Colorado Springs shooting – live: Boebert launches self-pitying rant amid backlash over Club Q attack response

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Lauren Boebert launched into a self-pitying rant on Thursday, after she came under fire for her response to the massacre at LGBT+ nightclub Club Q in Colorado Springs.

The MAGA Republican appeared on right-wing network OAN where she moaned that she is tired of being “blamed” by “the left” for mass shootings.

“I have been accused of just about every mass shooting there has been since the Left has learned of my name,” she complained.

Ms Boebert came under fire this week when she branded the mass shooting that left five victims dead “absolutely awful” and said the victims were “in my prayers”.

Several lawmakers including AOC, members of the LGBT+ community and social media users were quick to point out that she has been fuelling right-wing hate against the LGBT+ community.

Suspected shooter Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, opened fire just before midnight on Saturday with an AR-15-style rifle and a handgun. Aldrich, who has not entered a plea or spoken about the incident, wanted to be the “next mass killer” and go out “in a blaze”, according to past arrest records.

Key Points

  • Boebert launches self-pitying rant after slammed for response to shooting

  • Co-owner of gay nightclub blames shooting on new ‘type of hate’

  • Anderson Lee Aldrich seen for first time in court to face murder charges

  • Here’s what we know so far about the five victims

  • Suspect and mother allegedly used racist slurs against airline passengers during July flight

  • Old arrest records suggest Colorado Springs suspect wanted to ‘go out in a blaze’

  • Father of suspect more concerned about child being gay than a mass killer

Club Q owner says right-wing anti-LGBT+ rhetoric may have fuelled attack

12:10 , Rachel Sharp

The co-owner of Club Q has spoken out to say that right-wing anti-LGBT+ rhetoric may have fuelled the mass shooting that left five people dead.

Nic Grzecka told The Associated Press that the massacre at the Colorado Springs gay nightclub is a reflection of anti-LGBT+ sentiment sweeping the country.

“It’s different to walk down the street holding my boyfriend’s hand and getting spit at (as opposed to) a politician relating a drag queen to a groomer of their children,” he said.

“I would rather be spit on in the street than the hate get as bad as where we are today.”

Earlier this year, Florida’s Republican-dominated legislature passed a bill barring teachers from discussing gender identity or sexual orientation with younger students. A month later, references to “pedophiles” and “grooming” in relation to LGBTQ people rose 400 percent, according to a report by the Human Rights Campaign.

Mass shooting follows wave of anti-gay attacks across US

11:40 , Rachel Sharp

A recent report from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) found 124 incidents of anti-LGBT+ protests and threats in 47 targeting drag events so far this year.

The majority of those incidents occurred during Pride events in June and into September, October and November.

Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO GLAAD, criticised right-wing media for the ongoing demonization of LGBT+ people in right-wing media.

“No one is holding them accountable for all of the misinformation they’re spreading, but then we need to prove we’re not what they say we are,” she told NBC News.

A separate report from the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University San Bernardino found that reports of hate crimes against LGBT+ people in major cities increased by 51 per cent in 2021.

Colorado Springs councilman suggests mayoral candidates should propose assault weapons ban

11:20 , Rachel Sharp

Colorado Springs City Councilman Bill Murray challenged two other councilors to discuss implementing a citywide assault weapons ban in the wake of the mass shooting that killed five people and injured 18 others in a LGBT+ nightclub on Saturday night.

“It might be a good thing for the two mayoral candidates here to actually discuss banning assault weapons in the city,” said Mr Murray, aiming at Tom Strand and Wayne Williams – among seven candidates running for mayor in the upcoming race.

His remarks followed a city council hearing during which residents and community leaders “expressed anger, frustration, gratitude and pleas for action” in the aftermath of the attack, according to Colorado Public Radio.

Mugshot shows Colorado Springs suspect Anderson Aldrich with face and neck wounds

11:00 , Alex Woodward

Booking photos of Anderson Lee Aldrich from the Coloroado Springs Police Department reveal numerous apparent wounds to the suspect’s face and neck.

Mugshot shows Colorado Springs suspect with face and neck wounds

Shooting raises questions about how suspect got gun

10:35 , Rachel Sharp

The shooting has raised questions about how Anderson Lee Aldrich was allegedly able to access a gun.

