“It feels like someone has opened a window into hell,” Jimmy Kimmel said at the start of Monday night’s telecast of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” The host has become one of the most essential voices in late night over the last month thanks to his crusade against Trump’s health care plan, and last night he delivered another powerful monologue in reaction to the Las Vegas shooting.
The tragedy occurred Sunday evening when a shooter opened fire on the crowd attending the Route 91 Harvest music festival. 59 people were killed and over 500 people were injured, making it the largest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. Kimmel is a Las Vegas native and fought back tears as his monologue turned into a powerful critique of gun control laws and the senators who refuse to support greater restrictions.
Kimmel put 59 senators who have voted against stricter gun control laws on blast, lighting up his set’s background screen with their faces and slamming them for making tragedies like the Las Vegas shooting a reality. The late night host’s monologue became a rallying call for better laws as he encouraged the government to finally make decisions on topics such as what circumstances a person can legally purchase a gun without a background check.
One line that caused the biggest cheers of support from the audience was when Kimmel addressed Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan, both of whom sent their prayers to the victims of the shooting earlier in the day. “They should be praying,” Kimmel said. “They should be praying for God to forgive them for letting the gun lobby run this country.”
Watch the entire 9-minute monologue below.
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