Despite a series of news events that ought to have, in her view, persuaded Americans to come around to her views on guns, O'Donnell said Tuesday that she believed "there will never be gun control in America" and fighting for it was a "futile attempt." Co-host Joy Behar asked if Rosie "throw(s) up" her "hand." Rosie replied sadly "I sort of do."
The transcript of the exchange is below.
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ROSIE O’DONNELL: Well, and you know, since 1999, Columbine, what happened? All the mothers got together in America, we formed the "Million Mom March." We marched on Washington, estimates of almost two million mothers there. We protested. We picketed against the NRA, and for the government to make sensible gun legislation. And what has happened since then? Nothing. Nothing. I'm shocked that I'm numb about it. I'm shocked that, you know, Columbine, which took me out at the knees, literally where I thought I would never recover and went on anti-depressants, I thought– I don’t know how— I had a child like you do, I was your age with a baby, and the concept of sending them away to school from the nest of the dangers that lurk out there. But somehow this one, I'm almost numb to it. I think well, here we go again.
JOY BEHAR: Do you feel that it's worthless, it’s useless to protest or to make, raise your voice against gun control, for gun control?
O’DONNELL: I think there will never be gun control in America. And I think having tried to fight it for five years of my life it was a futile attempt.
BEHAR: You throw up your hands hun?
O’DONNELL: I sort of do.
O'Donnell reiterated her views on Wednesday's show, expressing dismay that highly publicized school shootings have not enabled her anti-gun agenda:
It was really hard, you know, the Million Mom March after the 1999 Columbine, I mean, everyone thought that would work. What else would it take besides pulling high school kids bloody out of a second floor window. What else would it take to get sensible gun legislation? No one want to take away hunter's rights to hunt. We just want to sort of have sensible gun laws. You know, a teddy bear, has more regulations on it than a gun in terms of safety. Right, but I do feel defeated. I have to tell you. When that happened yesterday, it felt like, well here we go again. You know, it’s like "The Truman Show" or "Groundhog Day." We just wake up, and it just continues, and continues.
The former solo daytime host has been a long-time opponent of gun-rights, famously losing her reputation as the "Queen of Nice" after blowing up at actor Tom Selleck over his support of the National Rifle Association.
