>> just a few years ago we were covering the shooting that targeted lawmakers, lawmakers. steve scalise was shot, a moment everybody thought maybe it will change now and still did not change. now 19 more kids at an elementary school are dead, two teachers as well not to mention what happened in buffalo the other day. jake sherman thank you very much. that does it for me today. halle jackson picks up our breaking news coverage right now. as we come on the hair, we get horrific, new details about what happened in uvalde, texas and learning about the lives of the little kids murdered in a fourth grade classroom and the hero teachers who tried to save them from a shooter who we found out warned he was going to do exactly what he did. in a confrontational moment in the last hour between a furious

democratic politician who has had enough and the governor of texas defending his state's gun laws. in washington halle jackson with garrett haake and tom llamas in texas. garrett, we're specifically talking about this warning from the shooter, that he was going to not only shoot his grandmother but he was going to attack an elementary school. a spokesperson clarified these northern the facebook posts, no the public posts. these were private messages that apparently or presumably were only found after the fact. what else are we learning? >> reporter: yes, that's right. we heard about those private messages from the governor in this press conference just now. he also described in a little more detail how this shooting took place, how it began on the street behind me, where the gunman shot his own grandmother after what appears to be some kind of argument and drove to the school, his truck off in a

ditch getting into a classroom and essentially barricading himself inside. he was ultimately confronted by heavily-armed law enforcement, including border patrol agents, essentially a tactical team, the initial law enforcement response not enough to stop the shooting as it was in progress. you mentioned those online postings about possibly not -- these were apparently not public postings but rather private messages. beyond that, law enforcement sources, the governor, other speakers at that press conference said there was only some disturbing behavior by this gunman but not the kind of thing that might have given them advanced warning that a particular crime was about to be afoot, halle. >> garrett, stand by. tom winter is joining us now our investigative correspondent. tom talk about the reporting you were doing on the federal level as we here about the time line, new details. >> some details in focus, some

need clarification. at some point yesterday morning the shooter, salvador rolando ramos, age 18, shoots his grandmother in the face. she is somehow able to call police. just before that he apparently posts i'm going to shoot my grandmother, in a private one on one communication via facebook. he sends another message. "i shot my grandmother" and 15 minutes before the shots first rang out at the robb elementary school he says "i'm going to shoot an elementary school." we do not know who he was communicating with, if it was a large group message or directly to one person. facebook says it was a private message. we have a sense of the timing and this solidifies why we were told and looking at a statement

from facebook saying they were private one-to-one text messages so apparently not in a group. hallie, we reported before the press conference according to local and federal law enforcement officials to myself, jonathan dean, andy blankstein and pete williams, they were certain the school was a target. that was a question as to whether or not he just randomly chose it or ended up there after he shot his grandmother. clearly he was going to do what he did yesterday. we learned that information in addition to that, there were two ar-15s that he purchased after his 18th birthday, just on may 16th of this year. not clear which date that was or if he purchased them over the course of two days. we do know, according to these officials that the smith & wesson m&p ar-15-style rifle was purchased, a more common weapon, that's something that people

know what it looks like and familiar, another is a daniel defense ddm v-7, a lesser-known manufacturer, not something you typically might see. we're not sure which weapon he brought with him inside of the school but for practical matters, hallie, it was purchased legally. based on the laws in texas federally, there's not something from a gun control standpoint that would have stopped this, just based on the current laws now. another thing we reported again based on the briefings that these officials have received as relaid to us, there's no motive that has been determined as of this hour. that of course, could change, but there is no motive that's been determined. we have been able to confirm an instagram account belonging to the shooter, where the two weapons that i mentioned are depicted in those accounts, so

he did list the weapons ahead of time, that's an important, new detail. it's a little unclear who engages him with first, which member of law enforcement does, if there were initial shots fired. bottom line, hallie, we reported on our own and julie ainsley who covers cvp and the department of homeland security it was an officer trained as part of the tactical unit along the borders of u.s./mexican and u.s./canadian border, one of the agents was involved with eventually breaching the room and according to texas governor greg abbott shooting and killing this shooter. i think it's important to note, although there appears to be a 30-minute time gap according to authorities from when he first barricades himself into this room or perhaps connected classrooms, into when they finally are able to breach the door, adam lance in connecticut, who is responsible for the horrific shooting in newtown, used 153 rounds in just under

