On Saturday afternoon, MSNBC host Katie Phang allowed liberal activist Fred Guttenberg to indulge in a hateful rant against the NRA and Donald Trump supporters as he declared that he hopes that former NRA head Wayne LaPierre "rots in hell."
It even sounded at one point like he excoriated Trump supporters as the "maggot vote" as he continued his bashing of conservatives.
Phang began the segment by recalling that a jury found LaPierre liable over how he used NRA funds, and then gently turned to Guttenberg for his reaction. The gun control activist immediately turned nasty as he began:
First, I hope Wayne rots in hell. My daughter was the cost of doing business for a lobby that he built for an industry that profited off of gun violence and death. And the verdict says to me that accountability is coming. Here's the thing. That industry still exists, the NRA still exists. Other entities that are even more extreme than the NRA still exist.
America's a free country, but this man makes it sound like some viewpoints shouldn't exist. That no one should advocate for the Second Amendment. Guttenberg wants them at least voted out of existence: "America, if you're as fed up as I am, you have a response that now comes in just nine months. It's called election day. Vote, vote, vote, vote as if this is an issue that matters to you more than any other because it should."
A bit later, Phang brought up Guttenberg's recent public appearances with disaffected former Republican Joe Walsh on what they call a "Two Dads Defending Democracy" tour. They talk about "bridging the gap." It's more like two peas in a pod. Their tour announcement notes "Walsh is the author of F*CK SILENCE: Calling Trump Out for the Cultish, Moronic, Authoritarian Con Man He Is."
Guttenberg played up their desire to help President Joe Biden get reelected, and then aimed further vitriol at Republicans:
You know, listen, Joe and I -- we don't agree on all the issues, but we agree on enough that we could solve things. And we agree on democracy, and we agree on the importance of this upcoming election, and we agree on the necessity to reelect President Biden and give him a Congress that he can work with. Because what we're seeing from the other party right now is disgusting. They're despicable. Watching the former guy mock an audience yesterday just because he knows it will turn out his maggot vote. It is -- it is -- it is simply reprehensible, and Joe and I want to talk to the country and convince them their vote matters, and they need to vote.
Transcript follows:
MSNBC's The Katie Phang Show
February 24, 2024
12:49 p.m. Eastern
KATIE PHANG: I know you've been fighting the NRA for years. What does that verdict say to you?
FRED GUTTENBERG, GUN CONTROL ACTIVIST: First, I hope Wayne rots in hell. My daughter was the cost of doing business for a lobby that he built for an industry that profited off of gun violence and death. And the verdict says to me that accountability is coming. Here's the thing. That industry still exists, the NRA still exists. Other entities that are even more extreme than the NRA still exist. America, if you're as fed up as I am, you have a response that now comes in just nine months. It's called election day. Vote, vote, vote, vote as if this is an issue that matters to you more than any other because it should.
PHANG: And because democracy matters to you and because this issue is so important, you and Joe Walsh have actually gone on a tour -- the Two Dads Defending Democracy tour. Talk about that, because I'm interested. You and Joe have crossed divides that some of us maybe would never have anticipated. I myself, you know, had some really meaningful conversations with Joe. Why was it important for the two of you to take it on the road to share messaging?
GUTTENBERG: Because a few years ago -- and going back to the NRA -- the day after my daughter was killed. I walked in my house after the Parkland vigil, and I said, "I'm going to break the F-ing gun lobby." And demonizing people like Joe was a part of that, you know, because I just thought they were wrong. And then, about two years after that, Joe reached out to me and said, "We should talk." And we did. And that conversation led us both to realize we really like each other -- that there's a lot we actually agree on -- that there's a lot together that we can say to the country that will be helpful. And so we've decided to do that.
You know, listen, Joe and I -- we don't agree on all the issues, but we agree on enough that we could solve things. And we agree on democracy, and we agree on the importance of this upcoming election, and we agree on the necessity to reelect President Biden and give him a Congress that he can work with. Because what we're seeing from the other party right now is disgusting. They're despicable. Watching the former guy mock an audience yesterday just because he knows it will turn out his maggot vote. It is -- it is -- it is simply reprehensible, and Joe and I want to talk to the country and convince them their vote matters, and they need to vote.
