GOP Rep. Richard Hudson scolds Democrats for having 11-year-old testify at gun hearing

Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, a member of House Republican leadership, on Wednesday blasted Democrats for calling a fourth grader who survived the Uvalde shooting and a mother of one of the victims of the Buffalo grocery store shooting to testify before the House Oversight and Reform Committee.

Democrats on the panel brought in 11-year-old Miah Cerrillo, who pretended to be dead by smearing her classmates’ blood to fool the shooter at Robb Elementary School, and Zeneta Everhart, whose 21-year-old son was killed in a racially motivated mass shooting, to speak before the committee ahead of the House’s votes on legislation that includes gun-related measures, which faces an uphill battle in the chamber. Cerrillo’s testimony was given via a video message from Texas.

Hudson accused House Democrats of failing to come to the negotiating table to work on a bipartisan plan to address gun violence. He alleged that Democratic leadership is bringing a set of bills to the floor that can’t become law for show ahead of the midterm elections.

“We have 12 pieces of legislation we've introduced this Congress that all address this issue. House Democrats have shown no interest in coming to the table and talking to us about these solutions,” Hudson said at a press conference on Wednesday. “Instead, they're exploiting these tragedies to advance their radical gun control agenda. The bills on the floor this week would have done nothing to stop any of these tragedies, and they will never become law.”

Hudson claimed that the witnesses were given false hope when invited to speak before Congress that the bills being brought to the floor could become law.

“You realize that today they're bringing an 11-year-old girl here who, two weeks ago, smeared herself in her classmates' blood to try to fool the shooter in Uvalde. They're bringing in parents who two weeks ago lost their children," Hudson said. "And they're having them testify and they've lied to them and they said if you'll come testify, we'll pass these bills.”

Conservative lawmakers have been vocal in their criticisms of the legislation being brought to the House floor, which includes language to raise the age limit to buy certain semi-automatic rifles to 21, codify regulations on bump stocks, ban the “import, sale, manufacture, and possession of large-capacity magazines,” and increase regulations on the storage of firearms. It would also ban straw purchases of firearms. Critics of the legislation argue mental health reforms should be prioritized and that the changes would infringe on law-abiding citizens’ Second Amendment rights.

Democrats have argued the string of recent mass shootings warrants substantial reforms but acknowledged the difficulties in passing major changes due to the narrow majority in the upper chamber.

Bipartisan lawmakers in the Senate have indicated they are inching closer to an agreement on legislation pertaining to the gun reforms they believe could have the support to overcome the 60-vote threshold for passage.