Majority Leader Calls Veto of Ammunition Limit Bill Political Expediency at Its Worst
Assembly Majority Leader Louis Greenwald, lead sponsor of legislation designed to help prevent gun violence by lowering the maximum ammunition capacity from 15 to 10, released the following statement on Gov. Christie’s veto of the measure, which came only minutes after the families of children who were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School visited the New Jersey Statehouse to deliver petitions urging the governor to support the measure:
“The governor’s action today can best be described with the words used in his own veto statement, ‘difficult choices are brushed aside…uncomfortable topics are left unexplored.’ I would imagine this is a very uncomfortable topic to have with conservative voters in Iowa and New Hampshire.
“At the end of the day, this was a cowardly decision that lacks leadership. In fact, this is political expediency at its worst, considering the governor is headed out to campaign in Iowa in just a few weeks.
“The parents who had their lives shattered at Sandy Hook have told us that the most significant thing we can do to save lives is lower the ammunition capacity. If the Sandy Hook shooter had been forced to stop and reload more often, it might have made the difference between whether their child is alive or not today. That alone is reason enough for the governor to sign this bill
“There is no arguing that mental health services are a vital component of this equation. That’s why it’s surprising that the Christie administration has dragged its feet for five years in implementing our involuntary outpatient commitment law.
“However, the governor can’t expect to deal with gun violence by ignoring the ‘gun’ component because it’s convenient,” said Greenwald (D-Camden/Burlington).