Last year, the accused shooter was arrested for felony menacing and first degree kidnapping, after their mother alleged they threatened her with homemade bombs and other weapons.

Nonetheless, the weapons used in the shooting were purchased legally, even though Colorado has universal background checks which bar people with felony or domestic violence convictions from buying guns.

The state also has a “red flag” law, which allows citizens and police officers to petition a judge for an “extreme risk protection order” (ERPO) against any gun owner they believe to pose an imminent danger to themselves or others.

Boebert launches self-pitying rant after slammed for response to shooting

10:09 , Shweta Sharma

US representative Lauren Boebert said it was “disgusting” to blame her for what happened in Colorado Springs, as she went on a self-pitying rant after she was called out for “hypocrisy” over her response to the shooting.

In an interview with KAO, the Republican Congresswoman said: “That is completely false. I have never had bad rhetoric towards anyone and their personal preference as an adult.”

She defended her past rhetoric, saying what she “criticised is the sexualisation of our children. And I’ve criticized men dressing up as caricatures of women”.

The far-right congresswoman faced blowback following her statement of concern in response to the shooting at a gay nightclub in the state when Twitter users accused her of trafficking in the same hate that has been blamed for the attack.

Ms Boebert tweeted after a shooting overnight at Club Q in Colorado Springs that “the news out of Colorado Springs is absolutely awful. This morning the victims & their families are in my prayers

But several called her out after noting that Ms Boebert was deeply entrenched in the resurgence of right-wing hate against the LGBT community.

Mass shooting at LGBT+ club follows wave of threats to drag performers and venues

10:00 , Alex Woodward

A mass shooter brought violence into a nightclub known as a safe haven to the LGBT+ community in Colorado Springs. The violence follows an increase in attacks, harassment and legislation aimed at drag events.

Mass shooting at LGBT+ club follows wave of threats to drag performers and venues

Army veteran reveals how he tackled Colorado Springs shooter

09:00 , Rachel Sharp

Richard Fierro, 45, told The New York Times he was with family and friends at Club Q on Saturday night when the suspect burst in and began spraying the club with automatic gunfire.

Mr Fierro said that his military training kicked in and he ran towards the shooter — later identified by police as 22-year-old Anderson Aldrich — grabbed them from behind by their body armour and pulled them to the ground.

“I just knew I had to take him down,” Mr Fierro said.

Hero reveals how he tackled Colorado Springs gunman with help from trans woman

Joe Biden calls the owners of Club Q after shooting in Colorado Springs

08:00 , Alex Woodward

On Thanksgiving, President Joe Biden called the owners of the Colorado Springs gay nightclub where a gunman opened fire and killed five people last weekend.

Biden calls Club Q owners after Colorado Springs shooting

House lawmakers call on Justice Department to investigate threats to children’s hospitals targeted over gender-affirming care

07:00 , Alex Woodward

Congressmembers Dwight Evans, Ayanna Pressley and Eleanor Holmes Norton issued a letter with roughly 40 House lawmakers calling onthe US Department of Justice to investigate the “wave of threats of violence directed to several children’s hospitals” because of their treatment of transgender and non-binary patients.

Lawmakers called on the agency to counter threats and provide guidance on how to protect hospital staff and patients.

The letter from 36 lawmakers was issued after the mass shooting in Colorado Springs, with LGBT+ advocates pointing to increasing threats of violence and harassment aimed at LGBT+ people in the months leading up to the attack.

It also comes as several children’s hospitals have responded to hoax bomb threats and harassment after they were repeatedly targeted by far-right influencers on social media.

“From the brutal nightclub shooting in Colorado Springs this weekend to the latest bomb threat against Boston Children’s just last week, anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ+ violence is on the rise and must be taken seriously,” Congresswoman Pressley said in a statement.

“That’s why we’re calling on the DOJ to immediately step up efforts to help keep health care providers, patients and community members safe,” she added.

Records suggest Colorado Springs suspect wanted to ‘go out in a blaze’

06:00 , Alex Woodward

According to arrest records in an unrelated bomb threat case in 2021, investigators believed that the suspected mass shooter in the Club Q attack told family members they wanted to carry out a mass shooting or bombing and “go out in a blaze.”

The then 21-year-old allegedly made “homicidal threats” to their grandparents when they announced plans to sell their house and move to Florida in 2021, according to the court records.

