Rep. Schneider addresses constituents at event
Gun control, metal detectors among topics discussed
From lingering emotions after the 2022 Highland Park Fourth of July parade to keeping guns purchased in Indiana out of Illinois to metal detectors in schools, constituents questioned U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Highland Park, on gun violence Thursday.
Schneider addressed those questions and others, as well as expressing concerns about a government shutdown in October, at a Congress on Your Corner event at Viking Middle School in Gurnee, updating more than 75 people on the Washington scene.
Individuals also asked about climate change and oil prices, but of the 10 questions from constituents, five were centered on gun violence. A man from Zion said 60% of the guns in Chicago are purchased in Indiana. He wanted to know what Congress can do.
Schneider said the issue is not unique to the Chicago area and Lake County. People along the East Coast go to states with less restrictive laws for gun purchasing and transport them back to their home state, he said, adding ghost guns should be controlled, too.
“There should be laws against trafficking guns across state lines,” Schneider said. “Ghost guns are not considered guns because they are not fully assembled. People buy part A and part B and snap them together so it’s not considered a gun purchase.”
Warren Township High School District 121 Board of Education member Steve Carlson wanted to know what Congress was doing to keep students in school safe from the mass shootings which have taken place over the past few years.
Schneider said the Highland Park shooting, which took the lives of seven people and wounded dozens more, was the 308th mass shooting that year. This year there were 360 as of July 4.
Between the Highland Park tragedy, a shooting at a Buffalo, N.Y., grocery store less than two months prior where 10 were killed and another just over a month later at an elementary school in Uvalde, Tex., killing 21, Congress finally acted.
“We passed the Safe
Communities Act that took some steps like funding for schools, closing some of the loopholes (like) the boyfriend loophole that allows people to get guns who shouldn’t have them,” Schneider said. “It wasn’t a giant leap but it was a significant step.”
Carlson also asked about metal detectors in schools, which is a subject of discussion in some districts in Lake County now. Schneider said keeping schoolchildren safe is a top priority but finding the best ways has its challenges.
“This is a hard one because either way, kids are getting traumatized,” Schneider said.
“Going through the metal detectors every single day is traumatizing. Worrying about shooters coming in is traumatizing. We need to do everything we can to keep kids safe and unfortunately one of those things is metal detectors.”
While Schneider will continue to push for legislation in Congress like an assault weapons ban, he said the country needs a culture change like the ones which put helmets on cyclists’ heads and hugely reduced smoking.
“We have way too many guns in our culture,” Schneider said. “It’s hard
to change our culture, but it’s possible — this evolving culture where I don’t like how you looked at me or what group you are a part of so I’m going to take a gun and exact my revenge.”
A woman from Grayslake spoke of her concerns about climate change. She asked Schneider what solutions he saw. He said the planet is warming and steps must be taken to reverse the trend.
With 2023 on track to be the hottest year ever, Schneider said the record will be broken in 2024 and last until it falls again in 2025. The water temperature off a beach in Florida recently was 105 F, and Schneider noted some phenomena are weather related but much is caused
by actions of people.
Currently sponsoring legislation to get airlines to use more sustainable aviation fuel, Schneider said it is possible to reduce greenhouse gases from airplane fuel by 50% to 80%.
“It is unlikely any of us will sometime soon get on an electric plane and fly,” Schneider said. “We might drive an electric car to O’Hare but (with) sustainable aviation fuel taken from biomass, garbage of all kinds of stock which can go into this fuel, we can reduce greenhouse gases.”
Before the question and answer portion of the town hall, Schneider talked about the issues Congress faces when it returns from its recess Sept. 12. With
only six full legislative days remaining before Oct. 1, he worries about a government shutdown.
So far, Schneider said the U.S. Senate has moved its necessary bills out of committee but still needs to vote. The U.S. House of Representatives has passed one with 11 left for action. All must be approved and the House and Senate must agree on final changes by a Sept. 30 deadline.
“If anyone wants to join a wager they’re going to get that done by Oct. 1, it’s a long shot,” Schneider said. “I hope at least we’ll have another continuing resolution and not shutdown,” he added referring to a Congressional measure allowing interim spending.