The news conference comes in wake of the shooting in Lafayette, Louisiana, last month where two women were killed and at least nine other people were injured at a screening of Amy Schumer’s new movie “Trainwreck”.
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The Schumers appeared at a press conference this morning in Manhattan to announce their three point plan.
The senator is pushing for a system that financially rewards states that submit all necessary records for the federal background check system-and penalizes those that don’t.
The New York Democrat said his bill would also call upon the Department of Justice to create universal, stricter standards for involuntary commitment of the mentally ill. Lastly, Amy and Chuck called on Congress to fully fund mental health and substance abuse programs in order to curb the odds of such tragedies from happening in the future.
“To hear that news, it broke my heart”, she said.
Congress usually debates gun control after high-profile shootings, but laws rarely get passed.
Schumer isn’t the first star to speak out against gun violence.
Sen. Schumer spoke about the challenges of passing gun legislation: “We’re up against a powerful lobby, so having people like Amy – who people respect and listen to – is a great antidote to that lobby …”
“These are my first public comments on gun violence”, she said. “I don’t know how else to say it”, Amy Schumer said at the press conference Monday, who refused to say the name of the gunman during her remarks.
Schumer eulogized the victims, describing Magazine Street business owner Jillian Johnson as “an artistic force in the community”, adding, “I think we would have been friends”.
“No one wants to live in a country where a felon, the mentally ill, or other unsafe people can get their hands on a gun with such ease”, she said.
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“Don’t worry I’m on it”, Schumer tweeted Saturday.
