House Dems stage a sit-in demanding vote on gun legislation

Source: RT

June 22, 2016 at 15:36

Over 40 House Democrats are taking part in the sit-in, led by John Lewis (D-Georgia).

Over 20 Democratic Representatives staged a sit-in on the floor of the House on Wednesday, demanding of the Republican leadership to allow a vote on gun control measures in the wake of the Orlando attack.

The sit in is being broadcast live via Periscope by lawmakers and their assistants after Republicans shut down cameras on the floor.

With official broadcasts suspended in the House, we’ve created a channel to follow #NoBillNoBreak on #Periscope live pic.twitter.com/1xM0QGqvzh
— Periscope TV (@periscopetv) June 22, 2016

Over 40 House Democrats are taking part in the sit-in, led by John Lewis (D-Georgia).

From Newtown to Charleston... how long will it take for Congress to act? #NOMORESILENCE #goodtrouble pic.twitter.com/uH4G5HCQc5
— John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) June 22, 2016

“After the worst mass shooting in modern history, it's time for Speaker Ryan to bring a bill to the Floor,” said Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland). “House Democrats will continue to demand: no bill, no break.”

I'm on the House floor with @repjohnlewis & Dems staging a sit-in to demand action on commonsense gun legislation pic.twitter.com/byIivby5gG
— Rep. John Yarmuth (@RepJohnYarmuth) June 22, 2016

The sit-in began shortly before noon, involving two dozen Representatives.

WATCH: Moment House Democrats declared they will #HoldTheFloor in protest of GOP inaction on gun control measures pic.twitter.com/T5FouUhLGU
— RT America (@RT_America) June 22, 2016

Though the House went on recess at noon and the cameras were turned off, the Democrats said they would continue their protest until Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) allows a vote on the proposal to ban persons on the federal no-fly watch list from buying firearms.

As we started sit-in, GOP called recess & turned off cameras, but we're not moving #wheresthebill #nomoresilence pic.twitter.com/olcbB9x7x8
— Chellie Pingree (@chelliepingree) June 22, 2016

With the official cameras off, the protesting lawmakers turned to live-streaming the sit-in on Facebook. Eric Swallwell (D-California) posted a video of his colleague Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois), speaking about the “absolutely horrific” epidemic of gun violence in Chicago.

“I am tired of seeing babies killed,” Duckworth said, pleading for outlawing “fully automatic assault rifles and high-capacity magazines.”

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