Giffords Tells Senate to 'Be Courageous' on Guns Former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, whose congressional career was ended by a bullet wound to her head, opened a Senate hearing on gun violence today by telling the panel, "Speaking is difficult, but I need to say something important." She told the Senate to be "courageous" because "Americans are counting on you." Giffords sat alongside her astronaut husband Mark Kelly as she delivered her emotional statement just over a minute long imploring Congress to act on gun policy. "This is an important conversation for our children, for our communities, for Democrats, and Republicans," the former Arizona congresswoman said. Speaking is difficult but I need to say something important: Violence is a big problem too many children are dying. Too many children. We must do something. It will be hard, but the time is now. You must act. Be bold, be courageous, Americans are counting on you. Thank you," Giffords said before being helped out of the hearing room. Giffords was shot by a gunman in her Arizona district two years ago, and was a last-minute addition to the hearing about the nation's gun laws as lawmakers grapple with how to curb gun violence in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary school tragedy that left 20 children and six adults dead late last year. Today's hearing is a showdown on guns, featuring two powerful but conflicting forces in the gun control movement. Giffords' husband will also testify, as will Wayne LaPierre, the fiery executive vice president and CEO of the National Rifle Association. Kelly's opening remarks before the Senate Judiciary Committee today, in the first congressional hearing on gun violence since the deadly shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. last month, emphasized that he and his wife are both gun owners but also dedicated to minimizing gun violence because of their personal tragedy. "We are simply two reasonable Americans who realize we have a problem with gun violence, and we need Congress to act," Kelly told members of the Senate. Our rights are paramount but our responsibilities are serious and as a nation we are not taking responsibility for the gun rights our founding fathers conferred upon us. Giffords and Kelly recently launched Americans for Responsible Solutions, an organization promoting the implementation of universal background checks and limits on high capacity magazines. "Overwhelmingly, you told us that universal background checks and limiting access to high capacity magazines were top priorities, and I'll make sure to address each of those ideas in my opening remarks," Kelly wrote in an email to supporters Tuesday. LaPierre, who states the NRA's opposition to universal background checks and urged legislators not to "blame" legal gun owners by enacting new gun control laws. Law-abiding gun owners will not accept blame for the acts of violence of deranged criminals. Nor do we believe the government should dictate what we can lawfully own and use to protect our families," LaPierre said."And when it comes to background checks, let's be honest â background checks will never be 'universal' â because criminals will never submit to them." "Proposing more gun control laws -- while failing to enforce the thousands we already have -- it's not a serious solution to reducing crime," said LaPierre. In the wake of the Newtown shooting, the NRA advocated placing armed security guards in every school in America, an initiative LaPierre will promote in Wednesday's hearing, arguing that "it's time to throw an immediate blanket of security around our children." In an interview with ABC News' Diane Sawyer earlier this month, Kelly and Giffords said they hope the Sandy Hook shooting, in which 20 children and seven adults died, will spur legislative action on gun policy. Others testifying include Professor David Kopel of Denver University's Strum College of Law, Baltimore Chief of Police James Johnson, and Gayle Trotter, an attorney and senior fellow at the Independent Women's Forum.