Joy Reid blames Uvalde residents re-electing Abbott for lack of action on gun control: 'Learned helplessness'

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MSNBC's Joy Reid: 'Learned helplessness' motivated Greg Abbott's win

MSNBC host Joy Reid claimed Monday night that 'learned helplessness' on gun control action among voters could be responsible for Gov. Greg Abbott's win in Texas.

MSNBC’s Joy Reid called out what she claimed was "learned helplessness" that prolonged efforts to enact gun control legislation during her show on Monday.

Speaking with Moms Demand Action founder Shannon Watts, Reid attacked Republicans for purporting to want action taken against crime but failing to support gun control legislation. Although Reid criticized efforts by Republicans to paint crime as a bigger issue over gun control, she primarily mourned that Democratic candidates who promoted gun control, such as Beto O-Rourke, failed to win in the midterm elections.

However, she concluded that this came from "learned helplessness" among voters rather than any view on gun control.

Moms Demand Action founder Shannon Watts on MSNBC's "The ReidOut." (MSNBC)

"And very quickly, there is this kind of learned helplessness that I think happens among a lot of voters. You think about Uvalde County where this massacre happened about these fourth graders. They voted to re-elect the current governor, Greg Abbott, by nearly 22%. The turnout, 45%. Fewer than half of people bothered to vote, and they could have gotten themselves a governor who would have done something about it. That’s learned helplessness," Reid said.

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Watts agreed with the concept and argued that this should motivate candidates to work harder to pass gun control laws where they can.

"It absolutely is. I think cynicism is an excuse too often for inaction. We have to have hope in those states where we worked hard, Michigan and Minnesota and Pennsylvania, we have flipped chambers of the general assembly. Now we’re going to pass stronger gun laws. We can do that everywhere. If we work together to pass stronger gun laws and to vote on the side of gun safety," Watts said.

Democrats Beto O'Rourke and Stacey Abrams were dubbed 'superstar losers' in a November 2022 Atlantic article. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images and Dustin Chambers/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Although the Democratic Party hoped to turn Texas blue with O’Rourke as governor, O’Rourke underperformed his original 2018 Senate bid, losing heavily against Abbott.

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Reid also insisted that the United States has "the most murders" when it comes to gun violence.

"You go all the way down, and as you said, [the U.S.] is the country with the most murders. By far. There is no country that is not at war that has more gun murders. It’s the reason it’s much more comfortable going to a bar in New York City where they’re not carrying guns than it is to go in Atlanta, where they can carry in a bar," Reid claimed. 

"You can’t be soft on guns and tough on crime," Watts added.

A man chooses a gun April 18, 2007, at the Gun Gallery in Glendale, California. (Gabriel Bouys/AFP via Getty Images)

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In the past, Reid claimed Republicans were willing to promote gun violence in an effort to motivate voters. In July, Texas State Rep. James Talarico appeared as a guest on "The ReidOut" and accused Abbott of being "the greatest public safety threat" in his state.