IMPORTANT IN A RACE LIKE THE
SOUTH CAROLINA RACE.
>> THANK YOU FOR YOUR REPORTING
THIS MORNING.
>> THANK YOU.
>>> JOINING US IS A MEMBER OF
THE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE,
DEMOCRATIC SENATOR CHRIS MURPHY
OF CONNECTICUT.
AUTHOR OF THE NEW BOOK "THE
VIOLENCE INSIDE US" THE BRIEF
HISTORY OF AN ONGOING AMERICAN
TRAGEDY.
>> I HAVE TO ASK YOU WHAT YOUR
THOUGHTS ARE YESTERDAY ABOUT THE
PRESIDENT IN A PRESS CONFERENCE
AND LAST NIGHT COMPARING THE
SHOOTING OF A BLACK MAN BY
POLICE SEVEN TIMES IN THE BACK
TO A GOLFER CHOKING ON A 3-FOOT
PUTT.
FIRST OF ALL, IT’S
EXTRAORDINARILY, EXTRAORDINARILY
OFFENSIVE, I AM SURE, TO THE
FAMILY OF THE BLACK MAN SHOT IN
THE BACK SEVEN TIMES AS WELL AS
TO OTHER PEOPLE OF COLOR ACROSS
AMERICA.
ALSO, I WOULD GUESS THIS ONE
ALSO MANAGES TO DEEPLY OFFEND
POLICE UNIONS AND THE RANK AND
FILE OF THE POLICE, SUGGESTING
THAT LIFE AND DEATH DECISIONS
ARE AS EASY AS SINKING A 3-FOOT
PUTT.
>> YOU SAW THE CONTRAST IN THE
CAMPAIGN YESTERDAY.
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES UNWILLING TO CONDEMN
VIOLENCE NO MATTER WHO COMMITS
IT AND JOE BIDEN STANDING UP AND
CONDEMNING THE USE OF VIOLENCE,
WHETHER IT’S BY SUPPORTERS OF
THE PRESIDENT OR BY FOLKS THAT
ARE OUT THERE PROTESTING THE
PRESIDENT.
I THOUGHT JOE BIDEN WAS ALSO
VERY EFFECTIVE IN REMINDING
PEOPLE THAT VIOLENT CRIME CAME
DOWN BY REMARKABLE LEVELS DURING
THE OBAMA/BIDEN PRESIDENCY AND
THIS YEAR WE’VE SEEN A DRAMATIC
SPIKE IN VIOLENCE.
WHAT I THINK IS IMPORTANT ALSO
IS YOU MENTIONED VOTERS LIKE TO
RALLY AROUND THEIR LEADERS
DURING MOMENTS OF CRISIS.
BUT WHAT AMERICANS KNOW IS THAT
THIS CRISIS, THESE TWIN CRISES
ARE CAUSED BY THE PRESIDENT.
WE SHOULDN’T STILL HAVE EPIDEMIC
LEVELS OF CORONAVIRUS IN THE
COUNTRY, IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN
GONE BY NOW AND HE IS, IN FACT,
STOKING THE VIOLENCE.
HE IS CREATING MORE CHANCES FOR
PEOPLE TO GET HURT LIKE THOSE IN
KENOSHA.
SO PEOPLE DON’T GIVE THE
PRESIDENT CREDIT FOR ADDRESSING
THE CRISIS BECAUSE THEY KNOW HE,
IN FACT, IS THE CAUSE OF THE
CRISIS.
>> AGAIN, I WANT TO GET TO YOUR
BOOK, BUT ALSO HE SOUNDED LIKE
HE WAS A MEMBER OF THE KLAN,
RIDING OUT IN THE LATE 1800s,
EARLY 1900s, WHEN HE TALKED
ABOUT TRYING TO KEEP POOR
HOUSING, LOW INCOME AMERICANS,
OUT OF SUBURBS BECAUSE -- AND
THIS IS -- THIS IS THE KLAN
PART, BECAUSE OF THE WOMEN.
HE TALKS ABOUT BASICALLY SAID WE
CAN’T -- WE CAN’T TRUST THAT OUR
WHITE WOMEN WILL BE PROTECTED,
IS IN EFFECT HIS ENTIRE
SUGGESTION.
AGAIN, SO RETROGRADE, AND DONALD
TRUMP IS SO OBLIVIOUS TO THE
REALITIES OF 2020 THAT HE
ACTUALLY THINKS BY SAYING THAT
HE’S GOING TO PICK UP VOTES IN
THE SUBURBS AMONG SUBURBAN WOMEN
AND ALL HE’S REALLY DOING IS
MAKING THEM RUN AWAY FROM HIS
CANDIDACY EVEN MORE.
