Jimmy Kimmel better be careful.
He"s in danger of becoming more known for his heart than his humor.
Several days after the comedian dedicated multiple monologues to slamming a proposed health care bill, the talk show host once again grew emotional on stage while talking about this week"s massacre in Las Vegas.
Kimmel hails from that city.
And a shooter opened up late Sunday night on attendees at a country music festival, killing nearly 60 people and injuring over 500 others.
“Here we are again in the aftermath of another terrible, inexplicable, shocking, and painful tragedy, this time in Las Vegas, which happens to be my hometown,” Kimmel said to open his show on Monday, tears forming in his eyes immediately.
“It’s the kind of thing that makes you want to throw up or give up. It’s too much to even process, all of these devastated families who now have to live with this pain forever.”
He then asked:
"Why is that allowed? I don’t know why our so-called leaders continue to allow this to happen. Or maybe better question: why do we continue to allow them to let it happen?"
In response to White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders saying this was NOT the time to discuss gun control, Kimmel shot back:
"I don’t know, we have 59 innocent people dead, it wasn’t their time either, so I think now is the time for political debate.”
Seth Meyers and James Corden also called on politicians to put lives before money last night, but Kimmel stands out for the emotion he conveyed and the surprisingly important voice he has become in these difficult times.
Earlier this year, Republicans in Congress voted to make it easier for the mentally ill to purchase guns.
They will soon vote on legislation that makes it easier to purchase and use silencers. At one point, politicians pushed for alleged terrorists on the No Fly List to legally own guns.
All of this despite the extreme majority of Americans being for background checks and other gun control measures.
Mere thoughts and prayers are hollow and meaningless at this point, Kimmel said.
Referring to Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell, he added:
“They should be praying – they should be praying for God to forgive them for letting the gun lobby run this country because it’s so crazy… lawmakers won’t do anything about this because the NRA has their balls in a money clip.”
“I want this to be a comedy show, I hate talking about stuff like this,” Kimmel concluded on Monday.
“I just want to laugh about things every night, but it seems to be becoming increasingly difficult lately.
"It feels like someone has opened a window into hell. What I’m talking about tonight isn’t about gun control – it’s about common sense.
"Common sense says no good will ever come from allowing a person to have weapons that can take down 527 Americans at a concert…
"Something needs to be done already. Tell your Congress people to do something. It’s not enough to send your love and prayers."
Impressive stuff. Watch the full monologue now:
