Blunt Rochester Leads Education and Workforce Committee Democrats Call For Secretary DeVos to Clarify Testimony on Gun Violence and School Safety
Washington,
June 8, 2018
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Kyle Morse
(202-695-0494)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester (DE-AL) and Education and Workforce Committee Democrats sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos seeking clarification regarding her testimony on gun safety in schools. This week, Secretary DeVos testified before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), Education, and Related Agencies regarding President Donald Trump’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Education Budget Request. During an exchange with Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, DeVos stated that it was not the role of the Federal Commission on School Safety to study gun violence. “I’ve met with students, teachers, administrators, and parents who are rightly concerned about the frequency of school shootings and the availability of dangerous firearms in their communities. The administration took a step in the right direction by creating the Federal Commission on School Safety, but ignoring completely the role guns play is misguided and potentially dangerous,” said Congresswoman Blunt Rochester. “The administration assured families gun safety measures would be examined, and Secretary DeVos’ testimony is a clear departure from that promise. My colleagues and I on the Education and Workforce Committee seek clarification from the secretary and the administration on the goals of the commission and urge them to recognize that a core element of creating safer school environments is addressing gun violence. We’ve got to put politics aside and put our students and communities first by taking a hard look at this epidemic.”
List of co-signers include:
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