ten minutes in the course of that shooting, saving the 154th for himself. that just shows you how quickly an awful lot of heartache and tragedy can occur in a situation like this, hallie. >> tom, thank you. stand by for a second. i can't let a second pass without talking about the victims, the little kids, the teachers whose lives were taken too soon. garrett haake, can you tell us more what we're learning? some have been identified by family members. police have not identified the victims yet. we're learning more, too, about the two teachers who put themselves literally in the path of these bullets to try to save these kids' lives. >> that's right, hallie. as tom alluded to this has taken place in one or two connected classrooms with fourth graders and two teachers with them all day long. we are learning about individual students killed, many of them in neighborhoods just like this. i've been walking around here all morning talking to folks in this community and it's just a

fact in a community this small, only about 15,000 people, what we find are every door we knock on essentially, someone's cousin, someone's friend, someone's school mate, someone knew someone who was in that classroom. it's been incredibly difficult, frankly, to just talk to these folks, people either had students in that school, they were desperately trying to reach them all day yesterday or they knew someone who had passed away. it is the kind of thing i think we're going to continue to feel in this community for quite some time. >> shannon, we're going to hear from president biden in about 50 minutes from now on a different topic, on the anniversary of the murder of george floyd but it is entirely possible i would imagine he could speak about some of the developments that we have heard so far today evolving. >> reporter: right. this is an issue looming large in the white house today. the first lady indicated that her and the president will go at some point to texas. she didn't offer any specifics on when that would be or the details around it.

you mentioned the president is going to speak in about an hour. we don't know if he's going to address the shooting again. obviously we've played this throughout the day, the president gave very emotional, very angry comments last night when he returned from his trip to asia, made the remarks just moments after getting back to the white house, but of course this all comes less than a week or almost exactly a week from when the president was in buffalo, where he also gave very passionate, emotional remarks around that shooting, and with family members there. here again, something propelled onto the president's agenda today. they were anticipating talking about police reform. this is executive order they have working on for at least a year. it is something that there is a lot of passion among the president's base for it, something the white house was, frankly, hoping to get some good credit for, that of course

largely overshadowed by these events today and as far as what comes next from the white house, the president's indicated in the past, there's not much more he can do from an executive branch level. it is to congress. that's why in the remarks rehear him increaingly pleading with congress to take some action. we know as my colleagues on the hill have outlined, there are not the votes for that now and not the votes to get rid of the filibuster if democrats wanted to try to do something at this point. largely all we can expect from the white house at this point is talk from the president, because they are running out of actions they can take. >> the sentiment of running out of actions or wanting action to be taken is something we heard from beto o'rourke, who had the confrontational moment, my understanding he walked into the news conference towards the beginning of it, the start of it governor abbott was holding and had this conversation we're about to play, after the governor wrapped up the first of his remarks. i have to warn our audience, we

are playing this raw and uncut. some of the language is explicit. listen. >> excuse me. excuse me. excuse me. >> sit down. you're out of line and an embarrassment. >> sit down. >> -- shooting right now and you're doing nothing. >> get the heck out of here. >> this is totally predictable with you. >> sir, you're out of line. sir, you are out of line! sir, you are out of line! please leave this auditorium. i can't believe you're a sick son of a bitch to come to something like this and make it a political issue. it's -- like you, why don't you get out of here.

[ indiscernible ] >> [ chants of "let him speak" ] >> talk to us about that. morgan chesky caught up with beto o'rourke after and the governor's response in the room. >> reporter:en this extraordinary moment, o'rourke expressing the frustration a lo shouting at their televisions what they're seeing after another mass shooting where officials come up, in this case republican-elected officials in the state of texas and give a set of remarks and don't mention the weapon or the guns or make that part of the problem, as you said. o'rourke came into that press conference just before it was set to begin. he waited until abbott's comments were over to come up and say this was predictable and this is on you. they've had multiple other mass shootings in the state of texas within the last few years, including at a high school near houston in santa fe, another

mass killing, that one not involving an assault rifle but o rourke went afterwards 18-year-olds, people who can't buy beer buying assault weapons. what did we think they were going to do with them? that is his argument here. for abbott's sake he tried to essentially play off o'rourke's remarks and bring this back to make this press conference more about the victims and about some semblance of unity. here's how he responded after o'rourke was escorted out. >> we need all texans to, in this one moment in time, put aside personal agendas, think of somebody other than ourselves, think about the people who were hurt and help those who have been hurt. >> reporter: that's one sentiment but the fact of the matter is, hallie, texans don't agree on this. just like in many other states the background check bills are

