Michigan AG: New gun control bills a near certainty after Michigan State shooting

What do you see as what was at stake for Michigan in the Republican Party this weekend, choosing a complete election denier to run the Republican Party in the state? I think it's incredibly unfortunate. I think our society, our government thrives on legitimate, comprehensive debate between two parties. And we don't have that in Michigan anymore. We have a party that is completely now based on conspiracy theory and election denialism. That's not good for the Republican Party, but it's really not good for the state of Michigan either. And I think that this is a person who was made the head of the party that, frankly, most Republicans don't want to be affiliated with. There were actually very few elected Republicans that were at the convention, I think for that very reason.

And I think it's going to drive the Republican Party even further into the ground here in Michigan. And I don't know that that's a good thing. During the commercial break, just before we came back, I got a text from someone who was at Michigan State today, where there was a gathering to consider and protest about gun laws in the state and elsewhere and what can be done after the mass murder at Michigan State, where three people were murdered. As we sit here tonight, is there a chance in Michigan now for any changes that you could foresee? Oh, I think it's much better than a chance. Firstly, even before the very tragic events that took place last week in East Lansing, I think we were going to see some considerable changes in Michigan State law. And that involves universal background checks, red flag laws, safe and secure storage. These things were already moving forward.

But the timeline for introduction and for passage of those bills, I think, has just been expedited by these events. So I think it, you know, I hate to say that anything in government is a certainty, but I think we're as close to that as you can possibly get. I do foresee these incredibly popular bills becoming law in short order. What was it like for you when you got the word about what was happening at Michigan State? Well, it was devastating because really at the same time that I was hearing about it from my chief of investigations who was on the ground and who was getting our special agents out to the scene, I was also hearing about it from my two sons, both of whom are students at Michigan State University and were on campus at the time. So, you know, it was a horrible set of circumstances for, you know, not just to be the top law enforcement official in the state having to deal with this issue, but as a parent to children that were there close by, you know, it's something that no parent ever wants to hear and no parent ever wants to have their child have to go through something like that. What did you tell your kids? Honestly, I was communicating with my staff and at the same, you know, at the same time I was trying to communicate with my kids to give them the best information that I possibly could to help them stay safe. Unfortunately, I was sort of learned later that the gunman was right in the vicinity of where actually both of my kids had been at different junctures.

So, you know, it was, it's an incredibly terrible set of circumstances to be in the position that I am in law enforcement and to still feel as though you really can't keep your own kids safe in a circumstance like this. And that's why, you know, going back to referencing the gun bills, we have to do everything that we possibly can to make sure that people like the gunman in this particular set of circumstances either doesn't have the ability to purchase a weapon or that we make it easier for the courts to remove a weapon from somebody who we know was experiencing some significant mental health related issues and really was not fit for gun ownership or possession. you.

Lawrence O'Donnell