here in the senate came in 2017 on sunday service in a little baptist church right outside of sutherland springs texas. twenty-six lives were lost that day, 20 people injured. and the entire community outside of san antonio was shaken to their core by this hateful act. and then was court-martialed and then was serious domestic abuse that hasn't been loaded into the relevant background check database. even though federal statute clearly states all federal agencies areeqre required to do so. as a result the gunmen could unlawfully purchase for firearms, three of which he leused to carry out this despicable act. in the wake of any tragedy you cannot help but ask what if and in this instance it was our duty to ask those questions. but we knew the answer. the criminal record was uploaded into the background check system the shooter would have been prevented from purchasing these firearms used in the attack. i have searched my conscience and the record to figure out exactly what we might be able to do to prevent acts like this fromm occurring in the future. ten days after the shootin shooting, introdu

2017 when a gunman opened fire on a sunday service at a little baptist church right outside of sutherland springs, texas. 26 lives were lost that day. 20 people were injured. and the entire community, that small, little community outside of san antonio, was shaken to their core by this hateful act. well, it didn't take us too long to learn about the shooter, a man with a record of domestic violence, animal cruelty and mental illness. he had been court-martialed by the air force and convicted of a serious domestic abuse, which is a felony. by law, the shooter should have been prevented from purchasing or even possessing a firearm, but he wasn't because the critically important information about his criminal background had not been uploaded into the relevant background check databases maintained by the f.b.i. even though a federal statute clearly states that all federal agencies are required to do so. as a result, the gunman was able to unlawfully purchase four firearms, three of which he used to carry out this despicable act. in the wake of any tragedy like this, you can't help but ask what if. in

it's been two years since the shooting and sutherland springs and unfortunately that was not the lastmass violence episode experienced by the state of texas. on august 3 of this year a gunman stormed the el paso walmart killing 22 people and wounding two dozen others. less than a month later at august 31 a man went on a shooting rampage in midland and odessa killing seven people and wounding 25. i visited each of these cities in the days following the shootings to pay my respects to those who had lost loved ones and visit those who were still recovering in hospital rooms and also to thank the law enforcement officers that i believe save lives it would've otherwise been lost but for their quick and professional response. in the early days we were still gathering information and working to get to the bottom of how the shootings happen. now that we have a pretty good idea about what happened and what didn't happen that should've happened, it's time to work on solutions to help prevent these types of episodes of mass violence into the future. over the weekend the minority leader here in t

then there was sutherland springs where 26 people were killed.hen there was santa fe high school where ten people were killed. and then less than a month ago, there was a shooting in el paso. i am heartbroken by the crying of the people in the state of texas. i'm tired of the dying of the people of the state of texas. too many texans are in mourning. too many texans have lost their lives. the status quo in texas is unacceptab unacceptable, and action is needed. after the shooting at santa fe high school, i signed more than 15 laws to make our schools safer from shooting attacks. in the immediate aftermath of the shooting at el paso, i spoke with the volusia governor and with advocacy groups. we have been working on drafting solutions that can be taken on by the governor and the executive branch in texas, solutions this address racist -- take racist hate attacks like what happened in el paso, solutions that will address keeping oukeep i ing communities safer. now in the aftermath of the recent shooting, we must broaden our efforts to address the t

then there was sutherland springs where 26 people were killed.fe high school where 10 people were killed x. then less than a month ago there was a shooting in el paso. well, i am heartbroken by the crying of the people of the state of texas. i'm tired of the dying for the people of the state of texas. too many texans are in mourning. too many texans have lost their lives. the status quo in texas is unacceptable, and action is needed. after the shooting at santa fe high school, i signed more than 15 laws to make our schools safer from shooting attacks. in the immediate aftermath of the shooting in el paso, i've worked with the lieutenant governor, the speaker as well as legislators, i've also worked with the victims as well as advocacy groups. we have been working on drafting solutions that can be taken by legislators as well as solutions that could be taken by the governor and the executive branch in texas. solutions that address racist hate attacks like what happened in el paso, solutions that will address keeping our communities safer. now in t

