Gee Scott: ‘Not even an effort’ from politicians after surge of mass shootings

Tuesday was a violent day for Washington. A suspect in Yakima shot and killed three people at a Circle K convenience store before taking his own life on the same day two Puyallup police officers were shot when trying to talk an armed man into leaving his apartment.

The night before, a 23-year-old woman was hit and killed by a Seattle Police patrol car in South Lake Union.

Suspect in Yakima mass shooting: ‘I killed those people,’ later killed himself

Gee Scott, co-host of The Gee & Ursula Show, cited mass shootings in the U.S. have climbed annually for nearly a decade. 2019 had 81 more shootings than the year before (417), which was later dwarfed by 2020’s 610 mass shootings. 2021 had 690 and 2022 had 647, respectively.

There have already been 39 mass shootings in 2023.

“The story in Yakima, the local story, is so sad. It seems to be no motive, no rhyme, no reason,” Gee said. “And here is someone and I’m going to call him a coward because he took the lives of three people that were minding their own business and goes and takes his own life before he is held accountable. Yesterday was tragic. All of these mass shootings are tragic.”

Last year saw a 23% increase in deaths from shootings in Seattle, and now, 25 days into 2023, the rampant shootings are not slowing down.

Two Puyallup officers shot, injured after standoff with armed suspect

“And it just seems like this happens. We talked about it,” Gee continued. “And there is absolutely nothing that is going to happen in Congress to help try and prevent not even an attempt. There’s not even an effort anymore. It’s so bad. Now, it’s not even an effort. There were three mass shootings in three days in the state of California, and absolutely nothing happened. Nothing.”

Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Sunnyside) sent out a tweet in support of the victim’s families, which included the phrase “my thoughts and prayers.”

Please remain vigilant as @yakimapolice searches for the suspect.

My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims of this horrific tragedy. https://t.co/v6L2reK02d

— Rep. Dan Newhouse (@RepNewhouse) January 24, 2023

“The next one happens, you and I talk about it,” Gee said. “Throwing in a little thoughts and prayers, a little thoughts and prayers. Then we talk about it again, nothing seems to want to stop this.”

Last summer, the United States Supreme Court ruled that requiring a license to carry concealed weapons in public places was unconstitutional in the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen case.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has publicly voiced his displeasure with both the federal government and the Supreme Court about how his gun reform efforts have been hampered.

“Yes, the state of California is very strict, just like the state of Illinois is very strict. Well, the state of Illinois is next to what state? The state of Indiana. How strict are they with guns?” Gee asked. “The state of California is next to what state? The state of Arizona. How strict are they with guns? It needs to be a federal thing and everybody needs to be on the same page when it comes to these things. This needs to be bipartisan, it should be bipartisan. Everybody should come together and want to do these things.”

Last year, 15 Republican Senators joined Democrats to pass a bill addressing gun violence. Among the 15 were Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Kentucky), Richard Burr (North Carolina), Lindsey Graham (South Carolina), and Mitt Romney (Pennsylvania).

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On the Democratic side of Congress, a plethora of politicians and officials have described the Second Amendment as outdated, claiming the right to bear arms makes no sense in modern society.

“As far as the Second Amendment goes, the Second Amendment was written when they were muskets,” Gee said. “They were muskets, where it took you like 35-45 minutes to load the frickin’ gun. Muskets when his second amendment was made, not AR-15s. And you want to really help things out. Go back to what happened with Emmett Till back in 1955. What did his mom do? She opened the casket. Maybe America does need to see what some of these assault weapons do to some of these children, these women and children.”

Listen to Gee Scott and Ursula Reutin weekday mornings from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.