 Guns are now the leading cause of death among children and teens. But the last time the machine was killing so many kids, it was the automobile. And we actually did something about it. Let me explain. It is a strange contrivance. It is the automobile. The introduction of the automobile to our communities was an amazing and drastic change for Americans. But this incredible technology was also extremely dangerous. In the 1920s, 60% of deaths from automobiles were children under the age of nine. There were no stop signs or street lights, no speed limits or seat belts. We learned from those tragedies. And as cars changed, so did our laws. We made the roads safer. We made the cars smarter. We created laws to prevent driving. We made everybody take a driver's test to get a driver's license. And it worked. When this country was founded, a musket could fire only three rounds a minute. Today an AR-15 can fire more than 45 rounds a minute. Does all that sound familiar? I grew up in this culture. I was 10 years old when I first got a 22. 14 when I first fired a 410 shotgun. Most of those people would never do anything to endanger an innocent life. They have been terrified into thinking that if they agree to the most simple, straightforward, obvious, non-interfering mechanisms, somehow it's the beginning of a slippery slope that will rob them of their Second Amendment rights. It's not true. In 1994, I signed an assault weapons ban and a magazine limit. Because if the American people do not feel safe on their streets, in their schools, in their homes, in their places of work and worship, then it is difficult to say that the American people are free. The bill was supported by Democrats and some Republicans. You know what happened next? Mass shootings went down a lot. It was part of a 25-year low in crime and a 33-year low in the murder rate. In fact, a recent study found that Americans were 70% less likely to die in a mass shooting during the decade the assault weapons ban was in effect. Then Congress let the assault weapons ban expire in 2004 and they went right back up those mass shootings and they've just kept going. You remember those Geico commercials with the caveman? You know, it's so simple even a caveman could understand it. Well, it is. Fewer assault weapons equals fewer deaths. You don't just have to take my word for it. When I signed the assault weapons ban in the law, three former presidents, Jimmy Carter and two Republicans, Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, wrote a letter to Congress in support of it. I do believe that an AK-47, a machine gun, is not a sporting weapon. They called it a matter of vital importance to the public safety. They were right then and they're still right today. We must act now. Enough is enough.