Following Georgia’s Deadliest School Shooting, Congressman Dan Goldman Joins Oversight Committee Democrats in Call for a Hearing and Commonsense Legislation to Address Gun Violence

Since the Start of the 118th Congress, There Have Been More than 1000 Mass Shootings in the United States

Read the Letter Here

Washington, DC – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) joined Oversight Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (MD-08) and 16 of his Democratic committee colleagues in sending a letter to Chairman James Comer calling for the Oversight Committee to hold a hearing to address the gun violence epidemic plaguing this country following the Apalachee High School shooting in Winder, Georgia. According to reports, the 14-year-old gunman entered the school armed with an AR-15 firearm, the preferred tool of mass shooters, to kill his classmates.

“On Wednesday, America experienced another massacre by AR-15 in a public school. With two more students and two more teachers dead and nine wounded in Winder, Georgia, with their families and communities grieving and ripped apart by this violence, we wonder whether you agree it is now time to call a hearing to address why our nation sees rates of gun violence hundreds of times higher than the United Kingdom and why gun violence is now the leading cause of death for American children and teens,” the Members wrote.

In the 118th Congress, the Republican-led Committee has only held one hearing about a mass shooting and that hearing was entirely focused on the operational failures of the United States Secret Service. On July 22, 2024, Chairman Comer convened a hearing to examine the attempted assassination of Donald Trump that took the life of one person and critically injured two people.

Since January 3, 2023, the first day of the 118th Congress, there have been more than 1,000 mass shootings, with more than 70 of those mass shootings following the July 22 hearing. Even though the majority of Americans favor stricter gun laws, Chairman Comer and Republicans in Congress have failed to address this public health crisis which is the leading cause of death in children and teens.

“This Committee should show the American people that Congress can and will act to stop the devastation caused by AR-15s and other firearms every single day. We therefore urge you to convene a hearing this month about our gun violence epidemic and to discuss popular commonsense legislation, like a universal violent criminal background check and a ban on military-style assault weapons, to protect the lives of children at school, teachers, and the rest of the American people,” the Members concluded.

Read the letter here or below:

On Wednesday, America experienced another massacre by an AR-15 in a public school. With two more students and two more teachers dead and nine wounded in Winder, Georgia, with their families and communities grieving and ripped apart by this violence, we wonder whether you agree it is now time to call a hearing to address why our nation sees rates of gun violence hundreds of times higher than the United Kingdom and why gun violence is now the leading cause of death for American children and teens. 

Do you agree that it is time for Congress to act to stop these atrocities, or do you think it is time for us to continue to do nothing at all?

Not doing anything in response to another firearm attack at a school would send the message that we think this kind of savage gun violence in schools is normal and acceptable.

We know we don’t have a lot of time left in this Congress, but it is hard to think of a more pressing public policy problem than gun violence.

Would you, as Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, convene a hearing to examine the causes of—and best solutions to address—the gun violence epidemic plaguing our country?

Details are still emerging about the events of this most recent mass shooting in Georgia. It is clear, however, that the 14-year-old shooter—who is not even old enough to legally drive a car—obtained from his father an “AR-15-style” firearm to kill his classmates and teachers. As you know, AR-style rifles are now the preferred weapon of mass shooters.

The Committee has only held one hearing this Congress about a mass shooting and that hearing was entirely focused on the operational failures of the United States Secret Service. On July 22, 2024, you convened a hearing to examine the attempted assassination of Donald Trump that took the life of one person and left two others critically injured. We joined you in calling not only for that hearing but for the resignation of the Secret Service Director for her outrageous failure to answer the most basic questions about the Secret Service operational failures on that day. We also said that we were right to seek dramatic improvements in the protective posture of the Secret Service in keeping presidential candidates safe from gun violence.

But we also asked what we are planning to do to keep the rest of the population safe from mass gun violence.

It is a serious dereliction of duty for this Committee—and the Republican-led House Representatives—to act to protect presidential candidates from gun violence but do nothing at all to protect the rest of the American people whom the president serves. When a former president is nearly assassinated in an AR-15 mass shooting, we don’t simply call it a “fact of life,” offer casual “thoughts and prayers,” and then move on.10 When a president is targeted by a mass shooter wielding an AR-15, we call hearings, analyze the problem, and act to reduce the risks of another attack.

Since the beginning of the 118th Congress on January 3, 2023, there have been more than 1,000 mass shootings in America.11 And, just since the hearing in July, the United States has seen more than 70 additional mass shootings.12 In June, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared that the soaring number of children killed by firearms has created an “urgent public health Crisis.”

This Committee should show the American people that Congress can and will act to stop the devastation caused by AR-15s and other firearms every single day. We therefore urge you to convene a hearing this month about our gun violence epidemic and to discuss popular commonsense legislation, like a universal violent criminal background check and a ban on military-style assault weapons, to protect the lives of children at school, teachers, and the rest of the American people.

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