Florida Democratic Rep. Stephanie Murphy says she's "heartened" by meeting with Trump
U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Florida, joined CBSN Wednesday night to discuss potential gun legislation options facing Congress as the gun debate amps up in Washington after the Parkland, Florida school shooting on Feb. 14 that left 17 students dead in her state. Murphy joined President Trump and other lawmakers at the White House Wednesday afternoon for a bipartisan discussion on school safety and gun-related measures.
In that meeting, Mr. Trump accused some members of Congress of being "petrified of the NRA."
"I was really heartened to hear the president open to a wide variety of solutions, because we owe it to our communities to do something and to act," Murphy said on CBSN from the Russell Rotunda in the Capitol.
Murphy said she and others have the president's "commitment" to see reforms through to the end.
Murphy is a sponsor of the Gun Violence Research Act, which she brought up in the meeting with the president. The bill would allow the Department of Health and Human Services to use federal funds to advocate for gun control, which is currently prohibited under the 2016 Consolidated Appropriations Act.
"I believe that good policy is based on good data and good information," Murphy said. "Too often our conversation about preventing gun violence is ideologically driven, anecdotally driven. We need good data, good research to address this issue and make sure that our communities are safer. I'm really heartened to see that since the Parkland shooting that this bill has become a bipartisan bill."
There are now more than 130 cosponsors of her bill.
"At the end of the day, we need facts to break through this politically charged conversation," she added.