created by bump stocks is very real.
10:56So shame on anyone who says it's a fake problem.
11:02The Trump era ban was common sense and it saved lives.
11:06We now have a responsibility to make it permanent in federal law.
11:10And I call on all of my colleagues to let this legislation move forward today.
11:17Now I'm going to talk about another critically important issue for Nevadans.
11:23Returning Roe v. Wade was just the beginning of the nonstop attacks against reproductive
11:28freedom.
11:30In the years since, anti-choice politicians have pushed and pushed to restrict reproductive
11:35rights and ban abortion, including by passing a national abortion ban.
11:40They want to pass a national abortion ban right here in Congress.
11:45I've lived in Las Vegas for 50 years and I'd bet the House that anti-choice Senate Republicans
11:51will vote to ban abortion nationwide if they're given the chance.
11:55And so just because many of them are suddenly, they're just suddenly changing their tune,
12:00they're refusing to talk about this issue, it does not mean they won't vote for a nationwide
12:06abortion ban as soon as they're given the chance.
12:10So if you believe the extremists who pushed for years to overturn Roe, if you believe
12:14the extremists who said they were 100% life, those same extremists who advocated for state
12:22bans now agree in an election year not to pass a national abortion ban, well, I have
12:29some oceanfront property in Las Vegas to sell you.
12:33None of us here, none of us here will be fooled by their cover-ups of their anti-choice records.
12:41Instead, Senate Democrats are going to keep working to restore Roe.
12:47We'll keep working to protect access to birth control and we'll keep working to protect
12:52IVF for those folks who want to start a family.
12:57And we'll keep fighting to make sure that women and not extreme politicians have the
13:03freedom to make their own health care decisions.
13:07Thank you.
13:08Okay.
13:09Are you ready?
13:10Yes.
13:11The lady over there.
13:12Yeah.
13:13In the flower dress with a lot of colors.
13:14I think it's flowers.
13:16Prime Minister Netanyahu released a video today, very critical of President Biden, saying
13:24it's inconceivable that he held up that piece of the shipment.
13:28Are you at all concerned that he's going to use the venue here of the Capitol to just
13:33criticize the president and Democrats?
13:35Look, first, the administration is reviewing that particular equipment.
13:39And after that, they sent over a billion dollars in aid to Israel.
13:44I've always had four goals in terms of Israel policy.
13:47One, Hamas must be radically reduced.
13:49Two, we must free the hostages.
13:51Three, we've got to provide as much aid to the Gazan people as we can to help them in
13:56the humanitarian crisis.
13:58And fourth, we ought to minimize civilian casualties.
14:01Yes, lady over there with the glasses.
14:04Yeah, you.
14:05She doesn't have glasses.
14:06She doesn't have glasses.
14:09Following the poll vote today and Judge Kassabai, do you have any concerns that Republicans
14:13are ramping up attacks on judicial nominees ahead of the election?
14:17Well, today wasn't only a attendance problem.
14:21We had a number of people out for a number of different reasons.
14:24But we're going to keep moving forward on judicial nominees.
14:26And even when we haven't gotten Republican cooperation, in many instances, while we have
14:31a record number of judicial nominees that we have nominated and put on the bench.
14:36So I'm very proud of that.
14:37Yes, Burgess.
14:38Is it too late, do you think, in this year to pass the House's bipartisan tax deal?
14:44Is that dead in the Senate at this point?
14:46Look, as you know, I supported it the minute it was announced.
14:50I think it's a good bill.
14:51I was very proud that I pushed hard and got into the bill, the low-income housing tax
14:56credit near and dear to me, very important to my state.
15:00Now I'm currently working with Chairman Wyden to try and get something done.
15:05It's not dead.
15:06Leader Schumer?
15:07Yes.
15:08Leader Schumer, there's been a rise in these deepfake videos.
15:11There's an issue with deepfake pornography, which some of your colleagues have introduced
15:15a bipartisan bill.
15:17In terms of it also being a problem with President Biden, with some of these videos being taken
15:22out of context, what can Congress do to try and solve this problem, and how quickly can
15:26you act on it?
15:27As you know, Senator Klobuchar, in terms of the elections issue, has passed a number
15:31of bills out of committee.
15:33One was unanimous, two did have bipartisan support, and we're going to look for a way
15:37to move those bills forward.
15:39Very important bills to us.
15:40Yes, Sahil?
15:41If Republicans block the bump stop you see today, do you expect to bring that bill up
15:45through the regular process on the floor?
15:47Look, we hope that our Republican colleagues will see the light and not block the bill
15:51today.
15:52As I said, many of them were extremely supportive of this when President Trump did it as a regulation.
15:57And I'm just shocked that the Supreme Court, you know, Donald Trump is hardly a friend
16:02of gun safety, but I'm just shocked that the Supreme Court would be even to the right of
16:06him.
16:07I promised Mr. CNN I'd call on you when I didn't answer.
16:10I had a question about the judge, actually.
16:13Well, sorry.
16:14Leader Schumer.
16:15We're going to bring up the judge soon.