In Late Show 'bonus' clip, Colbert grills Jeb Bush on guns, Donald Trump

Stephen Colbert grills Jeb Bush on guns, Trump

(Image credit: Late Show)

Last week, Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush held a fundraiser featuring his appearance on Tuesday's inaugural Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Colbert hit back with his own raffle, letting the winner submit a question for Bush to answer on air (or at least in a "bonus" video posted online). The winner, Lee Gregory, wanted to know Bush's views on the NRA's "well-organized minority" blocking popular gun safety measures in Congress. "How do you square this with real democracy, and what are you prepared to do about it?" Gregory asked, through Colbert.

Bush said that the background checks and 72-hour waiting period in Florida had sharply reduced gun violence, and that America needed to do more to prevent the mentally ill from getting guns. Colbert asked what he would do if the NRA opposed that push, and Bush folded, saying it would be up to individual states to enact gun laws. "Why would you want to impose national gun laws on top of every circumstance of this country?" he asked. Well, the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is a national document, Colbert replied, "so shouldn't the way that be applied be national?" Bush said no, because states have rights under the 10th Amendment.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.