They also said the move would mess with their plans to build a bomb, a scheme referenced in court papers, where investigators requested a search warrant to look for weapons and explosives to “prevent a reported planned terrorism attack,” according to records reportedly obtained by KKTV.

At a previous family meeting about the move, the outlet reports, Aldrich allegedly drew a loaded gun and claimed “you guys die today.”

Arrest records suggest Colorado Springs suspect wanted to ‘go out in a blaze’

These are the five people who were killed in the Club Q attack

05:00 , Alex Woodward

Kelly Loving, Daniel Aston, Derrick Rump, Ashley Paugh and Raymond Green have been identified as the five victims of the mass shooting inside Club Q.

Here is what we know:

Who were the people killed in the Colorado Springs LGBT+ nightclub shooting?

Ex-Trump lawyer says Colorado Springs victims are ‘reaping the consequences of having eternal damnation’

04:00 , Alex Woodward

A former legal adviser to Donald Trump alleged that the five people who were killed inside Club Q gave “no evidence at all that they were Christians” and that they “are now reaping the consequences of having eternal damnation.”

“And that is far, far greater – we should be having that conversation,” she added. “Instead of just the tragedy of what happened to the body, we need to be talking about what happened to the soul and the fact that they are now in eternal separation from our lord and savior Jesus Christ.”

Jenna Ellis’s remarks come as right-wing media commentary and far-right influencers continue to amplify inflammatory anti-gay and anti-trans rhetoric after mass shooting killed five inside LGBT+ nightclub:

Ex-Trump lawyer says Club Q victims face ‘eternal damnation’ after mass shooting

Co-owner of gay nightclub blames shooting on new ‘type of hate’

03:42 , Shweta Sharma

Nic Grzecka, co-owner of the Colorado Springs gay nightclub where a shooter killed five people, has blamed it on right-wing activists and politicians creating a new type of hate.

Speaking to Associated Press in the first comments since Saturday night’s attack at Club Q, Grzecka said the targeting of a drag queen event is connected to the art form being cast in a false light in recent months by right-wing activists and politicians who complain about the “sexualization” or “grooming” of children.

“Lying about our community, and making them into something they are not, creates a different type of hate,” said Grzecka.

Even though general acceptance of the LGBTQ community has grown, this new dynamic has fostered a dangerous climate, he added.

Joe Biden condemns AR-15 purchases and says he is ‘going to try’ to round up votes for assault weapons ban

03:00 , Alex Woodward

Speaking to reporters in Nantucket where Joe Biden is celebrating Thanksgiving with his family, the president said “the idea we still allow semi-automatic weapons to be purchased is sick.”

“Just sick,” he added. “It has no social redeeming value. Zero. None. Not a single solitary rationale for it except profit for the gun manufacturers.”

Asked whether his administartion can advance any additional gun reform measures within the next two years, with Republicans holding a slim majority in the House of Representatives and Democrats hold the Senate, the president said his is “going to try.”

“I’m going to try to get rid of assault weapons,” he added. “I’m going to do it whenever – I’ve got to make that assessment as I get in and start counting votes.”

Within the last week, following shootings in Colorado and Virginia, the president has twice called on Congress to renew a federal assault weapons ban, targeting weapons like AR-style rifles that are repeatedly used in mass shooting attacks. The ban expired in 2004.

Revisit his statement in the wake of the Club Q attack:

Biden renews call for assault weapons ban after ‘senseless’ Colorado Springs shooting

‘The terrible hypocrisy of Lauren Boebert’s ‘thoughts and prayers’ after Colorado Springs'

01:00 , Alex Woodward

“In an increasingly hostile atmosphere stoked by divisive politicians, this latest violent attack will sadly not be the last,” Skylar Baker-Jordan writes for Voices:

The hypocrisy of Lauren Boebert’s ‘thoughts and prayers’ after Colorado Springs

Sheriff’s office in county where deadly LGBT+ club shooting took place has never used ‘red flag’ law

00:00 , Alex Woodward

A 2019 bill that allows judges in Colorado to prevent people who pose a “significant risk” to themselves or others passed the state legislature without a single Republican vote in support.

The so-called “red flag” law was signed into law by Governor Jared Polis, marking one of the most significant gun reform measures passed by state lawmakers in the years after a 2012 mass shooting inside a Colorado movie theatre that killed 12 people and injured 70 others.

