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Whoopi Goldberg Gets In Near Shouting Match With Conservative Guest Over Banning AR-15s

[Screenshot/Rumble/The View]

Nicole Silverio Media Reporter
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“The View” co-host Whoopi Goldberg sparred Wednesday with conservative guest co-host Tara Setmayer over banning AR-15s in the aftermath of the Uvalde massacre.

Setmayer said mental health and broken families, among other societal factors, contribute to the behavioral issues that can lead people to conduct mass shootings. Goldberg added that the first step to addressing a mass shooting is keeping guns out of the hands of those perpetrating gun violence.

“Listen, I understand that, but it’s not as easy when you have a country that has more guns than people,” Setmayer argued. “You’re not going to be able to just ban all the guns.”

“It is easy, but the things that you could say to people that we don’t say on this show, the things you can wish on people that we don’t wish on this show to people, because we know. We’ve all met people who have had to deal with the death of a loved one at the hands of a gun,” Goldberg said. “And you can say ‘well, I wish they had more mental health checking,’ but people who don’t see the need to remove one gun, one gun! The people who don’t see a need to remove that will never see the need to make sure that people get the help.”

Setmayer argued an AR-15 ban will not prevent gun violence since a shooter can easily open fire with a handgun.

“A handgun does not turn people to dust,” Goldberg interjected. “Start with the first thing that can eliminate a child, you know how big a child’s body is?”

Co-hosts Joy Behar and Sunny Hostin chimed in citing the rise in mass shootings after the expiration of the 1994 Violence Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, which banned the sales and purchases of semi-automatic firearms designated as assault weapons and “large capacity” magazines. (RELATED: ‘Get Ready To Give Them Up’: Whoopi Goldberg Says Americans Should Report On Neighbors With Too Many Guns) 

“It’s the guns, it’s the guns, it’s the guns!” Behar claimed.

Setmayer argued there are still several shootings erupting in inner cities by handguns and other firearms lawmakers are not pushing to ban and that potentially banned firearms can still be bought off of the black market.

“It’s one gun out of the peripheral of guns that are out there,” Goldberg said.

“So what happens to the black market, then? So let’s say we ban the AR-15. AR-15s are the most popular weapon in this country,” she continued.

“Well, you know what? I’ll tell you what happens. The same thing that [is] being threatened to women who decide ‘maybe I need to go talk to somebody about an abortion,’ what do they say? You got an AR-15, we will put your ass in jail.”

“But then it has to be enforced,” Setmayer interjected.

During Tuesday’s episode, Goldberg said the National Rifle Association (NRA) “can’t have” an AR-15 and has to “give that gun up.”

“And I don’t care, NRA, you’ve got to give that gun up. You can have other yee-haw guns, whatever you want. The AR-15 is not a hunting gun. It is not a gun where you’re going to go out and shoot your dinner. This gun is meant to kill people. That’s what it’s for, and you can’t have it anymore,” she said.