‘I believe we have an idiot control problem’: Sen. John Kennedy reacts to mass shooting in Colorado

By Weston Blasi

That was Louisiana Senator John Kennedy reacting to the mass shooting in Boulder, Colo., this week.

A 21-year old man shot people at a King Soopers grocery store in Colorado, leading to the deaths of 10 people, including a police officer .

The attack has spurred more conversations about gun control in the U.S., which sees more mass shooting per year than any country in the world. President Joe Biden urged Congress to act on gun-control measures shortly after the attack, saying “it will save lives, American lives.”

Sen. Kennedy, a Republican, later compared people who abuse guns to those who drive drunk.

“I’m not trying to perfectly equate these two but, we have a lot of drunk drivers in America that kill a lot of people,” Kennedy said. “We ought to try to combat that, too. But I think what many folks on my side of the aisle are saying is that the answer is not to get rid of all sober drivers.”

A judge in Colorado blocked a Boulder assault weapon ban 10 days before the shooting. The killer at the King Soopers purchased an assault rifle six days before he shot people at the grocery store.

In the days following the attack, shares of gun and ammunition companies like Sturm Ruger & Co., /zigman2/quotes/200036418/composite RGR +1.86% Smith & Wesson Brands Inc. /zigman2/quotes/202273249/composite SWBI +4.77% and shooting accessories company Vista Outdoor Inc.’s /zigman2/quotes/205852373/composite VSTO +2.71% have been mixed.