But the sheriff’s office in the county where a deadly shooting at an LGBT+ club this week left five people dead, officers have not used the law once.

The 2019 law faced overwhelming opposition from not only GOP lawmakers but also sheriff’s offices across the state – including in El Paso County, where five people were fatally shot and 18 others were injured inside a Colorado Springs LGBT+ club on 19 November.

One year earlier, the suspect accused of immediately opening fire into the club that night was arrested on felony menacing and kidnapping charges, which were later dropped.

Not only did the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office not pursue an order to seize firearms from the suspect, Anderson Lee Aldrich — the county has never once initiated a seizure.

Sheriff’s office where LGBT+ shooting occurred never used Colorado’s ‘red flag’ law

Colorado Springs mass shooting suspect and mother accused of using racist slurs during July flight

Thursday 24 November 2022 23:00 , Alex Woodward

A suspect accused of killing five people inside a LGBT+ nightclub and the suspect’s mother allegedly used racist slurs towards a Hispanic family and a Black man during a flight to Denver in July.

A cell phone video from an airline passenger obtained by local news outlet KDVR Fox 31 appears to show mass shooting suspect Anderson Lee Aldrich and Aldrich’s mother Laura Voepel during an airport confrontation on 31 July.

Maria Martinez told the outlet that she began filming after Aldrich used a racist slur towards her as they left the plane.

As she continued to film them, a person believed to be Aldrich tells her: “You keep following me and I’m going to f*** you up.”

Club Q shooting suspect and mother allegedly used racist slurs during July flight

Who is Aaron Brink?

Thursday 24 November 2022 22:00 , Alex Woodward

An interview with the father of the suspect accused of killing five people inside a LGBT+ nightclub in Colorado Springs has received significant international attention, after Aaron Brink appeared to express relief that his child is not gay and apologised to the families of the victims.

He was interviewed by a local CBS affiliate days after the attack outside his San Diego home.

Mr Brink said Anderson Lee Aldrich was born in San Diego in 2000 at Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women.

Aldrich changed their name following their father’s controversial appearance on the reality TV programme Intervention as well as Mr Brink’s acting career in several adult films.

Mr Brink said he currently works as a mixed martial arts coach; he said he taught his child how to fight.

He also said that he is a Mormon; a spokesperson for the Church of Latter Day Saints recently confirmed that Aldrich also is on the membership rolls.

Mr Brink said he believed his child was dead until he received an unexpected phone call six months ago; they argued over the phone, he said.

“I thought he was dead,” Mr Brink said. “I mourned his loss. I had gone through a meltdown and thought I had lost my son ... His mother told me he changed his name because I was in Intervention and I had been a porno actor.”

An affidavit in Texas days before Aldrich turned 16 years old indicated that they wished to change their name and “protect himself + his future from his birth father + his criminal history. Father has had no contact with minor for several years.”

Aldrich listed as male in booking records and day-of texts from mother refer to suspect as ‘him'

Thursday 24 November 2022 21:30 , Alex Woodward

Mass shooting suspect Anderson Lee Aldrich appears by court video link in Colorado Springs on 23 November. (via REUTERS)
Mass shooting suspect Anderson Lee Aldrich appears by court video link in Colorado Springs on 23 November. (via REUTERS)

Defense attorneys for Club Q mass shooting suspect Anderson Lee Aldrich left footnotes in legal filings this week to explain why Aldish is named “Mx. Aldrich” in the document.

The footnotes from the public defenders representing Aldrich claim that the suspect is “non-binary” and uses “they/them pronouns”.

Booking records list Aldrich as male. Text messages from the day of the shooting also show that Aldrich’s mother referred to her child as he and him.

At a news conference outside the courthouse on Wednesday, District Attorney Michael Allen said the suspect’s gender identity would not affect the case or influence whether he seeks hate crimes charges.

“I’m looking at evidence,” he said. “That’s what we look at when we make filing decisions.”

Kristen Prata Browde, a co-chair of the National Trans Bar Association, told The New York Times that a suspect’s gender identity does not have bearing on whether prosecutors can seek such a charge in this case.

“The motive for a crime isn’t dependent on whether you are or are not a member of a protected class,” she said. “It legally has no significance, as far as whether the actions of this individual fit within the law regarding hate crimes.”