broadly popular. o'rourke made gun control and specifically getting assault weapons off texas streets a major part of his platform as you saw there. this is going to continue to be an incredibly heated political debate. the argument from o'rourke and many other democrats who feel the way he does is that it is not too early to talk about gun control and political reforms after a mass shooting. it is, in fact, too late. >> garrett, thank you for that. i want to bring in tom llamas in uvalde, texas. you've been on the ground talking with people. you just spoke in the last few minutes with the gunman's aunt. what did she tell you? >> reporter: yes, that's right. we went over to the grandmother's house. it's obviously barricaded. there are police and fbi going in and out of that house but i was told a relative went in to retrieve a bible for the grandmother. you remember this is where it starts. he shoots his grandmother and takes off towards the elementary school. when the relative came out, she told me she's the aunt of the

shooter. she lived with him and knows him very well. this is where the interview picks up right here. >> for everybody involved, i'm sorry, my condolences to everybody. this is something that i wouldn't wish upon anybody and i lost my little cousin as well on the other side. i'm at a loss for words for everything right now. i'm trying to deal with what's going on. my grandmother is in critical condition. i'm trying to be there for my grandma as much as i can. we lost a nephew in the process as well. i don't know what was going on. >> reporter: now that aunt is echoing a sentiment we're hearing from other relatives so far. nbc news has also spoken to the boyfriend of the mother, along with the grandfather. everyone that is related to the shooter say they never saw this coming. the aunt told me she said nobody knows what he was going through, but she would not say if he was depressed. she also would not say why he chose this school. she seemed to think from talking to her that he did not know who

exactly he was killing. he obviously came here to kill small children, but there was actually, she was telling us a relative of the family who was killed here, the young schoolchildren and she believes he had no idea about this. it's interesting, hallie, the families say one story but "the washington post" has an interesting story about that. >> i was going to ask you about that. >> reporter: that paints a different narrative, talk about a shooter who transformed, a young man who evolved. he started wearing black and the boots and bought two assault rifles and came here and unleashed this carnage. so a lot of people are trying to figure out the why. i don't know if we'll ever figure out the why. we're learning the how today and also the families involved here will never forget this and probably don't even care because they lost everything today or yesterday, i should say. >> and the families of the survivors who are praying through that that their kids will survive this experience, in the hospital. tom, you touched on two important things. the woman mentioned, the

shooter's aunt she lost a little cousin on the other side. are you saying there is a relative of the gunman in this classroom and that perhaps that -- >> reporter: so the relative, right, yes. it's not a blood relative to the shooter, but to this aunt, so this aunt lost her nephew, who was the shooter and she lost a little baby cousin, i shouldn't say baby, 9-year-old little boy as well. it shows you how tight-knit this community is. we've talked about that over and over again, that even the shooter's family, there was overlap with this horrific event and you saw in her face they're worried about the grandmother. they came to retrieve her baseball, in san antonio she's in critical condition. >> tom, you've been on the ground for 24 hours. what has stood out to you, given the horrific fact of the matter this is not the first mass

shooting. it may be among the worst but not the only mass shooting you covered. >> reporter: i think america is made up of small towns, what makes this country great. most americans have probably never heard of uvalde, texas, before yesterday. now the whole world knows about this town for the worst possible way. for me, 90% of the kids went to school are hispanic, their families came to the country looking for something better. some of the parents don't even speak english and probably working several jobs to go to a public school here in america, the dream, and look at the nightmare they're living now. how do they explain that? for me it's that. just so sad. >> tom llamas, garrett shake, shannon pettypiece, thank you. we talked with garrett and tom about the victims and we'll look more closely about what we're learning about the children, the kids slaughtered in their fourth grade class and the teachers who tried to save their lives and also talk with a gun safety activist in texas about what

needs to change at the state level. we're live on capitol hill also where so far, the fury not being met with action federally. first a look at the outrage, the fury felt across the country today and that viral moment from golden state warriors coach steve kerr, refusing to talk basketball at a pre-game news conference instead calling out the people in the building behind me at the capitol. watch. >> when are we going to do something?! i'm tired. i'm so tired of getting up here and offering condolences to, to the devastated families that are out there. you realize that 90% of americans, regardless of political party, want background checks. we are being held hostage by 50 senators in washington who refuse to even put it to a vote. they won't vote on it because they want to hold onto their own power. it's pathetic! i've had enough.

i've had enough. ♪ ♪ it's 5:00 a.m., and i feel like i can do anything. we've got apples and cabbage. 7,000 dahlias, vegetables, and brisket for dinner. this is my happy place. we've been coming here, since 1868. my grandmother used to say, don't call me, don't bother me. i'm going out to mow.