>> RIGHT.
LISTEN, AMERICA HAS THIS LONG
HISTORY OF VIGILANTE JUSTICE.
I TELL THAT STORY IN THE BOOK
BUT THIS IS NOT A STORY OF THE
1920s WHERE PEOPLE WANT TO THINK
OF THEMSELVES AS VIGILANTES.
SO WHAT THE PRESIDENT IS TRYING
TO DO BY REFUSING TO CONDEMN
THIS YOUNG MAN IN WISCONSIN IS
GIVE A WINK AND A NOD TO OTHERS
THINKING OF DOING THE SAME
THINGS, HE’S TRYING TO SEND A
MESSAGE OF ENCOURAGEMENT TO
OTHER YOUNG MEN WHO MIGHT BRING
AN AR-15 TO ANOTHER PROTEST SO
HE CAN GET MORE VIOLENCE,
UNREST, AND CHAOS, WHICH HE
THINKS IS GOING TO HELP HIM
POLITICALLY, I THINK HE’S WRONG
ABOUT THAT, BUT WHAT HE’S RIGHT
ABOUT IS AMERICA HAS THIS LONG
HISTORY OF WHITE PEOPLE TAKING
SORT OF LAW AND ORDER INTO THEIR
OWN HANDS AT THE EXPENSE OF
COMMUNITIES OF COLOR.
>> ALL RIGHT.
LET’S GO TO KASIE HUNT.
SHE HAS A QUESTION FOR YOU.
KASIE?
>> SENATOR, GOOD MORNING.
GOOD TO SEE YOU.
LET’S TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE
ABOUT YOUR BOOK BECAUSE
OBVIOUSLY WHAT WE’VE BEEN SEEING
ON THE STREETS OF WISCONSIN,
WHAT HAPPENED WITH THE
17-YEAR-OLD BOY IS PART OF A
LARGER STORY THAT HAS DIFFERENT
THREADS AND, YOU KNOW, IN MANY
WAYS WAS FOCUSED WITH THE
TRAGEDY IN YOUR HOME STATE OF
NEWTOWN.
CAN YOU WALK US THROUGH, YOU
KNOW, WHAT WE LEARN IN IN THE
CONTEXT OF YOUR BOOK AND WHAT
YOU LEARNED PULLING IT TOGETHER?
>> SURE.
I MEAN, THIS BOOK IS REALLY THE
RESULT OF THE LAST SEVEN YEARS
OF MY LIFE.
MY LIFE WAS CHANGED IN 2012, AND
OVER THE COURSE OF THE LAST
SEVEN YEARS I’VE TRIED TO LEARN
EVERYTHING I CAN ABOUT WHY
AMERICA IS SUCH A VIOLENT PLACE
AND WHAT WE DO ABOUT IT.
IN THIS BOOK, IT’S NOT A MEMOIR,
IT’S REALLY A STORY ABOUT HOW WE
GOT TO THIS MOMENT.
IT’S CALLED THE VIOLENCE INSIDE
US BECAUSE THE CONCLUSION I COME
TO IS THAT AMERICA IS A VIOLENT
PLACE.
WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A VIOLENT
PLACE.
WE’VE BEEN BATHED IN VIOLENCE
SINCE THE TIME THE AMERICAN
SETTLERS EXPERM NATETERMINATED N
AMERICAN TRIBES.
BUT WE CHOSE TO POUR KEROSENE ON
THIS FIRE BY ALLOWING THESE
DANGEROUS WEAPONS TO FLOW
THROUGHOUT THE NATION CREATING
MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR ORDINARY
ARGUMENTS TO TURN INTO DEADLY
MOMENTS.
SO IF YOU WANT TO UNDERSTAND WHY
WE’VE GOTTEN TO A PLACE TODAY IN
WHICH THERE IS SO MUCH VIOLENCE
IN THE NATION, WHETHER IT’S
HOMICIDE, CIVIL UNREST, SUICIDE,
THIS BOOK WILL TELL YOU WHY WE
GOT HERE BUT IT ALSO GIVES
PRESCRIPTION FOR A PATH FORWARD.
IT DOES START WITH JUST
DECREASING THE NUMBER OF WEAPONS
IN THE HANDS OF WRONG PEOPLE AND
MAKING SURE 17-YEAR-OLD KIDS
CAN’T EASILY GET THEIR HANDS ON
A DEADLY WEAPON LIKE AN AR-15 TO
BRING TO A PROTEST RALLY IN A
DIFFERENT STATE.
>> THE NEW BOOK IS "THE VIOLENCE
INSIDE US: A BRIEF HISTORY OF AN
