ESPN's Chris Russo this week went off about gun laws and politicians on ESPN’s “First Take”.
Responding to Coach Steve Kerr's plea to “do something” after 18-year-old Salvador Ramos opened fire at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Russo echoed the points made by the Warriors’ head coach.
Russo brought up Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Sen. Ted Cruz and a local representative, who recently voted against gun control measures in March.
“They voted no on it, and then Abbott gives this speech about how they’re heartbroken,” Russo said. “Well you had a chance to do something about it! You did nothing. And where are they going on Friday, half of them? To an [NRA] convention in Houston, Texas for crying out loud.”
Russo recognized underlying mental health issues, but felt that limiting “disconnected” teens’ ability to “obtain weapons” would be more prudent.
“It’s absolutely absurd. And yes, there are a million reasons why we have all these 18-year-old kids who feel like they’re disconnected, and feel like they’ve gotta go out there and blow up a supermarket, a school, a movie theater — with armor on! They’re disconnected!
Russo said that the gun companies do not care about these deaths.
“I understand that gun companies don’t want that. Because they make a ton of money when they sell these assault weapons! So that company, the store, in Texas, when they sold those two assault weapons to this kids a couple weeks ago — you think they care? No they don’t! They don’t care. They can say they care, but they don’t, because they do nothing about it.”
He said he lives 20 minutes from Sandy Hook in Connecticut and that it’s a “disgrace” that the country has done nothing in nine years since the Sandy Hook school shooting to stop these massacres.
This is how alot of people feel, not just sports figures commentators and coaches. This is compelling because Russo gets more and more animated and angry as he continues.
Here is what Steve Kerr said, that went viral, that precipitated Russo's response.