‘We don’t do gay’: Colorado Springs attack suspect’s father gives shocking statement in reaction to mass shooting

Thursday 24 November 2022 21:00 , Alex Woodward

The father of the Club Q mass shooting suspect said that his first reaction to being informed of the attack was to question why his child was inside a gay bar.

Aaron Brink, a former porn actor and MMA fighter, said that he received a call on Sunday night from his child’s public defender to say Aldrich was under arrest for the mass shooting.

“They started telling me about the incident, a shooting involving multiple people,” Mr Brink said in an interview.

“And then I go on to find out it’s a gay bar. I said, ‘God, is he gay?’ I got scared, ‘S***, is he gay?’ And he’s not gay, so I said, ‘Phew.’”

Father of Colorado Springs shooting suspect says he’s relieved child isn’t gay

House lawmakers call on Justice Department to investigate threats to children’s hospitals targeted over gender-affirming care

Thursday 24 November 2022 20:30 , Alex Woodward

Congressmembers Dwight Evans, Ayanna Pressley and Eleanor Holmes Norton issued a letter with roughly 40 House lawmakers calling onthe US Department of Justice to investigate the “wave of threats of violence directed to several children’s hospitals” because of their treatment of transgender and non-binary patients.

Lawmakers called on the agency to counter threats and provide guidance on how to protect hospital staff and patients.

The letter from 36 lawmakers was issued after the mass shooting in Colorado Springs, with LGBT+ advocates pointing to increasing threats of violence and harassment aimed at LGBT+ people in the months leading up to the attack.

It also comes as several children’s hospitals have responded to hoax bomb threats and harassment after they were repeatedly targeted by far-right influencers on social media.

“From the brutal nightclub shooting in Colorado Springs this weekend to the latest bomb threat against Boston Children’s just last week, anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ+ violence is on the rise and must be taken seriously,” Congresswoman Pressley said in a statement.

“That’s why we’re calling on the DOJ to immediately step up efforts to help keep health care providers, patients and community members safe,” she added.

Colorado Springs shooter’s non-binary claim won’t stop hate crime charges, legal experts say

Thursday 24 November 2022 20:00 , Alex Woodward

Attorney for Aldrich noted in a footnote in a court filing this week at Aldrich uses they/them pronouns and identifies as nonbinary, which critics have accused of being a cynical legal maneuver to avoid hate crime charges, or as a last-minute defense; Aldrich’s family members and former friends have not used those gender pronouns.

Even though the defence has not categorically stated anything about using the suspect’s gender identity, legal experts said including pronouns in Tuesday’s court filing was a “very strategic move aimed at building sympathy to ward off the chances of attracting additional charges”.

The suspect’s gender identity is “not relevant," according to Neama Rahmani, president of West Coast Trial Lawyers and a former federal prosecutor. "Obviously the defense will want to get it in, but it’s not a defense."

Colorado Springs shooter’s gender identity won’t affect charges, experts say

Club Q survivor speaks out for first time since attack: Suspect hurt ‘a lot of pure, true hearts that I don’t know if they’ll be the same'

Thursday 24 November 2022 19:30 , Alex Woodward

During a press conference at Centura Penrose Cancer Center, Anthony, who survived several gunshot wounds during the mass shooting at Club Q, had a message for the suspect accused of killing five people and injuring 17 others.

“I would probably say, ‘Why don’t you meet somebody and get to know their true heart before passing judgment,’” Anthony told reporters this week. “Because he really did harm a lot of pure, true hearts that I don’t know if they’ll be the same.”

Anthony, who did not want to reveal his last name, was standing near the door of the club when shots rang out, according to Colorado Public Radio.

”I pretty much heard it first along with everybody else that was up by the door. And after that, I don’t know what happened,” Anthony said. “I don’t know anything because I just hid.”

He was shot in several different areas and hi by shrapnel in his rear end and arm.

Suspect and mother allegedly used racist slurs against airline passengers during July flight

Thursday 24 November 2022 19:00 , Alex Woodward

A cell phone video from an airline passenger obtained by local news outlet Fox 31 allegedly shows mass shooting suspect Anderson Aldrich and Aldrich’s mother Laura Voepel during an airport confrontation on 31 July.

The pair allegedly used racist slurs towards a Hispanic family and a Black man during a flight.

