Democrat Sen. Chris Murphy has represented Connecticut in Congress since 2007, first in the House and now in the U.S. Senate. He’s seen a lot of what happens behind the scenes when lawmakers talk amongst themselves.Since the Newtown tragedy — where 20 Connecticut elementary school students were murdered in a 2012 mass shooting — Murphy has become a leading voice on gun control. He says he’s grown frustrated as shooting after shooting occurs leaving Americans aghast and Congress seemingly incapable of doing anything to help.“I know that for a majority of my colleagues, they know that these laws are backwards and that they should be changed,” Murphy told VICE News. “And I also know that papered over that shame is their acknowledgment that they do nothing, simply because of the politics that surround this issue.”Murphy says a lot of Republicans really would like to vote for gun control. But they privately complain that the politics to let that happen aren’t there.
This segment originally aired Oct. 3, 2017, on VICE News Tonight on HBO.