there's a lot of cushy desk jobs out there, but i make the earth take the shape that i want it to take. there are millions of ways to make the most of your land. learn how to make the most of yours at deere.com finding the perfect designer isn't easy. but, at upwork, we found her. she's in austin between a dog named klaus and her favorite shade of green. it's actually salem clover. and you can find her right now on upwork.com when the world is your workforce, finding the perfect project manager, designer, developer, or whomever you may need... tends to fall right into place. find top-rated talent who can start today on upwork.com what happens when performance... meets power?

you try crazy things... ...because you're crazy... ...and you like it. you get bigger... ...badder... ...faster. ♪ you can never have too much of a good thing... and power is a very good thing. ♪ another crazy day? a of course—you'rey a cio in 2022. but you're ready. because you've got the next generation in global secure networking from comcast business. with fully integrated security solutions all in one place. so you're covered. on-premise and in the cloud. you can run things the way you want —your team, ours or a mix of both. with the nation's largest ip network. from the most innovative company. bring on today with comcast business. powering possibilities.™ attorney's office to pursue justice for everyone. but like so many

of my colleagues, i resigned in protest because chesa boudin interfered in every single case and failed to do his job. the office is absolutely in disarray right now. chesa dissolved my unit prosecuting car break-ins. now criminals flock to san francisco because there are no consequences. we can't wait. recall chesa boudin now.

>> to capitol hill, some members of congress for pushing for maybe some new momentum on gun reform legislation. senator chuck schumer starting a process to bring background check legislation that passed the house to his chamber. today kind of pumping the brakes on that. >> there are some who want this body to quickly vote on sensible gun safety legislation. i'm sympathetic to that. and i believe that accountability votes are important. but sadly, this isn't a case of the american people not knowing where their senators stand. they know. they know, because my republican colleagues are perfectly clear on this issue, crystal clear. >> one of the members, senator chris murphy got on his knees on the senate floor yesterday begging his colleagues to do something. we're also now hearing more from the other side of the capitol and that is the house, with leader steny hoyer saying that

he plans to bring a bill to the floor to establish a national red flag law, that is something that the house will take up. i want to bring in allie raffa, who is posted up on capitol hill with the latest. this bill is put together by congresswoman lucy macbeth, who has been an advocate for changing the gun laws given her personal history. >> reporter: that's right, one of several options that lawmakers on capitol hill have on the table to move on several options that they have been talking about since the shooting yesterday, the house we know is out of session. senators are here on capitol hill today, and the question now is whether this shooting after dozens of school shootings since sandy hook in 2012, nearly a decade ago, come december, will finally be enough to move both sides of the aisle toward some meaningful and bipartisan gun legislation reform. it's truly been a whil wind on

capitol hill this morning, the senator emotional, the feeling is still raw. several speaking on the senate floor earlier. the problem here, hallie is while there's lots of options on the table, there's no guarantee that any of these proposals could pass, let alone whether they will pass before senators are expected to leave on this ten-day memorial day recess on thursday. there's also a push now whether senators should stay, should keep the senate in session through the weekend so most of this legislation can get talked through. we know that senator murphy is leading the effort on the democratic side. he has an extremely personal connection to this, because he represents connecticut. he's worked so closely with the families of the victims in sandy hook for years, and now he's leading this effort. he says he's talking with several senators on both sides of the aisle on where they can meet in the middle, where is

some bipartisan support on what proposals, the first of which things like you mentioned, red flag laws that allow law enforcement to revoke weapons among people they think are a threat to themselves or others. there's some division among republicans over whether red flag laws should be federally enacted or something that's handled on the state level. then you have senate republicans wanting to push for more law enforcement in schools, hardening of schools, teaching teachers how to operate weapons. this is something i asked senator ted cruz yesterday after this shooting, what could have been put in place to prevent something like this, and this is exactly what he proposed. other republicans are calling for expanding background checks, something they think could get 60 votes, since moderate democrats are not willing to nuke the filibuster. they're saying this has a better

chance of receiving bipartisan support and lasting as far as legislation, if it does get support from both parties, not nuking a fill buster to get this passed just by democrats. so this debate is far from over, hallie. there are other things like proposing regulations on body armor, whether to ban ar-15s, several other pieces of legislation, other proposals that senators here on capitol hill are talking about, but as i said, this debate is far from over. the question is whether this will stay top of mind when senators come back, if they indeed leave on the ten-day recess. >> allie raffa, thank you so much. next up, what else we're learning about the victims. we'll take you live to texas in a moment. we'll take you live to texas in a moment at 4 months, after just 2 doses. skyrizi may increase your risk of infections

