Former Democratic Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill called for families to release autopsy photos of children killed in school shootings on “Morning Joe” Friday.
Guest host Jonathan Lemire asked McCaskill if it was time to “shock the system” by using photos that depict the aftermath of deadly shootings to pass gun control legislation.
“If we are trying to convince the American people that this kind of slaughter is unacceptable in this nation, it seems to me that we need to ask families to consider having these pictures put out among the public,” McCaskill said, adding, “Is it horrific? Of course it is. But if we want to stop this, we’ve got to make the case.” (RELATED: ‘Disarming You Is The Point’: Tucker Slams Biden’s Gun Control Speech)
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MSNBC’s John Heilemann asked a similar question about showing the autopsy photos in order to create an “Emmett Till moment” on Deadline Thursday afternoon. Vice President Kamala Harris also called for members of Congress to look at autopsy photos before voting on gun control legislation in 2019, while serving as a senator from California.
The comments came in the wake of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, that killed 19 children and two teachers. Many Democrats have called for a ban on so-called “assault weapons” after the shooting.
“A so-called ‘assault weapon’ is functionally no different than any other ‘legal’ firearm,” the National Shooting Sports Foundation said in a fact sheet. “These guns fire in the same manner as any other semi-automatic firearm (one shot per trigger pull – no spray firing), they shoot the same ammunition as other guns of the same caliber and are no more powerful. What differentiates a so-called ‘assault weapon’ from other guns is cosmetic.”
MSNBC did not respond to a request for comment from The Daily Caller News Foundation.
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