All three networks on Monday demanded Donald Trump “consider” more gun control in the wake of a terror attack in Orlando that killed 49 people, Sunday. Talking to the businessman, Today co-host Savannah Guthrie lobbied for the position of Democrats: “Here's the argument: They're a weapon of war. They're not a hunting rifle. They appear to be the weapon of choice for terrorists as well as the shooter of kindergartners, first graders in Newtown, as well as movie theatergoers in Aurora.”
Guthrie continued, “Why not ban assault weapons, as Hillary Clinton just called for recently on our show?” After Trump disagreed, the co-host snidely lectured, “Can you think of an instance when somebody on the good side used an assault weapon?”
Of course, there are multiple examples, if she had bothered to check.
Over on ABC’s Good Morning America, George Stephanopoulos insisted:
STEPHANOPOULOS: And one of the other things that we have learned in the last 24 hours is that Omar Mateen was interviewed by the FBI three separate times, investigated twice. Yet he was able to buy a gun relatively easily, should something be done about that?
The gunman, Omar Mateen, was a security guard licensed to carry a gun and had passed the background checks. It’s unclear how more gun control would have helped. But Stephanopoulos didn’t wonder about that.
Over on CBS This Morning, Gayle King at least asked the question from a conservative perspective. She pointed out Trump’s life-long history of supporting gun control:
GAYLE KING: Before you go, you used to be in favor of banning assault weapons – you wrote about it back in your book. Are you changing or rethinking your position today because of what is happening in the county?
On the topic of terrorism in general, NBC’s Guthrie knocked the candidate for claiming to be prescient: “And then you later say in this statement, ‘I predicted this.’ Which, in fairness, literally everyone predicts that there will be another terrorist attack. There's no one who doesn't recognize that that's the world we live in.”
The networks on Monday also interviewed Hillary Clinton. They pushed her, too, to promote gun control. Guthrie demanded, “After Newtown, after 20 first graders were killed, the President tried to pass universal background checks. Obviously that was not successful. Why do you feel you may be more successful if elected and in the next Congress?”
A transcript of the Today segment is below:
Today
06/13/16
8:15 AMSAVANNAH GUTHRIE: We're back now with more on the mass shooting in Orlando and the tragedy’s impact on the presidential race. Both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton sharpening their stances on issues like gun control, terrorism and national security. Earlier, we spoke to Secretary Hillary Clinton. Donald Trump, the Republican’s presumptive nominee, is with us now on the phone. Mr. Trump, good morning to you.
DONALD TRUMP: Good morning.
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Donald Trump Reacts to Mass Shooting; GOP’s Presumptive Nominee on Terror Attack]
GUTHRIE: In the wake of what happened in Orlando, you renewed your call for a ban on all Muslims entering the United States. As you know, this suspect was, in fact, an American citizen. Do you have any proposals that would have addressed, that would have stopped this particular instance?
TRUMP: We need far better intelligence gathering. We have terrible intelligence gathering right now. People aren't reporting other people when they see there’s something’s wrong. We have mental instability that's through the roof and the neighbors know it, and they understand it, and they don't report it to the police or the FBI. And for some reason, people, whether it's San Bernardino, where they had bombs all over their apartment floor and a lot of people saw it, they didn't report it. In Paris, the head person, when they were looking for him, he was living right in their neighborhood, nobody reported him after they – you know they had searched all over the world, they were searching for him. He was living right in his neighborhood and the people did not report him. For whatever reason, they're not reporting these people. And they know there's plenty going on up there that's wrong.
GUTHRIE: Would you consider, among those other things you just mentioned, a ban on assault rifles? And here's the argument: They're a weapon of war, they're not a hunting rifle. They appear to be the weapon of choice for terrorists as well as the shooter of kindergartners, first graders in Newtown, as well as movie theatergoers in Aurora. Why not ban assault weapons, as Hillary Clinton just called for recently on our show?