The video follows media reports stringing together details about the suspect and family relationships in the weeks and months that preceded the attack.

Lauren Boebert claims ‘the left’ is blaming her for the Club Q shooting because she won her re-election

Thursday 24 November 2022 18:45 , Alex Woodward

After the Club Q mass shooting, critics have accused Colorado congresswoman Lauren Boebert of amplifying anti-gay and anti-trans rhetoric, invoking similar language that has been blamed for the attack.

She claims that the criticism comes from “the left” who is upset that she won her re-election, “so they’re trying to find something to go after me about.”

“I’ve been accused of just about every mass shooting there has been,” she told OAN’s Real America host Dan Ball. “We’re all sick of this.”

Lauren Boebert condemned for response to Colorado Springs shooting

Biden calls Club Q owners to offer condolences in wake of attack

Thursday 24 November 2022 18:30 , Alex Woodward

 (AP)
(AP)

President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden called the owners of Club Q, Nic Grzecka and Matthew Haynes, “to offer condolences” in the wake of the mass shooting inside the LGBT+ nightclub, according to the White House.

“They reiterated their support for the community as well as their commitment to fighting back against hate and gun violence,” according to a readout of the call. “They also thanked Nic and Matthew for the incredible contributions they have made and will continue to make to Colorado Springs.”

Biden rails against ‘sick’ semi-automatic weapons and unenforced red flag laws on Thanksgiving in Nantucket

Thursday 24 November 2022 18:15 , Alex Woodward

President Joe Biden hs denounced the proliferation of semi-automatic weapons and the fact that some areas of the country did not enforce so-called “red flag laws” meant to prevent people who posed a danger to themselves and others.

The Independent’s Eric Garcia reports:

Biden rails against ‘sick’ semi-automatic weapons and unenforced red flag laws

Ex-Trump lawyer says Colorado Springs victims are ‘reaping the consequences of having eternal damnation’

Thursday 24 November 2022 17:45 , Alex Woodward

Right-wing media personalities and far-right figures have doubled down on anti-LGBT+ rhetoric in the wake of a mass shooting inside a Colorado Springs LGBT+ nightclub that left five dead and at least 18 others injured.

Jenna Ellis, a former attorney for Donald Trump, condemned what she characterised as “the left’s narrative” about the shooting that points blame at Christians who “hate homosexual and transgender individuals” and “somehow that ‘hate’ led to the shooting.”

Yet within the same Tuesday broadcast of her The Jenna Ellis Show, she alleges that the five people who were killed inside Club Q gave “no evidence at all that they were Christians” and that they “are now reaping the consequences of having eternal damnation.”

Her remarks added to a chorus of right-wing media commentary and far-right influencers who have amplified inflammatory anti-gay and anti-trans rhetoric even after the mass shooting, echoing a wave of politicised harassment aimed at LGBT+ people in the weeks and months that preceded it.

Ex-Trump lawyer says Club Q victims face ‘eternal damnation’ after mass shooting

Colorado Springs councilman suggests mayoral candidates should propose assault weapons ban

Thursday 24 November 2022 17:15 , Alex Woodward

Colorado Springs City Councilman Bill Murray challenged two other councilors to discuss implementing a citywide assault weapons ban in the wake of the mass shooting that killed five people and injured 18 others in a LGBT+ nightclub on Saturday night.

“It might be a good thing for the two mayoral candidates here to actually discuss banning assault weapons in the city,” said Mr Murray, aiming at Tom Strand and Wayne Williams – among seven candidates running for mayor in the upcoming race.

His remarks followed a city council hearing during which residents and community leaders “expressed anger, frustration, gratitude and pleas for action” in the aftermath of the attack, according to Colorado Public Radio.

Biden calls AR-style rifle purchases ‘sick’ with ‘no social redeeming value'

Thursday 24 November 2022 16:45 , Alex Woodward

Speaking to reporters in Nantucket where President Biden is celebrating Thanksgiving with his family, the president said “the idea we still allow semi-automatic weapons to be purchased is sick.”

“Just sick,” he added. “It has no social redeeming value. Zero. None. Not a single solitary rationale for it except profit for the gun manufacturers.”

Asked whether his administartion can advance any additional gun reform measures within the next two years, with Republicans holding a slim majority in the House of Representatives and Democrats hold the Senate, the president said his is “going to try.”