pass sooner it couldut have prevented the sutherland springs shooter from getting in the first place by lying on his background check knowing perhaps that the united states air force had not uploaded his conviction for domestic violence into the background check system so he could get it. these are the reforms they believe we should be looking at, real solutions to real problems. we owe it to the american people to focus on making changes that will work. not talking points or show boats but trying to solve the problem. the american people are smart mister president they can see what is happening when we resort to the same old tired talking points and are not angaged to find solutions. they see through it. we owe it to them and to ourselves and those who might become future victims to do everything we can to provide the tools for law enforcement to provide a --dash prevent as many of these deaths as we can the background check became law and had broad support from republicans and democrats as well as the president but this guides my approach if interested in scoring political points t

listen. >> the shooting that you just mentioned, sutherland springs, el paso, odessa, was an ar-styleeapons, yes or no, sir? he a these are the things senators are talking about. it was a topic raised during the round table discussions we had in el paso. i do want to point out -- >> [ inaudible ]. evgenia >> i was going to say some of the shootings have not involved ars. >> so, let me show us what you, the american people, support. basically everyone supports universal background checks. eight in ten support requiring a license to purchase a gun. eight in ten support a red flag law and half support ban on assault weapons. andrew mccape, former februabi,k you for being here. >> thank you for having me, brooke. >> the president said it wouldn't have prevented multiple shoot ings in recent years. this was for trespassing, evading arrest. would those have prevented him from being a gun in texas? >> not necessarily. i don't want to get out ahead of the fbi background check folks who will at some point issue a conclusive finding on that. but basically the brady law which lays out the prohib

devon kelly should not have had the firearm that he used to slaughter 26 innocent people in sutherland springs. if you go a little bit further back, dylann roof, of course, another great example of a mass shooter who should not have had the gun that he used to commit that crime. so to say that stronger background checks wouldn't have an impact on mass violence and the incredible infaulty we're seeing in mass shootings today, it's not correct. >> always appreciate the perspective. thank you. >> thank you. >>> john berman is starting to feel the effects of hurricane dorian. john, though, i can see you now. looks like the rain let up for a small window here for you. >> yeah. the good news is it's dry for the time being. but we can expect more of those bands to come through dumping more rain. and the wind has been consistent. the seas are really kicking up. i know there have been some air ye air -- aerial shots. the ocean has been churning for hours now. much more of cnn's live coverage of hurricane dorian as it moves toward florida. stay with us. >> tech: at safelite autoglass, we really pride ou

there was a surge soting in sutherland springs and it seemed to rock him.e made changes but nothing sweeping. pete: the agencies giving dills qualifying information for ckground checks. but what about him? >> we've seen this with himit better in the immediate aftermath, his first instinct is think about gun ls. rom new york. he has been a democrat in the past. i don't think this is aed lineis for him. he was open to the idea. after timeasses, after the. r.a. weighs in after the poll sters weigh in and what his bthe ks about it, he may back off. i think abby is right.ht if it didn't happen in major way after parkland, after baseball game, what makes now any different? pete: every time something like this happens, the speaker says enough is e this will be different. do you get any sense at the white house that thiill be different ever will be after one of these? >> the president was really strong in the first couple of days after the back-to-back shootings after that tragic weekend where there were shootings in both ohio and b texas. he sngd i'm go bring peop

some of the same team members who were involved in the aftermath of the church shooting in sutherland springs, almost 2 years ago. >>are here in odessa connection between the fbi and the s. >>the death of a lease. fortunately experience of work. >>ector county sheriff mike griffis says state leaders need to do more to deter people from committing crimes, somebody's got to be in fear of the consequences if they commit a that's some and i hope i hope called me the ensure get my opinion we have a sense of urgency to arrive at solutions as the people of the permian basin continue to mourn we expect an update from law enforcement some time mid morning. >>we will of course be tracking those details and share with you the latest as we learn more about this deadly attack reporting in odessa, i'm was rapoport back to you. >>at 4 oh 9, let's head to the east bay now police have arrested a man for driving away during a traffic stop and possessing counterfeit money so this happened saturday morning this is in richmond right near south 28 street in cutting boulevard police tried to pull over the driver fo