and lower your ability to fight them. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms such as fevers, sweats, chills, muscle aches or coughs, or if you plan to or recently received a vaccine. ♪ nothing is everything ♪ talk to your dermatologist about skyrizi. learn how abbvie could help you save. you see, son, with a little elbow grease, you can do just about anything. thanks, dad. that's right, robert. and it's never too early to learn you could save with america's number one motorcycle insurer. that's right, jamie. but it's not just about savings. it's about the friends we make along the way. you said it, flo. and don't forget to floss before you brush. your gums will thank you. -that's right, dr. gary. -jamie? sorry, i had another thought so i got back in line. what was it? [ sighs ] i can't remember. the census tells you a lot about people. you could tell on the census records that at very, very young ages, they were cooks, they were farm hands, they were servants. there's auralia, 4-years old.

i have learned a lot about the rest of the family, it was really finding gold. one of my grandfathers, didn't even know his birthdate. i figured out the exact year he was born. the census records fill in gaps, it helped me push the door open. you're pretty particular about keeping a healthy body. what goes on it. usually. and in it. mostly. here to meet those high standards is the walgreens health and wellness brand. over 2000 high quality products. rigorously tested by us. real world tested by you. and delivered to your door in as little as one hour.

our students, they're our top priority. and students are job one for our superintendent of public instruction, tony thurmond. recruiting 15,000 new teachers, helping ensure all students can read by third grade. the same tony thurmond committed to hiring 10,000 new mental health counselors. as a respected former social worker, thurmond knows how important those mental health counselors are for our students today. vote for democrat tony thurmond. he's making our public schools work for all of us. april: when i think about teacher appreciation day, i really think about all of the things teachers do that they think go unseen. rosy: my son's first grade teacher really made a difference. he went above and beyond. kiyoko: when a parent tells me that i've made a difference in their child's life, it means the world to me. terrence: when i think of my daughter's teachers, that's about as close to a superhero as you can be. announcer: because the california teachers association knows quality public schools

make a better california for all of us. welcome to your world. your why. what drives you? what do you want to leave behind? what do you want to give back? what do you want to be remembered for? that's your why. it's your purpose, and we will work with you every step of the way to achieve it. at pnc private bank, we'll help you take care of the how. so tell us - what's your why? ♪♪ let's take a minute to look at the pictures of the kids slaughtered in a classroom, some of them 10-year-olds, like lucia

garcia, anabel rodriguez who we think tide in the classroom along with her cousin. a little boy like half ger lopez a fourth grader who loved dancing according to "the washington post," went to a school awards ceremony with his mom before headed into the classroom where he would be called. jose flores, he's remembered as happy, as a smart kid and boy who could hit the heck out of a baseball and amerie jo garza, she was dialing 911 to help her classmates when she was killed, think about that a little hero trying to call for help. this is a picture of her, there's another picture of her and her dad on their last weekend together. there's 17-year veteran teacher

eva mireles and irma garcia, at the school for 23 years. she was a mom to four kids who will never see her again. we're going to be back with more from texas in just a minute. from texas in just a minute. hin. ♪ ♪ miss allen over there isn't checking lesson plans. she's getting graded on her green investments with merrill. a-plus. still got it. (whistle blows) your money never stops working for you with merrill, a bank of america company.

♪ ♪ your money never stops working for you with merrill, ♪ ♪ i may be close to retirement, but i'm as busy as ever. and thanks to voya, i'm confident about my future. voya provides guidance for the right investments. they make me feel like i've got it all under control. [crowd cheers] voya. be confident to and through retirement. ♪ limu emu ♪ and doug. ♪ harp plays ♪ only two things are forever: love and liberty mutual customizing your car insurance, so you only pay for what you need. (emu squawks) if anyone objects to this marriage, speak now or forever hold your peace. (emu squawks) (the crowd gasps)

no, kevin, no! not today. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ we're back now and i want to take you straight to uvalde with nbc's kerry sanders who is there with senator roland gutierrez. kerry, i'll turn it over to you. >> reporter: as we know in the aftermath of these shootings and we've had way too many in this country. the debate turns to gun control. governor greg abbott today saying that chicago, new york, california have strict gun control laws, but more people are killed in chicago in a weekend than are killed here in texas, which now brings us to state senator roland gutierrez. when you hear the governor say that, where do you stand on where things are with gun

