As news of yet another school shooting broke on Wednesday afternoon, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) interrupted the Senate’s discussion of immigration to sound off on gun violence.

I’m coming to floor to talk about something else, but let me just note once again for my colleagues — this happens nowhere else other than the United States of America. This epidemic of mass slaughter, this scourge of school shooting after school shooting — it only happens here not because of coincidence, not because of bad luck, but as a consequence of our inaction. We are responsible for a level of mass atrocity that happens in this country with zero parallel anywhere else. As a parent, it scares me to death that this body doesn’t take seriously the safety of my children, and it seems like a lot of parents in south Florida are going to be asking that same question later today. We pray for the families and for the victims. We hope for the best.

As Murphy noted, the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida is already the 19th school shooting in 2018.


In 2012, Murphy was a member of the House representing a district including Newtown, Connecticut, where 20 elementary school students and six school employees were gunned down at the Sandy Hook Elementary School.