sutherland springs and it seemed to rock him. he madees cha but nothing sweeping.ete: the agenciesie giving dil qualifying information for background checks. but what about him? >> we've seen this with him better in the immediate aftermath, his first instinct is think about gun ls. he's from nework. he h been a democrat in the past. i don't think this is a red line for him. he was open t the idea. after timeer passes, a the. sters weigh i and what his base thinks about it, he may back off. i tbby is right.ht if it didn't happenaj in a way after parkland, after newtwt, after the congressional baseballame, what makes now any different? pete: every time something like this happens the speaker says enough is enough. this will be different. do you get any sense at the white house that things will be one of these? r will b after >> the president was really strong in the first couple of days after the back-to-back shootings after that tragic weekend where there were shootings in both ohio and te he said i'm going to bring people together and get them to do things that the

lives saved but it was a gun carrying good samaritan who ended the 2017 attack on a church in sutherland springs texas an armed bystander chased away the shooter after he killed 25 people but before he could kill more. at the shooting range members say owning a gun requires discipline and practice but even here there is support for removing weapons from people who. more likely to use them to cause harm people feel they're safe by just having but that's not the case texas has the most registered guns of any state more than 700000 whether that makes texas safer or more dangerous is still unclear. castro al-jazeera mission texas. tropical storm humberto as it moved away from the bahamas that's allowed a damper ations to resume for survivors of harken daryn 2 weeks ago some of into sunday church services for the 1st time since the disaster alan fischer joined them in freeport. for many this was the 1st time to come together since the hurricane the church a source of comfort after some difficult days once more the hugs were warm the tears were real the stories of survival frightening we watched our h

lives saved but it was a gun carrying good samaritan who ended the 2017 attack on a church in sutherland springs texas an armed bystander chased away the shooter after he killed 25 people but before he could kill more. at the shooting range members say owning a gun requires discipline and practice but even here there is support for removing weapons from people who. more likely to use them to cause harm to a lot of people feel they're safe by just having what that's not the case texas has the most registered guns of any state more than 700000 whether that makes texas safer or more dangerous is still unclear. castro al-jazeera mission texas. thanks. time does it take a look at the top stories here it is there saturday's drone attacks in saudi officer this is have triggered a record jump in brant crude futures trading u.s. president donald trump says he's authorized the release of all over america's strategic reserves to fill the market gap if needed vandana hari is c.e.o. of energy market analysis group vanda insight she says the lack of information coming from south korea a saudi arabia is making

lives saved but it was a gun carrying good samaritan who ended the 2017 attack on a church in sutherland springs texas an armed bystander chased away the shooter after he killed 25 people but before he could kill more. at the shooting range members say owning a gun requires discipline and practice but even here there is support for removing weapons from people who. more likely to use them to cause harm to drop people feel they're safe by just having what that's not the case texas has the most registered guns of any state more than 700000 whether that makes texas safer or more dangerous is still unclear. castro al-jazeera mission texas. still ahead on al-jazeera palestinian fallenness names of the fight to protect their land from the legal settlements. beyond frustrated why palestinian refugees living in lebanon demanding asylum. and your tale of a full time cop with an incredible comeback pacer we'll tell you just how they did it and. we still got some showers of fighting southern parts of china at the moment still want to see from the head showing up here the majority of the show is over toward

lives saved but it was a gun carrying good samaritan who ended the 2017 attack on a church in sutherland springs texas an armed bystander chased away the shooter after he killed 25 people but before he could kill more. at the shooting range members say owning a gun requires discipline and practice but even here there are support for removing weapons from people who are likely to use them to cause harm and a lot of people feel they're safe by just having but that's not the case texas has the most registered guns of any state more than 700000 whether that makes texas safer or more dangerous is still unclear. castro al-jazeera mission texas. aid operations have resumed in the bahamas as tropical storm battering we have to away from the area after dumping rain over parts of the archipelagos northwest some communities are now coming together for the 1st time since hurricane dorian hit 2 weeks ago our correspondent allen fisher has this report from freeport on the island of grand bahama. for many this was the 1st time to come together since the hurricane the church a source of comfort after some diffi

