Hotline After Dark: The Politics Of Tragedy
TV last night focused on the shootings at Virginia Tech:
FNC's Colmes: "More questions are emerging like, why was there a two-hour lapse in between shootings? Why weren't students notified earlier of the danger? And who was the shooter? Was he a student?" ("Hannity & Colmes," 4/16).
LG Bill Bolling (R-VA): "Right now, the focus is on getting the investigation completed. ... We need to find out exactly what happened when, and what actions were taken by university officials and when. And all of that will be determined in the course of this investigation. And, when that investigation is completed, university officials, I am certain, law enforcement official and others, we will sit down and do a comprehensive review of the situation to find out exactly what happened" ("Hardball," MSNBC, 4/16).
Gov. Tim Kaine (D-VA): "There are unanswered questions and I think the university is trying to put the things in the right order. The most immediate thing to do now is to make sure that all of the victims are identified and that every next of kin receives notification as promptly as possible. That is the first priority, and then dealing with those grieving family members and students" ("Situation Room," CNN, 4/16).
FNC's Van Susteren: "There's a person of interest. And they're rather vague about what that means in terms of a person of interest. I think there's just someone they want to talk to. But they certainly have not said here that there is an accomplice out there with a gun. They merely sort of piqued our interest at a news conference a short time ago and mentioned a person of interest" ("O'Reilly Factor," 4/16).
CNN's Cafferty: "The gun control debate will likely heat up again in the wake of the Virginia Tech shooting. Tragic events tend to become politicized. And a tragedy of this magnitude, the deadliest single shooting rampage in U.S. history will likely trigger a new round of debates over our constitutional rights to keep and bear arms" ("Situation Room," 4/16). [EMILY GOODIN]