Dear John,

Today, my heart is heavy for those lives forever changed by Wednesday’s horrific shooting in Lewiston, Maine. No one should have to endure the level of heartbreak that has become all too commonplace across Maine and across the United States.

It’s time that we stop legislating around the edges of gun safety in this country. Some try to blame mental health for these horrible shootings – or as our new Speaker Mike Johnson said last night, “the human heart” – but that’s not why 31 Americans can be gunned down in a matter of seconds. It’s the guns. Weapons of war should not be on American streets.

Here in the Second District, we heavily value freedom – including our Second Amendment freedoms. I own a shotgun myself. But these high-powered semi-automatic assault weapons are designed for mass destruction. Like I said, my constituents value freedom – but that also means the freedom to go to a grocery store, or a bowling alley, or a movie theater or a place of worship without fearing for their safety. Getting weapons of war off the streets is about giving the American people the freedom to live in their communities more safely. And until Congress can do that, we’re not doing our jobs.

The Lewiston community will never be the same. Nothing will ever bring back the people lost on Wednesday night – and no words will ever heal their loved ones' heartbreak. But we can prevent tragedies like this from happening again. We’ve done it before.
 
According to a 2018 study, mass shooting fatalities were 70% less likely to occur between 1994-2004, when the 1994 assault weapons ban was in effect. And researchers who studied the 13 years before and after the ban took place estimated that hundreds of mass shootings within those time periods could have been prevented by an assault weapons ban.

Congress must act again to take these weapons of war off American streets – that’s what we owe every single American grieving the loss of their loved one today.

Here's what else I was up to this week:

Voting for a Speaker, again
After three weeks of chaos, House Republicans finally chose a new Speaker – Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana. Speaker Johnson is one of the most far-right members of the Republican party. He led the push to overturn the 2020 election results, supports a federal ban on abortion as well as criminalizing doctors who perform abortion and wants to cut Social Security and Medicare. And as you may have heard, he believes families like mine are a threat to our nation.

I was proud to cast my vote for the 19th time for Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, while wishing my wife a happy wedding anniversary, and I’m incredibly disappointed that my Republican colleagues unanimously chose Johnson.

Nonetheless, the House got back to work on legislation this week. It is my sincere hope that Speaker Johnson will not continue to overlook the path of bipartisanship as we work to serve the American people.

Pushing for USPS accountability
I’m still hearing from all of you about the mail delivery delays you are experiencing. So this week, I introduced legislation to require USPS to publicly report under-delivered routes by zip code. I’m working to hold USPS accountable – because you deserve to get your mail on time.

Welcoming Reverend John Matthews to the House Floor

Look who made it to DC: Reverend John Matthews, retired pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Apple Valley and his wife Patty! What an honor to be able to welcome them both to DC and watch Reverend Matthews serve as guest chaplain and give the opening prayer on the House Floor yesterday.

Calling for the release of hostages in Gaza
Yesterday, I joined my colleagues and family members of those Americans taken hostage in Gaza to call for their immediate release. We must do everything we can to return each of these loved ones back to their families.

Behind the scenes with Rep. Craig:

Proud boss alert! My agriculture staffer, Suzie, received the Outstanding Congressional Staffer Award from Growth Energy for her work on ethanol and biofuel policy.

Congrats, Suzie – and keep up the great work!

That’s my update for you all!

I am wishing you all a safe Halloween weekend – Dakota and I will be dressing up this weekend, stay tuned for some pics next week!

Until next time,
 

Angie Craig

Member of Congress