Rep. Joe Kennedy III, D-Mass., ripped into congressional Republicans for not doing enough to protect children from gun violence, the Sun Sentinel reports.
"Our children wake up every morning where nearly 100 lives will be lost to guns by the time they go to bed," Kennedy said. "And they hear a Republican Party say that is the price of freedom."
Kennedy's words came during a Broward County Democratic Party dinner on Saturday, according to the newspaper. The county is home to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where 17 people were killed during a shooting spree on Feb. 14.
Kennedy is the grandson of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy.
He praised the students from Stoneman Douglas, who "volunteer for the front lines while elected officials cower in the corner."
"Our kids, our children become our conscience," he said. "As our country puts its future on their small but sturdy shoulders, as their spines prove twice as strong as the adults meant to protect them, they join the countless boys and girls throughout our history, forced to be heroes before their time.
"Our nation's heart is with Broward County. There are no words for the tragedy your community has endured. There are no thoughts, no prayers, no promises, no platitudes that can possibly communicate how our hearts are broken alongside yours."
After the shootings, Kennedy publicly disagreed with many Republicans, who contend gun violence is more about mental health than gun control.
"People with mental illness are far more likely to be victims of crime than perpetrate them," Kennedy said.
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