On Sunday afternoon, MS NOW weekend host Alex Witt went along with several guests who promoted more gun control in the aftermath of the Brown University shooting.
Although the gunman at Brown reportedly used a couple of handguns, during the 1:00 p.m. hour, Witt suggested that a rifle was used as she asked Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA) if more gun control would stop such events:
But details about how this gunman obtained a rifle and entered a university building, still unclear. What can Congress do to address gun violence beyond just offering thoughts and prayers? We’ve heard a lot of that, and while appreciated, would a push for some kind of gun control effectively help prevent these repeated tragedies?
Moulton claimed that there are “weapons of war” on the streets — but no one knew what gun was used. Naturally, he accused Republicans of “cowardice” as he responded:
CONGRESSMAN SETH MOULTON (D-MA): Absolutely it would. Massachusetts has the lowest gun violence in the country. It’s still too high, but it’s the lowest gun violence in the country because we have the toughest gun laws, and we still have the 2nd Amendment in Massachusetts. We just have an idea that you don’t need weapons of war on our streets or in our schools, and that should be common sense to all Americans.
But but let’s be clear. The reason this doesn’t happen is for — is for one thing: cowardice on behalf of Republicans. Because Trump and the Republicans do more to protect the gun lobby in America than they do to protect our kids.
A bit later, he added:
The only question is: How many more kids have to die before the Republicans find an ounce of courage to do the right thing, to do the thing that that the vast majority of Americans agree with — even majorities of Republicans agree with — and just tighten our gun laws a little bit?
Witt invited him to return to the show if Republicans go along with more gun laws so that she and Moulton can “applaud” the move together.
Half an hour later, Witt had on former State Rep. Don Calloway (D-MO) and liberal Republican contributor Susan Del Percio to further push for more gun laws. Del Percio agreed with Calloway’s claim that Republicans are “choosing” to let such shootings continue to happen: “Well, clearly, not enough leaders in our country are trying to stop it. And I think what Don said was so important. We are choosing to let this happen because we are not taking actions to prevent guns falling into people’s hands.”
The liberal self-described Republican then asserted that new laws were worth enacting if “just one” life were saved and rationalized that the mass shooting that just happened in Australia does not prove that gun control won’t work.
Transcript follows:
MS NOW’s Alex Witt Reports
December 14, 2025
1:16 p.m. Eastern
ALEX WITT: So tragically, this shooting happened inside a college classroom during a final exam review. It is a place students don’t expect to be shot at. But details about how this gunman obtained a rifle and entered a university building, still unclear. What can Congress do to address gun violence beyond just offering thoughts and prayers? We’ve heard a lot of that, and while appreciated, would a push for some kind of gun control effectively help prevent these repeated tragedies?
CONGRESSMAN SETH MOULTON (D-MA): Absolutely it would. Massachusetts has the lowest gun violence in the country. It’s still too high, but it’s the lowest gun violence in the country because we have the toughest gun laws, and we still have the 2nd Amendment in Massachusetts. We just have an idea that you don’t need weapons of war on our streets or in our schools, and that should be common sense to all Americans.
But but let’s be clear. The reason this doesn’t happen is for — is for one thing: cowardice on behalf of Republicans. Because Trump and the Republicans do more to protect the gun lobby in America than they do to protect our kids.
WITT: You know, speaking of kids, I believe it was 13 years ago this weekend, right around now that we all went through Sandy Hook. That was a time when I remember waking up the next morning after crying a lot, being a mom of two kids and just the empathy that went out for those families. I thought, “Okay, this is — this is the point. This is it. This is where we are going to do something.” You had the Manchin-Toomey bill that was, I believe, in April, voted down just by a lot of pushing to get that thing through. Is Congress at some point going to find a tipping point where they say, “Okay, we have got to signal to Americans we are doing something. This is the point we’ve got to do it”?
(…)
CONGRESSMAN MOULTON: The only question is: How many more kids have to die before the Republicans find an ounce of courage to do the right thing, to do the thing that that the vast majority of Americans agree with — even majorities of Republicans agree with — and just tighten our gun laws a little bit?
WITT: When you get the answer to that number, please pass it on to me. We’ll bring you back and talk about it and applaud.
(…)
1:45 p.m.
WITT: They come 13 years to the day after the Sandy Hook massacre. And I shared this earlier. I remember thinking, “Okay, this is it. Laws will be enacted. We cannot continue like this.” And yet countless more shootings and deaths since. How do things change?
EX-STATE REP. DON CALLOWAY (D-MO): I don’t know, but I do know that we have made an intentional choice that this is part of our lives in America. We at some point have decided that we want to live like this.
(…)
SUSAN DEL PERCIO, MS NOW CONTRIBUTOR: Well, clearly, not enough leaders in our country are trying to stop it. And I think what Don said was so important. We are choosing to let this happen because we are not taking actions to prevent guns falling into people’s hands, and — in general. Now, I know a lot of Republicans especially will say, “Well, look what happened in Australia, and they have such strict gun control and it’s still happened.”
Well, when we talk about what’s happened in Australia, some — to some extent, we know this is state-sponsored terrorism. So, yes, it’s Iran trying to kill people or other terrorist organizations. And it happens a lot less frequently. It doesn’t happen with the person, the individual off the street that we see in this country. So there is no comparison when we start looking at, you know, when the Republicans say, “Well, it didn’t stop Australia,” — well, it could have stopped this person, and I — and when we look at Australia, the gun deaths are so much fewer than we have here. So I would say, “How much is a life worth?” How much do you want to stay on that hill and fight that battle when even if we can prevent one life, one child, one student at Brown, or any of our other schools from being massacred, like isn’t that enough?