they wouldn't have stop sutherland springs. they wouldn't have stopped even parkland. what they would do is put you in jail up to a year if you loan your gun to a friend. make it to where somebody may have to wait 20 days to buy a gun to defend themselves against an ex-spouse who may be threatening to come and abuse them. there are people who use guns legally every single day to protect themselves from criminals and we ought to fight to protect the rights of those law-abiding citizens to continue to defend themselves as the second amendment of the constitution allows. these are not rights that congress gave. these are enshrined in our constitution. our founding fathers talked about the rights of law-abiding citizen it is defend themselves. i think that ought to be at the forefront of this conversation every step of the way through because when you look at some of the threats that are coming out, it's very concerning to think that speaker pelosi, and then you watched then on the stage at the democrat debate, you had a major candidate for president of the united states b

some of the same team members who were involved in the aftermath of the church shooting in sutherland springs, almost 2 years ago. >>are here in odessa connection between the fbi and s. >>the death of a lease. fortunately experience of work. >>ector county sheriff mike griffis says state leaders need to do more to deter people from committing crimes, somebody's got to be in fear of the consequences if they commit a that's fact and i hope i hope austin called me it's so darned sure get my opinion we have a sense of urgency to arrive at solutions as the people of the permian basin continue to mourn we expect an update from law enforcement some time mid morning. >>we will of course be tracking those details and share with you the latest as we learn more about this deadly attack reporting in odessa, i'm was rapoport back to you. arrested a man for driving away during a traffic stop and possessing counterfeit money. this happened saturday morning in richmond near south 28th street in cutting boulevard you can see all the fake money there that they got from the eye when they pulled him over they wa

cities across the country, whether odessa or el paso, and we cannot forget about santa fe or sutherland springswe need background checks, we need a saint gun safety policy that also addresses some of the hate driving this violence. david: tell us about the state of the democratic party in texas. theave heard about possibility of texas going to blue for years. it has been read for a long time. what would it take to do that? we have a lot of people moving to texas because of the pro-business agenda for the state. can you pursue that and be progressive at the same time? cliff: what you are seeing in the state of texas, and the polls bear this out, we have had six polls that show donald trump's competitive where that donald trump is underwater in the state. -- twol's this week polls this week showed donald trump five points behind in unnamed democratic nominee. quinnipiac released depaul texas residents are ready to vote against donald trump. what is driving this is migration and the state. to give you a sense of how quickly texas is changing, in the last four years, from november 2014 to 2018, we

and then also of course the sutherland springs shooting that left more. does that actually mean for the state of texas? it's really important here. i've spoken to various democrats in the state house of representatives. they feel the comments coming from this official is an acknowledgment that texans are very tired and that they do believe that this would be well received by not just democrats but some republicans. i do want to tell you that obviously these comments were not well received by the national rifle association. they were very quick to respond to the lieutenant governor's comments. before i let you go, i'll read a portion of what they had to say. the nra with a specific message to the lieutenant governor saying instead of trampling the freedom of law-abiding americans, they should focus on actual solutions. so the question here, what will we see in the state of texas and does that have potential to shape what we will see in washington, d.c.? >> interesting. all right. polo sandoval, thank you for bringing all that to us. appreciate it. >> thank

then there was sutherland springs and santa fe high school where ten people were killed.th ago there was a shooting in el paso. i'm heartbroken crying of the people in the state of texas. i'm tired of the dying of the people in the state of texas. too many texans are many mourning. too many texans have lost their lives. the status quo in texas is unacceptable and action is needed. after the shooting at santa fe high school, i signed more than 15 laws to make our schools safer from shooting attacks. in the immediate aftermath i worked with the lieutenant governor as well as legislatures. i've worked with victims as well as advocacy groups. we have been working on drafting solutions that can be taken as legislatures as well as solutions that can be taken by the governor and the executive branch in texas. solutions that address racists hate attacks like what happened with el paso. solutions that will address keeping our community safer. now in the aftermath of this shooting and the unique aspects of this shooting, we must broaden our efforts to address the tragedy that has b

