WASHINGTON, D.C. —Idaho First District Congressman Raúl R. Labrador issued the following statement after considering President Barack Obama’s new set of gun proposals and executive orders.

“Despite the shameful use of children today to drive his agenda, I will carefully review the President’s executive actions and his legislative proposals. 

 
Our Founding Fathers believed the right to bear arms was essential to the cause of freedom. Those same Founders also gave the executive branch the authority to enforce the laws protecting this right and our security—and this is the authority the President asserts today.

I will review these proposals to ensure that the President's actions and proposals do not violate our constitutionally protected right to bear arms.  I will also thoughtfully consider whether the laws we currently have on the books can be better enforced to safeguard our lives and our liberty. 

I have always defended the Second Amendment and will continue to do so with my heart and soul.  Still, I believe our nation and the Second Amendment are strong enough to withstand an examination of ways we can protect the most vulnerable among us without harming those liberties that God has given us to make us free.  I look forward to having a thoughtful, honest and straightforward discussion about these issues in the Judiciary Committee over the next few months.”