Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the dedicated service of Police officer Tony Breeden who will officially retire this year.

Tony was born in Winchester, Virginia, where he and his family lived for 2 years. His family later moved to Charlotte, N.C. where he attended Myers Park High School graduating in 1988. Upon graduating from High School, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps where he served from 1988 to 1992.

After spending four years in the Marine Corps, he then joined the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Department where he worked for 2 years, until joining the Rock Hill Police Department in 1995 through 2022.

He rose through the ranks beginning with the traffic unit, sergeant of the street crimes unit, patrol Lieutenant of Charlie Shift, and member of the highly decorated SWAT team unit for 26 years serving from 1996 to 2022.

Officer Breeden found time to serve the greater Rock Hill community by coaching various sports for over 27 years at his church and in the city leagues, dating back to 1995.

Tony and his wife, Brooke, have 3 children Austin, Kolby, and Devin. Officer Breeden is the epitome of the American success story, where he has risen above many personal challenges, including having his father leave his family when Tony was 5 years of age. He and his brother and sister were left to be raised by a single mother.

The greatest tragedy the Breeden family has faced was the sudden loss of their son Kolby on March 14th, 2021. In the words of one of Kolby's closest friends, Julianne Young, ``Kolby was the epitome of good. He not only lit up every room he walked in but made everyone in that room a better person just by spending time with them.''

The Rock Hill Police Department and the greater Rock Hill community will lose a true public servant who epitomized the police officer motto of ``To Protect And To Serve''.

Lieutenant Tony Breeden has set the Gold Standard for 27 years of dedicated service and commitment which will long be remembered and for that we all join in saying Thank You.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate George W. Waldrop, Sr., World War II veteran of Lancaster County, on the occasion of his 100th birthday and to wish him a joyous birthday celebration.

Mr. Waldrop was born on July 26, 1922, in Greenville, South Carolina to Claude Furman Waldrop and Lola Elizabeth Waldrop. He attended the Greenville city schools and graduated from the high school in 1940. He then began work at the Ottaray Hotel and the Poinset Hotel, both in Greenville, South Carolina.

On February 13, 1943, Mr. Waldrop married Harriet Louise Sistare. Throughout their 73 years of marriage, the pair raised two children, George W. Waldrop, Jr., and Harriett Waldrop Strom, and were blessed with four grandchildren.

On July 15, 1943, Mr. Waldrop was sworn into the United States Army at Fort Jackson where he trained as a combat infantryman. He courageously served the nation during World War II in the European Theatre and participated in combat in the Ardennes, the Rhineland, and Central Europe, including the Battle of the Bulge.

As a testament to his fearless service, Mr. Waldrop was awarded the World War II Victory Ribbon, the Good Conduct Medal, the American Theater Ribbon, the EAME Theater Ribbon, and three Bronze Service Stars.

He authored What ``Poppy'' Did in The War or as I Remember It, recounting his experiences serving in many locations during World War II. Mr. Waldrop is also a lifetime member of the American Legion Post 31 and is the oldest member of that American Legion post.

I am pleased to congratulate George W. Waldrop, Sr. on his life of service and sacrifice, and I wish him a very joyous 100th birthday celebration among his family and friends.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Good for having this Special Order.

Let me give you a live example of what happens with a well-armed militia, the purpose of the Second Amendment is for the citizens of America to bear arms.

This past Sunday, a deranged gunman opened fire in a food court of a shopping mall in Greenwood, Indiana, which is a suburb of Indianapolis. Police say this deranged gunman fired 24 rounds within 2 minutes, killing three and injuring two others.

Nearby was a young man, Elisjsha Dicken, a private citizen who took quick action to stop that gunman. Elisjsha was legally armed and carrying his own weapon under Indiana's constitutional carry laws. Thank God for this young man.

In summarizing Elisjsha's response, the Greenwood chief of police said, ``I will say his actions were nothing short of heroic. He engaged the gunman from quite a distance with a handgun.'' The police chief went on to say Elisjsha was ``very tactically sound as he moved in to close on the suspect, and was also monitoring for people to exit behind him. He has had no police experience, no training, no military background.''

What a true hero. Elisjsha was simply going about his business at the mall when the unthinkable happened. It is hard to imagine how we might react in that situation, but Elisjsha was equipped; he was prepared; and he had courage to confront that sick individual, who was determined to kill others.

Elisjsha would not have been able to do so if the liberals who want to take away our Second Amendment rights had their way with this so- called gun control.

To my Democratic friends who are determined to restrict our Second Amendment rights, I ask you this: How many more people might have died last Sunday in Greenwood, Indiana, if you had had your way? How many more people would have been slaughtered if Elisjsha didn't have the ability to exercise his constitutional rights? Thankfully, we will never know the answer to that question.

Americans deserve the right to protect themselves and others when their lives are in severe danger. That is why it is so critical to strongly defend our Second Amendment rights against the antigun left that is so intent to demoralize our Second Amendment and our Constitution.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.