you realize whether it's sutherland springs, to las vegas, to odessa, the fact these things go beyond those killed and injured, but those who experience the traumatic echlve that unfolded here. i asked david what would his message be to the american public? he said action needs to be taken. you hear this a lot from folks like david, you don't expect it to hit home. he doesn't know what it means. it's much like we heard before they want the president to listen. the texas state legislature doesn't reconvene until 2021 unless governor abbott chooses to hold a special session. governor abbott the republican governor noted the status quo in texas is not enough. they passed several measures that went into effect today that loosened gun restrictions in the state of texas. that conversation will continue to unfold here. the question ahead will be to what extent is federal legislation taken up, but also in the state of texas after four mass shootings? >> vonn, i'm glad you played that sound with david. that brings the story home. we've had unfortunately too many stories to tell. i spoke with t

families, our fellow americans in public places, at a walmart in el paso where 22 were killed, in sutherland springse or two a day all over this country. 100 killed daily in the united states of america. we're averaging about 300 mass shootings a year. no other country comes close. so, yes, this is [ bleep ] up. >> what o'rourke is talking about is something i have had to say too many times on this show. the odds haven't changed. i talked about those odds just hours after the deadly mass shooting at marjory stoneman douglas high school last year. every single one of us is just playing the odds at this point -- the odds that in a country of 325 million souls, that we won't be the ones who get hit by the next bullets that start flying. we won't be the one that gets that phone call about someone you love who did. your son, your daughter, your brother, your sister, your spouse, or your parent, even a friend, anyone you know. the phone call that changes your life. but with every deadly shooting in this country, the odds get worse and worse and worse. are you really willing to keep playing those odds? you

families, our fellow americans in public places at a walmart in el paso where 22 were killed, in sutherland springs in a church. one or two a day all over this country. 100 killed daily new state of america. we're averaging about 300 mass shootings a year. so yes, this is fucked up. if we don't call it out for what it is, if we're not able to speaker clearly, if we're not able to act decisively, we'll continue to have this kind of bloodshed in america. and i cannot accept that. and so we're going to speak up as defiantly and as strongly as we can, but we're also going to take action. universal background checks, red flag laws, into the sales of weapons of war and buying those ak-47s and ar-15s back so they cannot be used against our fellow americans. >> so let's talk more about some of those solutions. you made an unusual campaign stop a couple of weeks ago. you went to the red state of arkansas and you went to a gun show. what did you learn there? >> the first person who approached me introduced himself, recognized me. and i said, look, i've got to be honest. i'm here because we lose more than 40,

and after what i witnessed ipel paso, what we saw in midland, odessa, sutherland springs, those are three mass shootings of war in just one state. i can no longer state the conclusion if this gun isn't right to sell it's also unfit to own. each and every single one of them is a potential instrument of terror. you saw it in el paso. they walk around they tell me with a target on their back. knowing there are people who are better armed against them than some folks are on the battlefield on the front line that strikes terror into their hearts. >> i'm with you. people are scared, they want a change. just to be clear, banning them, an assault weapons ban which supposedly the democrats may be meeting about some time soon is different than confiscating weapons out there already. it certainly sent shock waves through and i want to ask you this, people want more protection. but what you said plays right to the heart of fear of people who don't want to give on any of this. they're working a deal hard. i've been talking to the democrats involved in it. they thought they were getting somewhere. they

some of the same team members who were involved in the aftermath of the church shooting in sutherland springs, almost 2 years ago. >>are here in odessa connection to the fbi and s. >>the death of a lease. fortunately experience of work. >>ector county sheriff mike griffis says state leaders need to do more to deter people from committing crimes, somebody's got to be in fear of the consequences if they commit a that's fact and i hope i hope austin called me it's so darned sure get my opinion we have a sense of urgency to arrive at solutions as the people of the permian basin continue to mourn we expect an update from law enforcement some time mid morning. >>we will of course be tracking those details and share with you the latest as we learn more about this deadly attack reporting in odessa, i'm was rapoport back to you. on the kron 4 morning news on this labor day of group of protesters marched through downtown berkeley will tell you what. >>they are upset about and one person is dead killed in a hazmat situation that happened in the south bay. and you look outside this morning shows temperat