control and what we just saw happen here? >> i think that what we've seen today from the governor is more of the same. santa fe, el paso, something that's evil, always mental health, he is confusing two different issues, the violence that happens on the streets of chicago and new york and los angeles with mass shootings. this is an epidemic running across our country, more so in texas. there's no way that this young man should have had access to the militarized weapons that he had. i think that the governor needs to take light of that very serious and real distinction. >> reporter: your 17-plus years in government. what can be done? because i know you tried to do something before. >> i'd ask our democrats in the united states senate to break the filibuster, that's the first thing. what we need to do the at the state level is have age restrictions, we can have

restrictions on red flag laws, we can have restrictions on waiting periods, we've discussed and we've brought these issues forward to our republican colleagues and yet year after year, session after session, nothing gets done while this party remains in control in texas. >> reporter: you talk about party, but there is a general sense in our country, not specific to texas, but there's a general sense that politicians are not working for the people who elect them anymore, that it's about power and control and the money that flows to them. >> all need one do is go over to the texas capitol and see the kind of money that the nra piles into the republican coffers. i'm a gun -- i own guns. i hunt. i don't hunt with an ar-15. never fired one in my life. these types of militarized weapons have no place in our streets, in our schools, anywhere.

>> >> reporter: i'm going to cut you off. i heard this before, in parkland, as you said in san fa fay. i've heard this before but there has not been a significant change in our country. so is this another case where people say if this feels like it's a turning point and then a month from now, it is not a turning point. >> i've been asked that question over and over the last day, and i said yesterday i remain hopeful but at the end of the day, here is a governor, suggests that it's more of the same, evil, mental health, hardening schools, very proud of himself on that. >> reporter: we need to point out the gunman, salvador ramos, when he came here and smashed his car over here and went in the school, it was an open door

he went in through. there is no fence, no walls, nobody patrolling the area. after santa fe, they loved towards trying to harden schools but some of the rural areas didn't get that. even our urban schools are accessible. what happened here could have been avoided with a waiting period for a young man buys a gun three days after his birthday, buys another three days later. that should have raised a red flag. 375 rounds of ammunition? that in itself. we don't have those kinds of laws because republicans don't want those laws. >> reporter: let me flip the page on you. you say you're a gun owner. what about those who responsibly own their guns, have the trigger locks, they keep them in the safes, they use them for target shooting, they use them for hunting, they are the will say the constitution gives me the right to own my gun and the

government should not take it away, because what you're talking about is what many fear is a step towards moving down the line, where first they have to register their guns and then eventually they lose their guns. >> i don't want to take anybody's guns away. i don't want to take their pistols or hunting rifles. militarized weaponry, the kind of weaponry that our soldiers have used in afghanistan and the battlefield, that's what these young men are using in these episodes, in these nightmarish episodes. we have to understand that and we have to be able as state legislators to create restrictions on that type of weaponry, and we at least need to have a common sense discussion that leads to legislation. when you're dealing with the other side that's bought and paid for by the nra, there is no discussion in texas, and to simply say evil and mental health? i'm sorry. that dog just isn't going to hunt here anymore.

>> reporter: state senator gud gutierrez, thank you. the ar-15 style assault weapon something designed for the military. it is notable it took the type of training that is given to special forces that that is the border patrol agent who eventually took out this gunman, 18-year-old salvador ramos, so it was the same sort of force that met him to take him out, sadly after so many, so many had been killed here. hallie? >> thank you for that interview. appreciate it. we have new details from morgan chesky, also on the ground in texas who just talked with some federal atf officials. we learned the 18-year-old shooter was not wearing body armor according to this official. it was just a vest to hold his ammunition. the agent in charge says there was a partial tally, it showed the shooter had seven 30-round magazines on him. they think he might have had more than that.

they confirmed the gunman dropped one rifle near the truck, brought another one into the school. i want to bring in msnbc anchor jose diaz-balart also there. you heard about the discussion with the state senator how that has devastated the community and i facebook post from one of the parents of one of the youngest victims here, the young victims who said there are many people in the community who are grieving but only a few of them are not able to hug and kiss their babies today and those are the 19 families who lost children, the two families who lost their mothers, their sisters, is the teachers who were looking to save those kids' lives. >> reporter: yes, hallie, i don't know how to put into words what one senses and what one feels and what one hears here in uvalde. kerry was talking about how the

school had its front door open. it's interesting, because that's what this town is everywhere, every house you go to around here is unlocked. people are used to having a life where they could walk and knock on their neighbor's doors and open the door, and so you know, this is a town of 17,000. it's 80% latino. we're about 70 miles from the mexican border. we're about 50, 60 miles from san antonio. the crossroads of so many things here, some of the folks that live here were telling me they're so proud to call it the honey capital of the world, and yes, hallie, you're a parent. there are 19 families that yesterday, just 47 hours ago,

