Hoyer Discusses Brexit Vote, House Democrats’ Sit-In to Demand Action on Gun Violence on MSNBC

WASHINGTON, DC – House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) discussed the United Kingdom’s vote to leave the European Union and House Democrats' sit-in to demand action on gun violence on MSNBC. Below are excerpts from the interview and a link to the video:

Click here to watch the video.

“I was very disappointed at the vote in Great Britain. I think it is a simplistic response to what is a complicated world. We need to work together. We need to have strong alliances. And I am hopeful that this vote will not lead to a British withdrawal or exclusion from working together cooperatively with their European allies. That is absolutely essential if we are going to have stability in the fiscal market. And we see great instability now because the markets don’t know exactly what this means and, as a result, there is a retreat, which obviously undermines the marketplaces and economies. And politically, we need a strong alliance so that those who would threaten us from a national security standpoint or international security standpoint will understand that there is still close cooperation of a number of great powers in the world to keep security and peace. I think this is a disappointing step, and it would be extraordinarily disappointing to follow the policies proposed by Donald Trump of withdrawal, and as Vice President Biden said building walls and not bridges… I hope that the American people will reject a campaign based upon fear and retrenchment from engagement with the rest of the world.”  

“We have an epidemic of gun violence in the country. The Senate and the House are taking no action, none whatsoever. We have two simple bills to be put on the Floor for a vote. One, if you are on the no fly list, if you are a terrorist, or too dangerous to fly, you are too dangerous have a gun... Secondly, we need to have an enhanced oversight of who buys the guns. The NRA says guns don't kill people, people kill people. Well, if that's the case, we need to make sure the wrong people don't get guns. It is a people check, not a gun check. It is a people check. Who is going to buy weapons that can hurt people and kill a lot of people rapidly? .... This was about principle – about a deep commitment to making our country safer, to making our neighborhoods safer, and to making our people safer. Eighty-five to ninety percent of the American people agree with our position. Wouldn’t you think if 85 or 90% of Americans want a piece of legislation on the Floor to make their communities safer, that the leadership would put it on the Floor? That's what we were saying, that’s what we were asking for, and we will continue to do that.”