al two years ago, 28 died at a sutherland springs churches and last year, two teachers outside of houston and then in el paso, the major shooting and governor abbott was here at a press conference yesterday afternoon when he said words are no longer good enough, the action must be taken and the status quo must be addressed. but the state legislature here in texas only meets every two years and they're set to reconvene in 2021. there's a lot of question marks not only here in this community but across texas as to what steps will actually be taken here to address shootings such as this. we should note that this 36-year-old white male the shooter in this situation it is not clear how he obtained what authorities are saying an ar-style weapon at this time. >> the question being what happens on the state level and then also if things will happen on the federal level when congress is back in session. vaughn hillyard, thank you so much. >>> still ahead, much more on hurricane dorian as the situation grows more dangerous by the hour. >>> and why several of president trump's advisers and allies ar

says some of the same team members who we involved in the aftermath of the church shooting in sutherland springs, almost 2 years ago. >>are here in odessa connection between the fbi and us. >>best police. fortunately experience of work. >>ector county sheriff mike griffis says state leaders need to do more to deter people from committing crimes, somebody's got to be in fear of the consequences if they commit a that's some flack and idaho. this old are unsure. get my opinion we have a sense of urgency to arrive at solutions as the people of the permian basin continue to mourn we expect an update from law enforcement some time mid morning. we will of course be tracking those details and share with you the latest as we learn more about this deadly attack reporting in odessa, i'm was rapoport back to you ok thank us in the east bay police arrested a man for driving away during a traffic stop and. >>possessing counterfeit money. so this was saturday morning in richmond right near south 28 street and cutting boulevard here looking at pictures of a police confiscated. so they tried to pull over the dri

given the experiences we had, one of the things that helped bring things to a close down in sutherland springs a citizen who was armed. the reality is, there has to be some count measure in place when something like this hams. now, is it additional security and things like that? and then from a policy point of view we talk a lot about this. we've done a lot in texas for school security. generally with officers on the ground and things like that. there's a lot of different ways to address this. this is not a problem that exists because of one thing in place or not in place. >> senator, this is the fourth mass shooting in texas. in a matter of weeks. you released a statement after the shooting saying that you would look to your constituents for recent mass shootings in your state. what are your constituents saying? >> some of them say, well everyone should be armed. some people say, no one should be armed. there should be no firearms allowed anywhere. i get the same communications you would expect about high capacity assault weapons. so it's my job just to listen. the policy debate, which in som

they will become the instruments of terror that we've seen in el paso, in midland odessa, in sutherland springss shootings across our country. and i'm confident that the popular will is there, not just among democrats, but republicans and gun owner as well as independents, democrats, and non-gun owners alike. so we've just got to move now. we've got to move. >> let's look at where the polling is. it's interesting, particularly on this issue, it's exactly divided. the latest marist/npr poll, should congress create a mandatory buyback program of assault guns, 45% of the country says yes, 46% of respondents say "no." so i hear you, you're not invested in the polling, what you're saying, you're not worried about what the right will say. however, if you don't win the general election, you don't even get to make that policy. is it a concern that it's not a winning position for the general? >> it's not a concern of mine. and that's in part informed by listening to people in conservative parts of america and the southwestern part of virginia, where not only does no democratic presidential contender go

vegas, orlando, sutherland springs, el paso, parkland. i don't have to say anything other than those names. you're very aware of it. is this now the time, you say it is. it's stunning to me what has happened in the last four years when you look at it from that perspective. >> it is stunning, chuck. of course i'm making an all-out effort to get our legislation passed. i will have to acknowledge that it's not clear that had manchin-toomey been law that any one of those particular shootings would have been prevented, although i think the shooting in odessa might have been blocked had manchin-toomey been law. but look, i think there's momentum now that we didn't have before. we have republican senators who are reconsidering e whole issue of expanding background checks to commercial sales, which is all we're talking about here. we've got a republican president who's very interested and personally engaged, so i don't know how this is going to turn out, but i'm hopeful and i'm going to keep pushing. >> i want to put up some quotes here. it seems