were going about their day, thinking that soon they were going to pick up their children from here. tomorrow is the last day of school, tomorrow. kids were at recess, thinking about the summer that was coming, thinking of 10-year-old javier, fourth grader who received a recognition of excellence and celebrated with his mom, who came here to be with her son, the last time, she did not know she would be able to see him. thinking about the little girl who yesterday received the recognition, piece of paper, there's a picture of her with that recognition, beaming with pride, and then her mother says she then tried to call 911, as

she was losing her life. you know, it's tough to put into words what 19 families are going through, and then the families of the two teachers, the one who had 17 years' experience here at this school, one had more than 20 years and hallie, you know, people here, and i've talked to say "she was my teacher. she was my role model," and that even 'til the end, she was a role model. i was speaking with a lady earlier this morning, hallie, about how she texted with her sister. her sister is a teacher here, who survived. she's a special ed. teacher, locked in a closet with her eight children and the terror and the prayers to survive. how do you put words together to describe that infinite pain,

gut-wrenching horror? it's going to be going on for a long time, hallie. going to be going on for a long time. >> and you think about, too, jose, the survivors, the kids and the adults who were in the hospital, who were released, some of them. some of them have not been. they were transferred to san antonio for further care and you think about the impact on them and their lives, too. >> reporter: yes. yes, and the kids thought of that as they were running out of that school and what was left behind, behind me is undescribable. >> jose diaz-balart thank you for being there and sharing your thoughts. we appreciate it. >> reporter: thanks. i want to bring in the executive director of texas gun sense, nicole holden, and nicole, i appreciate you joining us. before we start, just to set the table here for this discussion, i want to put into context for viewers what the gun laws are

like in texas. you heard governor abbott talk about and beto o'rourke. anybody over the age of 18 can buy a rifle, like the military-style one it is believed this shooter in uvalde used. at 21 you can buy a public places without any kind of permit. no background checks for private sales, no limit on how many guns or magazines you can get and he wants to increase access to guns signing seven pro-gun bills including the right to bring a gun into a hotel room, locking federal gun regulations from getting in the way. nicole, when you take all of this together it appears and i want to be careful with the language, but it appears that the shooter did not break a single texas law until the moment he opened fire. what has to change? >> yeah. in cases like this and always we try not to focus on the shooter. we focus the victims and the

survivors and the solutions for change. we know there's not one solution to preventing every gun deaths, but we know that it's not an option to do nothing. doing nothing has gotten us into these horrifying situations and it's unacceptable. you know, first, my heart is shattered for the victims and survivors of uvalde that are not far from where i am in austin, texas. it's unimaginable. i had to send my kids to school today. i've been doing this work for ten years and it feels exhausting to feel like you're screaming into the void, but we know we have to keep going and being a voice and pushing for solutions at every level of government, even when it's an uphill battle like it is here in the state legislature in texas. >> when you look at you talk about solutions and being solution oriented. cdc data shows that texas had

the most gun-related deaths in 2020. what would your message be to governor abbott at this moment? >> you know, i've been talking about this all day. after the santa fe shooting governor abbott laid out a school safety plan and in that safety plan he expressed interest in safe gun laws, things that we've been fighting for for years. things like an extreme risk protection order to have guns safely and legally temporarily removed from someone who is a potential danger to themselves or others. it's a tools for families in crisis. mandatory -- and he did not act on those measures. state leadership expressed interest in safe gun laws after the horrific shootings in odesa and el paso, and again, didn't

take action. they've failed us. instead, what governor abbott did was sign a law last session in 2021 removing licensing and training requirements to carry a loaded handgun in texas, all while the gun violence crisis rages on. as you said, we've had over 4,000 gun deaths in texas in 2020 which is the most recent data. that is a climb. we hear about major shootings like the horrible one yesterday and there are also everyday shootings in communities disproportionately impacted. firearm suicides account for a large number that we don't always hear about in the news. they all deserve our attention. >> nicole golden, executive director of texas gun sense. thank you very much for being with us. next up, after the break, more on what we know about the two teachersy killed trying to protect their students and how educators want to make schools safer. ors want to make schools safer. killed trying to protect their students and how educators want to make schools safer. killed trying to protect their students and how educators want to make schools

