MORGAN: Joining me now for more on our big story is a man who says President Obama and Mitt Romney have obligations to take a stand on gun control. New York City mayor , Mayor Bloomberg.
Thank you for joining me. You've been very vocal since this appalling incident happened last Friday. Why is it that both the president and the man who wants to be president are saying nothing about guns?
BLOOMBERG: Well, the first thing is, do they have an obligation to say something about guns. And since 48,000 people will be murdered with guns in the four years, the next four-year presidential term, I would argue it's a substantial problem and that they have an obligation to tell the public before the public goes to the voting booth what they will do. Specifically, not generally, but specifically.
This is a problem we've had for many years. And so they must have thought about it. They have staffs that have thought about it. And they should be answering the question. Then the question is, why do they not answer the question? And I think there is a perception in the political world that the NRA has more power than the American people. I do not happen to believe that.
MORGAN: Every time one of these things happens -- Gabrielle Giffords last year, this shooting here -- there's an outrage and then very quickly it dissipates. The American people quite quickly go back to their normal lives and they don't demand action in a way that I would expect them to.
Why do so many Americans not feel angry enough to demand further gun control?
BLOOMBERG: Well, I would take it one step further. I don't understand why the police officers across this country don't stand up collectively and say, we're going to go on strike. We're not going to protect you. Unless you, the public, through your legislature, do what's required to keep us safe.
After all, police officers want to go home to their families. And we're doing everything we can to make their job more difficult but, more importantly, more dangerous, by leaving guns in the hands of people who shouldn't have them, and letting people who have those guns buy things like armor-piercing bullets.
The only reason to have an armor-piercing bullet is to go through a bullet-resistant vest. The only people that wear bullet-resistant vest are our police officers. And that's true across this whole country. So we should -- at some point we have to understand this as our children or our grandchildren or us. But for the police officers, it's much more immediate. Because when you or I hear shots, we run away. They run towards it.