Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) speaks with members of the Senate Republican leadership during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 12, 2017, in Washington, D.C. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

For Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), the issue isn’t gun control or gun safety, or that average citizens can walk into a gun store and walk out with an automatic weapon and enough rounds to bring down a building.




Nope, for Thune the real issue in an open society where not everyone can be protected is for each individual to take his or her own precautions and “get small” when and if the shooting begins, according to Raw Story.

“It sounds like [the shooter] used conversion kits and other things, you know, to make the weapons more lethal,” Thune reportedly told MSNBC’s Hallie Jackson. “We’ll look at the facts when we get them all in here. I think a lot of us want to do everything we can to prevent tragedies like that from happening again.”


Thune, who didn’t want to address gun control, then added, according to Raw Story: “It’s an open society and it’s hard to prevent anything. I think people are going to have to take steps in their own lives to take precautions,” he opined. “To protect themselves. And in situations like that, you know, try to stay safe. As somebody said—get small.”

Read more at Raw Story.