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Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar reacts to the deadly mass shooting at a Catholic school

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

We're going to start this hour in Minneapolis, where this morning, a shooter opened fire on a Catholic Mass that was meant to mark the first week of school. Law enforcement says the shooter fired through the windows of the Annunciation Roman Catholic Church, killing two children ages 8 and 10 and injuring 17 people. Police say the shooter then died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Here's Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara during a press conference earlier today.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

BRIAN O'HARA: This was a deliberate act of violence against innocent children and other people worshipping. The sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children is absolutely incomprehensible.

CHANG: Joining us now to talk about what has happened in her state is Senator Amy Klobuchar. Welcome, Senator, and I'm so sorry that we are...

AMY KLOBUCHAR: Thank you, Ailsa.

CHANG: ...Speaking under these circumstances. I know that you are in Minneapolis right now. How have you been spending the last several hours?

KLOBUCHAR: Well, I have been over at the church and the school with the mayor and the police officials. And it is - one thing people have to understand, your listeners, is that this was about this incredibly close community, a faith community, yes. The church is next to a school, so it was very little kids - you know, kindergarten through eighth grade - some of the youngest kids all in the Mass together because it's their first weeks of school. Obviously, like any other parent - you can imagine this - the kids excited about their new teachers, what's happening.

CHANG: Yeah.

KLOBUCHAR: And then this madman shoots through the windows. The children are hiding under pews. I know this first thing because one of my former employees and a close friend, Kate Nilan, she has three children that were in that church. And one of them, her daughter, Cora, actually saw two of her good friends being shot - one in the stomach, one in the neck.

CHANG: Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

KLOBUCHAR: She ran out. When they finally got out of the church, she actually told the father of one of the kids what had happened. So these - this community and these kids that were in there, they're going to be scarred by this forever. But then embracing this church and embracing this - the archbishop was there, the priests were there today later in the afternoon - is this incredible neighborhood. Like, literally, there's a house next to the church, and then next to the houses is a shop, and next to the shop is another school. So this has always been a close-knit city neighborhood, and they're very proud of their neighborhood. So in that way, I feel this love for this community. But what happened to these families was just absolutely horrific.

CHANG: Have you had the chance to talk to any other family members of victims in addition to...

KLOBUCHAR: I've gotten...

CHANG: ...Your close friend whose daughter saw...

KLOBUCHAR: Yeah.

CHANG: ...Such horrific things?

KLOBUCHAR: I've talked to her. I've gotten texts from other - relatives of other people that were in there, including one that is on the operating table or was on the operating table. Actually, the most incredible news we had from police Chief O'Hara this afternoon is that they believe all the other children will survive. And that is...

CHANG: Yes, I saw that.

KLOBUCHAR: ...A tribute to the heroic actions. There were 14 kids that were injured. There were three adults that were injured. And there is going to be stories told of the church personnel that were in there, of the teachers, of other kids, older kids, protecting younger kids when this whole story is told, as well as, of course, they were very close by an excellent children's hospital, Minneapolis Children's, where they got incredible surgery immediately. And I'm sure all of that combined to save so many lives. But we mourn, of course, this little 8- and 10-year-old. Imagine their family dropping them off for the day and then never seeing them again alive.

CHANG: If I may, I want to get your thoughts on something that the mayor of Minneapolis had to say at a press conference earlier today. Here's Jacob Frey.

(SOUNDBITE OF PRESS CONFERENCE)

JACOB FREY: Don't just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now. These kids were literally praying. They should be able to go to school or church in peace without the fear or risk of violence. And their parents should have the same kind of assurance.

CHANG: Senator, we have seen so many debates about gun legislation start and then...

KLOBUCHAR: Yes.

CHANG: ...Dissolve so many times on Capitol Hill. And I'm going to ask you a question that I'm not even sure is worth asking anymore. You tell me. What can lawmakers do differently to get change to happen? What does it take for the Senate to meaningfully address gun violence in this country?

KLOBUCHAR: You know, nearly every state has experienced some kind of mass shooting. And the thought that people then are scared that we (ph) - think about how those kids felt under the pews. And then these politicians are scared to do a number of things that make sense that aren't going to hurt law-abiding gun owners, that aren't going to hurt hunters.

I'm in a big hunting state. You could ban assault weapons. And I believe one of these - there was a shotgun, there was a pistol and then there was a rifle that may or may not have been an assault weapon. But in so many of the other mass shootings - Uvalde, in Buffalo - having met some of those families, those were assault weapons. You could do that. You could put triggers on when the amount of guns someone buys at once, especially if they're under a certain age.

CHANG: But these solutions are not getting passed...

KLOBUCHAR: I know, but...

CHANG: ...In the U.S. Congress.

KLOBUCHAR: ...See, I'm just telling you, these things would work. And I'm also telling you it's not one or it'd be about (ph) - right? - ghost guns. Doing something more on the red flag laws. We did pass one bipartisan bill, Senator Murphy and Senator Cornyn. And actually, my provision on domestic assault - convicted domestic assault offenders not being able to purchase a gun was a major piece of that legislation. But that was just the surface.

And I just - when you talk to these families, as I've talked to the Sandy Hook families and the like, they're so courageous. They've lost their babies, and they come forward and come to Washington and tell their stories. And then politicians are too scared of pissing off one group or one group of voters when, in fact, if they would stand up and explain - this won't hurt hunting. This isn't going to do anything to limit your ability to be in a deer stand, like my Uncle Dick (ph) does. This isn't going to hurt you. Then we could get this done. And so there is that. There's, of course, the hate. You're going to find that this perpetrator, that this horrific offender...

CHANG: All right.

KLOBUCHAR: ...That he - it was all-purpose hate, right? He hated a lot of different groups. It wasn't one ideology or another.

CHANG: We're going to have to leave it there. That is Senator...

KLOBUCHAR: OK.

CHANG: ...Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota. Thank you very much for...

KLOBUCHAR: Great to be on, Ailsa.

CHANG: ...Taking the time to speak with us.

KLOBUCHAR: Thank you for thinking of us. Thank you.

CHANG: And just a point of clarification, Senator Klobuchar referenced the shooter as he. Although police have identified a suspect, it's still unclear at this time what that person's gender is or how they identify. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Ailsa Chang is an award-winning journalist who hosts All Things Considered along with Ari Shapiro, Audie Cornish, and Mary Louise Kelly. She landed in public radio after practicing law for a few years.
Alejandra Marquez Janse
Alejandra Marquez Janse is a producer for NPR's evening news program All Things Considered. She was part of a team that traveled to Uvalde, Texas, months after the mass shooting at Robb Elementary to cover its impact on the community. She also helped script and produce NPR's first bilingual special coverage of the State of the Union – broadcast in Spanish and English.
John Ketchum