that we've had these acts of terror like the one that you saw in el paso or midland, odessa or sutherland springs one state, texas alone, i know that this country is called to act. and those students who marched for our lives, those moms who demand action, they're more powerful than the nra. they're going to force us to do the right thing while we still have time. >> congressman o'rourke, thanks very much for your time. i appreciate it tonight. >> thank you. >>> up next, personally demeaning. the person leading the whistle-blower probe. the man who used to head that committee weighs in next. ♪ dealing with psoriatic arthritis pain was so frustrating. my skin... it was embarrassing. my joints... they hurt. the pain and swelling. the tenderness. the psoriasis. i had to find something that worked on all of this. i found cosentyx. now, watch me. real people with active psoriatic arthritis are getting real relief with cosentyx. it's a different kind of targeted biologic. cosentyx treats more than just the joint pain of psoriatic arthritis. it even helps stop further joint damage. don't use if you're a

high school, as well as two teachers, and two years ago after 28 were killed at a church in sutherland springs. it's across the state in which these conversations are suddenly taking place at a staggering rate. >> certainly a very difficult time there in texas, vaughn hill yard, thanks for your reporting. let's bring in a msnbc contributor and the author of facen down evil, life as an fbi profiler and hostage negotiator. based on your experience and what you know so far, what do you think is the possible motive here? what could have sparked this horrific situation? >> this is going to be interesting. there's a website that follows mass shootings and it suggests that this was number 339 this year. realize, we've only had 244 days in a year, so we're well ahead of one and a half mass shootings every day. what i think the police are looking at and the fbi and atf that will all be there is this individual was evidently heavily armed. it's described as a weapon. we know he fired a lot of rounds of ammunition, so the question is was he on the way to do something else, was this a routine traffic stop

before that i was in sutherland springs the day after that shooting standing in that beautiful sanctuary with blood. i was in santa fe high school. it's less than an hour from my house. i was there that morning of the shooting. i had been with these victims. i have been with first responders. i've been with families who are crying, and let me tell you, george, we've seen too damn many of these in the state of texas so we need to end them, absolutely, yes. now, the question is what do we need that actually works, and this is where i get frustrated with democratic politicians in washington, because the proposals they're putting forward would not have stopped a single one of these mass murders. here's what we need to do. i introduced in 2013 my first few months in the senate legislation with chuck grassley called grassley/cruz that targets felons, it targets fugitives and targets those with dangerous mental illness. it improves and strengthens the background checks. it stops criminals and those with dangerous mental illness from getting firearms and those who mmit felonies, it puts them in

and that's what we've seen in el paso, in midland, odessa, in sutherland springs. those are just three communities in texas. >> you heard at one time, i believe, it was vice president biden offered up and he said don't forget the constitution. so let me ask it this way. what is your interpretation of what the second amendment allows and what the second amendment does not allow? >> i'll put it this way. this is something that we're able to do through the commerce clause and this is something that is not prevented from -- wouldn't prevent the united states from doing by the second amendment. so this is constitutionally sound. this is absolutely necessary if we care about the lives of our fellow americans. and here's something i want to tell you. going to a gun show in conway, arkansas, stopping at a buc-ees in katy, texas, yesterday, listening to owners of ar-15s, republicans, who come up and say, you know what, i own one of these guns, don't need it to hunt, don't need it for self-defense. this is the right thing to do and i would gladly give it up because i also ha

consider the public mass shootings in sutherland springs, texas, charleston, south carolina, and virginia tech university. the shooters in all those cases were prohibited from purchasing firearms. they were nonetheless able to do so because background checks did not identify them as prohibited. the necessary information was simply missing from the data. underreporting appears to be -- underreporting of prohibiting events appears to be widespread, such that there seem to be many thousands of persons who are prohibited but whose prohibitions will not be detected by background checks if they seek to purchase firearms. and as you know, reporting of these data by state and local agencies is voluntary. that said, the situation has improved. several of the studies, including those by our group, suggesting a lack of population will benefit from these policies were conducted by 15, 20 years old or more. similar studies conducted on more recent data would yield positive results. and fortunately, very detailed information on the shortcomings and on recommendations for their improvement has been comp

