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On Sunday, April 18, Republican Congressman Mike Waltz of Florida appeared on CNN to discuss the gun violence epidemic in America.
During the segment, Waltz attempted to discredit any proposed changes to gun violence legislation, saying laws restricting access to assault weapons—which have been effective in other states—would not help in his home state of Florida.
Ultimately, Waltz could think of no way to improve America's situation other than to continue forward with the same laws we already have.
CNN host Jim Acosta let Waltz know exactly what he thought of this live on the air.
Waltz claimed:
"I tell you, we all want to solve this problem. The data shows that the vast majority of gun violence, the vast majority of these crimes are committed actually with people using pistols not necessarily those weapons. But I think in the bigger picture—"
Acosta swiftly corrected him, however, saying:
"A lot of these mass shootings happen—have involved AR-15s and those kinds of assault-style rifles."
Mass shootings are largely committed with semi-automatic, rapid-fire weapons.
Mike Waltz is an unintelligent, rude person. He is, of course, a Republican rep. Jim Acosta attempted to converse w… https://t.co/ShLzYxTH7P— 21st Century Ed (@21st Century Ed) 1618783717.0
Waltz told Acosta the currently proposed legislation, which would ban assault weapons, would not actually fix the problem, saying "mental health" issues were the real obstacle.
When asked, however, Waltz had no proposals to increase funding for mental health or healthcare facilities in his state.
Jim Acosta wasn't ecstatic with Mike Waltz encouraging him "to come on down to Florida" https://t.co/oghBniAdys— Aaron Rupar (@Aaron Rupar) 1618784160.0
@atrupar The headline also catches me "At Least 50 Mass Shootings In The U.S. Since March 16th"...so we are averagi… https://t.co/ugOKHWRWRO— Rusty Katt (@Rusty Katt) 1618783168.0
@atrupar Children were begging for help from the govt & they sent thoughts & prayers while making it easier & faste… https://t.co/V6uugUSigA— KD (@KD) 1618781916.0
Waltz also said "red flag laws" which are already in place should be able to stop gun violence.
When Acosta pointed out how several prominent shooters had sidestepped these laws to buy a gun even after their firearms were taken away, Waltz dismissed these examples of the law's ineffectiveness.
@atrupar They seem fine with making it harder for law abiding citizens to vote but not buy a gun. Doesn’t make sense to me.— Nicky Smith #KirbStomp (@Nicky Smith #KirbStomp) 1618782558.0
@atrupar making the current system work better is like dividing by 0— Dad Jokes Panda (@Dad Jokes Panda) 1618781889.0
Many of Waltz's constituents online were pretty unhappy with their Congressman's performance.
@atrupar That's about all @michaelgwaltz is capable of. Many of his constituents are constantly ashamed of him.— Kristie Roberts (@Kristie Roberts) 1618784229.0
@atrupar I absolutely hate that this guy is my Rep. He’s useless.— J&J Vaxxed & Still Masks Misanthrope (@J&J Vaxxed & Still Masks Misanthrope) 1618791851.0
Waltz summarized his thoughts by saying:
"So, I think we need to take a hard look at fixing the system as it exists and make it work better."
Acosta, however, replied with what most people online were thinking.
"Yeah, the system's not working now."
Basically just another Republican who has no interest in real solutions. Gun sales fill their pockets. Their mon… https://t.co/0JctY2nTgw— jimmy craig (@jimmy craig) 1618789335.0
Would love to live in a country where @michaelgwaltz would actually ever vote to fix the Background Check system or… https://t.co/223iOEuGea— Alex Barrio (@Alex Barrio) 1618786095.0
Over the last month, there have been 50 mass shootings in the United States, but it seems Republican Congressmen like Mike Waltz will go out of their way to make sure nothing changes.