Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
Lawrence O'Donnell tore into Bill O'Reilly on his MSNBC show Wednesday for taking what he described as conflicting positions on gun control.
Following the tragic mass shooting in Aurora, Colorado, O'Reilly heavily criticized what he called "far-left loons" for using the massacre to promote more gun control laws.
While O'Reilly argued against promoting gun control laws, he also proposed a new law that would require gun sellers to report sales of heavy weapons, like machine guns, to the FBI. "In this age of terrorism, that law is badly needed," O'Reilly said on his Wednesday night show.
O'Donnell highlighted O'Reilly's positions, saying that "even when Bill O'Reilly is leaning in the right direction, he can still be so dumb it hurts."
O'Donnell played a clip from O'Reilly's Tuesday night show in which the Fox News host argued against current gun control laws. He said that even in New York, which has the fourth toughest gun law in the country, NYPD officers seized four thousand guns, demonstrating the prevalence of guns that exist despite the state's tough gun law.
"Only Bill O'Reilly could give an example of how effective a law is while claiming its ineffective," O'Donnell said. "New York City cops seizing four thousand guns that violate New York laws is an example of gun laws working. It's an example of taking guns out of the hands of people who are not legally allowed to have those guns."
O'Donnell later highlighted O'Reilly's heated clash over his proposed gun control law with GOP congressman Jason Chaffetz. O'Donnell said that Bill O'Reilly proposed a gun reform law "two sentences after accusing the far-left of trying to propose gun control."
O'Donnell said that O'Reilly knew exactly what he was doing. "He's a master manipulator of his audience," O'Donnell said. "O'Reilly thinks the NRA position of unlimited guns and amunition is unreasonable, but in order to present O'Reilly's gun control to his right-wing audience, he has to, first of all, talk about 'far-left loons,' so O'Reilly can then sneak his little gun control idea into his show without sounding like like a 'far-left loon' to the far-right loons who watch his show."
Related
Before You Go