2017 when a gunman opened fire on a sunday service at a little baptist church right outside of sutherland springs, texas. 26 lives were lost that day. 20 people were injured. and the entire community, that small, little community outside of san antonio, was shaken to their core by this hateful act. well, it didn't take us too long to learn about the shooter, a man with a record of me

but when it comes to other mass shootings here in texas, dallas, sutherland springs, el paso, the gunmenn those cases got their weapons legally. more background checks may not have stopped them. what we don't know is how the gunman in this case got his. >> david, thank you. >>> among the people that were killed, there was a 15-year-old girl on a date out with her family. she just celebrated in may. her brother was shot but survived. hundreds attended a vigil in odessa last night to remember all of the victims. how is the community responding to this? >> reporter: good morning. many here are saying odessa is strong and they will get through this. as a community. and one of the ways they are doing that is by leaving messages to the victims and also the survivors here on the sidewalk. one of them reads, united we stand. another, hate is not welcome here. one of the youngest survivors is a 17-month-old baby. her mother says she had no idea where the bullets were coming from when her small child, her baby girl was hit in the back seat. >> i am so grateful anderson was here. ism' so grateful w

here in the senate came in 2017 on sunday service in a little baptist church right outside of sutherland springs texas. twenty-six lives were lost that day, 20 people injured. and the entire community outside of san antonio was shaken to their core by this hateful act.

two years ago 28 killed at sutherland springs.ernor abbott, the republican governor, was here today in odessa and took part of in that press conference. and when asked about what steps the state legislature, what steps the governor, what steps the state of texas needed to take in addressing these mass shootings, this is part of what the governor said -- >> i'm heartbroken by the crying of the people of state of texas. i'm tired of dyeing. for the people of the state of texas. too many texans are in mourning, too many texans have lost their lives. this mass flow in texas is unacceptable and action is needed. we need solutions to keep guns out of the hands of the criminals like the killer here in odessa while also ensuring we safeguard second amendment rights and we must do it fast. >> it should be clearly noted that governor abbott was asked multiple times over the last month whether he would call this state legislature in to a special session, and steve, he's not said to date that he would do such a thing. we should note, here in

the shooting here and el paso and then last year at a high school in houston, at a church in sutherland springs. the texas state legislature will not be reconvening until 2021. they have not taken up red flag laws or the universal background checks. i should note that greg abbott said that the status quo is no longer accepter here in the state of texas to note they passed a bill pertaining to mental health. they passed some laws that loosened gun restrictions in the state just this past june which he said was -- it was what they hoped to make texans safer but again without providing details of what those steps mean but the status quo is no longer adequate here in the state of texas. i do -- i believe we have sound from president trump earlier this afternoon when the conversation was around federal legislation. again, congress is supposed to be coming in to session the next month. but the president has not backed anything specifically when it comes to universal background checks. i want you to hear directly from him this afternoon. >> for the most part, as strong as you make your background chec

here in the audience today, the survivors of columbine, aurora, las vegas, orlando, newtown, sutherland springs, el paso. we owe it to them, and i am grateful to my chairman and colleagues for holding this hearing to take action. i will say that the difference between my home state and congress is that colorado had the courage to act. in colorado, we passed a high capacity magazine ban in 2013 as a broad attempt to reform the gun laws following the aurora theater shooting the year before. tois past time for congress take up his reforms. my question, mr. chipman, thank you for your service, and as law enforcement officer for putting your life on the line, i know that given your experience, you these weapons that we are speaking of today. why do you believe is important that we have a conversation now about assault weapons, and what about your experiences have led you to believe that we need reform? >> because they are getting more lethal, and we should have this conversation decades ago. the firearms industry continues to make more lethal firearms and congress is not keeping up with technology.