Fox News Jabs Louisville Mayor as ‘Political’ as He Calls for Blood Donations
As Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg addressed his city and the national media the day after a mass shooting at a bank in his city, Fox News cut away from the mayor’s address as he called for blood donations on behalf of the victims to accuse him of politicizing the shooting.
On Monday, a shooter killed five people at Louisville’s Old National Bank, injuring nine others. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear gave an emotional address following the shooting, noting that one of the victims was a close friend of his. Greenberg spoke to the media on Tuesday, highlighting the epidemic of gun violence in Louisville, even touching on an own assassination attempt against him last year. The mayor called on lawmakers to take action to curb the accessibility of firearms in the United States, and to change laws to allow cities more autonomy in their handling of gun laws.
Greenberg was in the middle of telling viewers that one “great way” to support the victims, their families, and first responders, was to donate blood, when Fox abruptly cut away from the conference. “That was the mayor who was expressing some political thoughts there. I’m not sure if all of that was necessary,” said Fox News host Harris Faulkner.
Officials reported that the firearm used by the shooter, an AR-15-style rifle, was legally purchased six days before the shooting took place. The shooter had reportedly been fired from his job at Old National Bank days before attacking his former coworkers. Greenberg lamented on Tuesday that under Kentucky law, “the assault rifle that was used to murder five of our neighbors and shoot at rescuing police officers will one day be auctioned off. Think about that. That murder weapon will be back on the streets”
Earlier in the press conference, Greenberg said lawmakers “have to take action now. We need short-term action to end this gun violence epidemic now. So fewer people die on our streets and in our banks, in our schools and in our churches.”
Greenberg begged state lawmakers to give Louisville the autonomy to determine their own gun legislation. “Change our state law to let Louisville make its own decisions about reducing the amount of illegal guns on our streets, and gun violence that is killing far too many people,” he implored.
“You may think this will never happen to you, never happen to any of your friends or loved ones,” Greenberg added. “I used to think that. The sad truth is that now no one in our city, no one in our state, no one in our country has that luxury anymore. Last year, I survived a workplace shooting, and now yesterday I’ve lost a very close friend in another workplace shooting. Five more families have lost a loved one.”
“This isn’t about partisan politics. This is about life and death. This is about preventing tragedies,” Greenberg said.