‘We Can’t Live Like This’: Rep. McClellan reacts to deadly Georgia school shooting

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.) brought up her support for tighter gun laws at a Harris-Walz campaign event in Chesterfield County the day after a shooting at a high school in Georgia that left two students and two staff members dead.

During the event, which took place at the Ettrick Deli near Virginia State University in Chesterfield County, McClellan said that, while Virginia has taken significant steps to regulate who can buy guns, she wants to see more done on the federal level.

“Thoughts and prayers are nice, but it’s not enough to save our kids,” she said. 

McClellan spoke about how the frequency of school shootings affect American kids mentally.

“Every time my son hears about [a shooting,] whether it’s a school shooting or another mass shooting, he’s [asking, ‘Am I next?'” She said. 

McClellan’s children are enrolled in Richmond Public Schools, where officials announced security measures will be increased in response to the shooting. Officials in Hanover County and Goochland County have announced similar measures.

McClellan says Virginia lawmakers have passed bills mandating universal background checks and banning on ghost guns, but she wants to see similar legislations passed on the federal level and also wants to reinstate the ban on assault weapons. 

“The fact that you have the Governor of Georgia saying, ‘Now is not the time to talk about policy or school safety.’ When is the time? I mean, there’s a mass shooting every day. We’re past time,” said McClellan.

Also at the event was Justin Pearson, the 29-year-old Tennessee state representative. You may recall him as one of the “Tennessee Three,” after he was expelled from the House of Representatives for a gun control protest on the House floor in March.

Also present at the event was Justin Pearson, the 29-year-old state lawmaker who was expelled from the Tennessee House of Representatives in March for protesting after a school shooting in Nashville before earning back his seat.

“We can’t live like this, where you’re afraid to go to the mall, to the movies, to the grocery store, drive in the wrong driveway,” McClellan said. “It’s ridiculous and the time for action has long passed.” 

McClellan said she hasn’t heard of any new ideas for gun control policies that Governor Glenn Youngkin would sign off on. Earlier this year, Youngkin vetoed 30 gun-related bills, but signed into law four bills making it harder for criminals to use guns to commit a violent act.