TRUMP: Well, first of all, there are millions of them already out there, millions upon millions. So they're already out there, number one. And I absolutely wouldn't because people need protection, they have to protect. So the bad guys will have the assault rifles and people trying to protect themselves will be standing there with a BB gun. So, I do not call for that at all.
GUTHRIE: Can you think of an instance when somebody on the good side used an assault weapon?
TRUMP: And Hillary Clinton is – look, she's the wrong person – she’s the wrong person at the wrong time. She doesn't understand the issue. She's weak, she's ineffective, she does not understand the issue. And she would be absolutely the wrong person. She wants to bring 500% more people in from Syria, 500% more coming into this country, pouring into this country. And I'm saying we cannot take any more people from Syria right now. We can't do it. We can't even think about it.
GUTHRIE: You were tweeting quite a bit yesterday, and among your condolences to the victims and the family members of this shooting, you also stopped to tweet that you appreciated the congratulations you had received for your stance on terrorism. And later, you issued a longer statement, it said, “I said this was going to happen.” Basically congratulating yourself for predicting another terrorist attack. To a lot of people, that struck them as unseemly. That at this moment that 49 people lay dead you were focused on yourself and giving yourself congratulations. What do you say about that?
TRUMP: That's totally false because you didn't read the second part of the tweet. I said, “While I appreciate it” – because I'd been receiving tens of thousands of tweets. Literally tweets and calls and letters and everything because I’ve been the one that predicted it and I’m the one that said what you should be doing – and “I don't want the credit.” And said in there, “While I appreciate your nice statements, I don't want the credit.”
GUTHRIE: But at the same time, you're calling attention to the credit you’ve received.
TRUMP: I said, “I want you to be strong” – what I said is, “I want you to be strong, I want you to be vigilant, and I want you to be smart. I don't want the credit.” I don’t want people to tweet that. I want to have – I want to see people be strong and vigilant.
GUTHRIE: But by the very nature of stopping and saying – but you did stop and say, “Oh, I acknowledge and collect your thanks.” And then you later say in this statement, “I predicted this.” Which, in fairness, literally everyone predicts that there will be another terrorist attack. There's no one who doesn't recognize that that's the world we live in.
TRUMP: Well, the President doesn’t know because he certainly doesn't do much about it. In terms of intelligence, in terms of intelligence gathering.
GUTHRIE: But why are you giving yourself credit for predicting something that everyone knows will happen, sadly?
TRUMP: Oh, I don’t know that everyone knows, I think – I’m not sure that the President knows, if you want to know the truth. He won't even use the term “radial Islamic terrorism.” I think he thinks everyone’s just a sweetheart. He won't even use the term “radical Islamic terrorism,” which I think is insulting to our country and it’s insulting to everybody. And if you don't use the term, if you don’t describe what's happening, you're never gonna solve the problem. He will never solve the problem.
GUTHRIE: Real quickly, to that end, recently, just this morning on a different network, you said about the President, “He doesn't get it or he gets it better than anybody understands.” What do you mean by that?
TRUMP: Well, there are a lot of people that think maybe he doesn't want to get it. A lot of people think maybe he doesn't want to know about it. I happen to think that he just doesn't know what he's doing, but there are many people that think maybe he doesn't want to get it, he doesn’t want to see what’s really happening, and that could be.
GUTHRIE: Why would that be?
TRUMP: Because, Savannah – Savannah, why he isn't addressing the issues – he's not addressing the issue, he's not calling it what it is. This is radical Islamic terrorism. This isn't fighting Germany, this isn't fighting Japan, where they wear uniforms. These are people that come out and you have no idea who they are. And he doesn't want to discuss it, he doesn't want to properly describe it. And if you don't discuss it and describe it properly, you're never going to solve the problem. He’ll never solve the problem, he's never going to solve the problem. He doesn't even want to call the problem what it really is.
GUTHRIE: Unfortunately, we're out of time, we’ll have to leave it there. Donald Trump, thank you for calling in this morning, we appreciate it.
TRUMP: Thank you very much, Savannah.
