Middlesex Congresswoman Shouts 'Do Something!' Over Shootings

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ — U.S. Congresswoman Bonnie Watson-Coleman (D-12th district) couldn't take it anymore. During a moment of silence for the Santa Fe high school shooting victims on the floor of the House of Representatives Monday, she shouted out, "Do something!"

"Your moment of silence doesn’t save one single solitary life. Do something!" Coleman shouted from her seat in the House chambers, NJ 101.5 reported.

The moment of silence occurred when the Texas delegation had been called down to the floor. Watson later testified on the House floor as to why she said what she did:

"There have been 46 moments of silence on the floor in the House of Representatives addressing the tragic deaths in mass shootings and what have we done? We get up from 46 moments of silence and we do nothing," she said.

"The person who sits in that chair makes the determination whether or not we value those innocent lives we are losing every single solitary day because people who shouldn't have access to guns have access to guns or whether or not we should have one more moment of silence."

Rep. Watson-Coleman represents New Jersey's 12th Congressional District. It's a Democratic-leaning district that stretches from Plainfield and Scotch Plains down into Franklin Township, and includes most of Middlesex County, including South Brunswick and East Brunswick.

She also represents Princeton and Trenton in Mercer County. It's historically been a swing district in New Jersey, but because of redistricting in the early 2000s it has now become solidly blue.