safer. otezla. it's a choice you can make. otezla is not a cream. it's a pill that treats plaque psoriasis differently. with otezla, you can achieve clearer skin. don't use if you're allergic to otezla. otezla can cause serious allergic reactions. it may cause severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. otezla is associated with an increased risk of depression. tell your doctor if you have a history of depression or suicidal thoughts or if these feelings develop. some people taking otezla reported weight loss. your doctor should monitor your weight and may stop treatment. upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. tell your doctor about your medicines and if you're pregnant or planning to be. otezla. show more of you. it's time to get outdoorsy. and if you're pregnant or planning to be. it's hot. and wayfair's got just what you need. we need a rug. that's the one, yeah. yeah, we were feeling outdoorsy. i know... now through may 31st shop wayfair's memorial day sale and score big

on outdoorsy furniture and decor up to 50% off. spend less on everything outdoorsy at wayfair. ♪ wayfair you've got just what i need ♪ my asthma felt anything but normal. ♪ ♪ it was time for a nunormal with nucala. nucala reduces asthma attacks it's a once-monthly add-on treatment for severe eosinophilic asthma. not for sudden breathing problems. allergic reactions can occur. get help right away for swelling of face, mouth, tongue, or trouble breathing. infections that can cause shingles have occured. don't stop steroids unless told by your doctor. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. may cause headache, injection site reactions, back pain, and fatigue. ask your asthma specialist about a nunormal with nucala.

>> you are looking live, of course, at the white house where we expect president biden to speak in just a couple of minutes from now. not ostensibly on what we have been talking about, of course, the mass shooting in texas. he's set to address the two-year murder of george floyd. it is possible he could make some remarks about uvalde and what we've seen and what has happened. it is there in texas and they weren't just students at robb elementary school. two teachers died at the hands of the shooter. one eva mireles was a teacher for 17 years. one of her family members told "the new york times" she was trying to protect her kids, trying to protect her students. this is what her cousin told us about eva on the "today" show. >> she was absolutely vivacious. she was definitely an adventurer, and you know, it breaks my heart. i just saw her for christmas this last december. >> her daughter posting on

facebook, mom, you are a hero. i keep telling myself this isn't real. i just want to hear your voice. the other teacher, irma garcia taught robb elementary school students for 23 years. she was recognized as a standout educator, a finalist for the trinity university prize for excellence in teaching. outside the classroom irma garcia had four kids of her own and loved to barbecue with her husband. joining me is eva molina with the texas state teachers association. thank you for joining me on these two days, and i want to hear your thoughts on the educators who quite literally took bullets for their students. >> the reaction is outrage, anger and heart break. complete and utter heartbreak. >> i can hear it in your voice and see it in your face because 18 hours and 24 hours is not enough time to process what has

happened here. >> no, it's not. i don't know when it will be enough time to process, and as these instances keep occurring it just re-opens old wounds. every educator that has heard of a shooting or has been in an active shooting event, whenever we hear it again it just brings back all of the emotions. >> your group put out a statement about this saying that these tragedies, to your point, keep happening and as you say, lawmakers do nothing. in texas' case, your state's attorney general, state senator, tim cruz are proposing to put more guns in schools. to put more armed people in schools to make students safer. what is your response to them? >> they don't know what happens in our schools. they don't care what happens in our schools. they're not talking to educators. as many educators we have many things on our plates and having

us be in charge of a weapon to shoot at somebody while we're trying to protect our students, while we're trying to protect our co-workers, while we're trying to make sure that everybody is safe does not make sense. we are not trained killers. we are not trained police officers. we are not trained to do that. we have many other things that we have to do, and putting more bullets, more guns in our schools is not going to be the answer. in many of the instances that the shooters that come into the schools are students or former students and you're asking us to potentially make the decision of shooting someone we know, loved or cared about. i don't understand how they think that that's possible. >> before i let you go, i have 20 seconds, what do you think about the idea that was suggested of one entrance, for example, into schools. >> again, they don't know what

happens in our schools. they don't know how to make a thriving, safe community in our schools. they need to listen to educators and they need to bring about change. we are tired of thoughts and prayers. we need action and we need our schools to be safe. >> thank you for sharing your perspective on msnbc. i appreciate it. >> thank you for watching this hour with msnbc. "deadline white house" with nicole wallace picks up right now. ♪♪ ♪♪ >> hi there, everyone. 4:00 in new york. president joe biden is expected to speak any moment now and to sign an executive order aimed at reforming policing in america. the move comes on the second anniversary of the murder of george floyd. it's an event that forced our country to confront the crisis of racism and police brutality head-on. we will air president biden's remarks live as soon as it happens. his speech and the executive order comes in which america is having to look itself in the