WASHINGTON, DC -- Today, Congressman Tom Tiffany (WI-07) issued the following statement after voting against a rushed, partisan gun control bill, H.R. 7910.
Shortly before approving the controversial package, House Democrats voted to block consideration of an alternative co-authored by Tiffany, which was designed to put pressure on soft-on-crime prosecutors who refuse to hold career criminals accountable.
“I am disappointed that Democrats chose to block a vote on my common-sense proposal today in the House,” said Congressman Tiffany. “Chipping away at the constitutional rights of hard-working, law-abiding Americans will not make our communities safer. There is a better way.”
Tiffany, along with Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11) and Rep. Michelle Fischbach (MN-07), attempted to force a vote on an alternative, H.R. 7967, the Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act. The plan would require prosecutors to report how often they follow through on holding criminals charged with violent crimes, like murder, rape, arson, crimes involving illegal guns, and motor vehicle theft, accountable.
The proposal would also mandate disclosures regarding how often prosecutors secure convictions, whether those charged were already on probation or parole, and how many offenders were released without bail.
House Democrats blocked consideration of Tiffany’s bill on a party-line vote.
Congressman Tiffany spoke on the House Floor in support of the Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act:
TIFFANY: "[I]t is no secret that crime is out of control in this country. Annual homicide records have been broken in at least a dozen major cities. Brazen smash and grab robberies in broad daylight are a daily occurrence. Killings, severe beatings, armed robberies, carjackings, sexual assaults, arson, and looting have become a common feature on the evening news.
"Yet rogue prosecutors in cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia, New York City, and Milwaukee, continue to release predators from custody almost as fast as the police can arrest them. The use of no cash bail policies, plea bargains, and a complete refusal to put dangerous repeat offenders behind bars has demoralized our police, endangered our communities, and America's most iconic cities resemble a third-world country.
"I'll give you an example in my home state, Milwaukee County, where we witnessed, back at Christmas, a massacre at the Waukesha County Christmas parade. Six people dead, 60 injured. How? With a guy that had a rap sheet that had felonies, misdemeanors, statutory rape, resisting arrest, strangulation on his sheet, and he was out on $1,000 bail.
"Here's the worst part though. That District Attorney, John Chisholm, in Milwaukee County. Here's what he said years ago about his philosophy, “Is there going to be an individual I divert or put into treatment program who's going to go out and kill somebody? You bet, guaranteed; it's guaranteed to happen. It does not invalidate the overall approach.” That's what we have for district attorneys around the United States.
"Americans are sick and tired of the lawlessness, and they are demanding accountability."
Last Update: Jun 09, 2022 7:50 am CDT