“I’m going to try to get rid of assault weapons,” he added. “I’m going to do it whenever – I’ve got to make that assessment as I get in and start counting votes.”

Within the last week, following shootings in Colorado and Virginia, the president has twice called on Congress to renew a federal assault weapons ban, targeting weapons like AR-style rifles that are repeatedly used in mass shooting attacks. The ban expired in 2004.

ICYMI: Old arrest records suggest Colorado Springs suspect wanted to ‘go out in a blaze’

Thursday 24 November 2022 16:30 , Alex Woodward

Anderson Lee Aldrich previously told family members that they wanted to be the “next mass killer,” Colorado’s KKTV reports.

In June of 2021, Aldrich – whose attorneys indicated in a new court filing that the Club Q mass shooting suspect identifies as nonbinary –was arrested for threatening the grandmother, with whom they lived, with a homemade bomb, prompting a heavily armed police tactical team to respond and evacuate surrounding homes.

Eventually, crisis negotiators were able to intervene,

Arrest records suggest Colorado Springs suspect wanted to ‘go out in a blaze’

Mass shooting follows wave of anti-gay attacks across US

Thursday 24 November 2022 15:46 , Alex Woodward

A recent report from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) found 124 incidents of anti-LGBT+ protests and threats in 47 targeting drag events so far this year.

The majority of those incidents occurred during Pride events in June and into September, October and November.

Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO GLAAD, criticised right-wing media for the ongoing demonization of LGBT+ people in right-wing media.

“No one is holding them accountable for all of the misinformation they’re spreading, but then we need to prove we’re not what they say we are,” she told NBC News.

A separate report from the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University San Bernardino found that reports of hate crimes against LGBT+ people in major cities increased by 51 per cent in 2021.

Anderson Lee Aldrich sent mother chilling message hours before Colorado Springs shooting

Thursday 24 November 2022 15:30 , Alex Woodward

Less than a day before Anderson Lee Aldrich allegedly opened fire inside a LGBT+ nightclub, the suspect’s mother reportedly posted a chilling message n Facebook.

Laura Voepel, the mother of the 22-year-old mass shooting suspect, allegedly wrote “my son is missing” and “took my phone and my debit card”.

Accused Colorado Club Shooter Makes First Court Appearance

Mugshot shows Colorado Springs suspect Anderson Aldrich with face and neck wounds

Thursday 24 November 2022 15:20 , Alex Woodward

Booking photos of Anderson Lee Aldrich from the Coloroado Springs Police Department reveal numerous apparent wounds to the suspect’s face and neck.

Mugshot shows Colorado Springs suspect with face and neck wounds

‘Why the hell can’t America end this deadly gun violence?'

Thursday 24 November 2022 15:00 , Alex Woodward

There are 400 million firearms in US and they being used to kill people at a rate not seen in any other nation in the world, The Independent’s Andrew Buncombe writes:

Why the hell can’t America end this deadly gun violence?

ICYMI: Colorado Springs attack suspect’s father gives shocking statement in reaction to mass shooting

Thursday 24 November 2022 14:30 , Johanna Chisholm

Aaron Brink, a former porn actor and MMA fighter, told CBS8 he received a call on Sunday night from his child’s public defender to say he was under arrest for the Colorado Springs mass shooting that left five people dead and more than a dozen injured.

He told the CBS8 his family were Mormon, adding: “We don’t do gay.”

The father said that while he holds anti-gay views, there’s no excuse for his child allegedly shooting people in an LGTBQ+ club.

“I’m so sorry guys for your loss,” Mr Brink said. “With no regard to politics, it’s human life. I’m so sorry. My soul goes out to you.”

“Life is so fragile, and it’s valuable,” he said. “Those people’s lives were valuable.”

Aldrich’s lawyers have said in court documents that the 22-year-old is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns.

Bevan Hurley has more details from the interview here.

Father of Colorado Springs shooting suspect says he’s relieved child isn’t gay

Watch: Suspected gunman’s father speaks out to local news outlet

Thursday 24 November 2022 14:10 , Johanna Chisholm

The father of Colorado Springs shooting suspect Anderson Aldrich says his first reaction to being informed of the attack at Club Q was to question why his child was at an LGBTQ bar.

Aaron Brink, a former porn actor and MMA fighter, told CBS8 he received a call on Sunday night from his child’s public defender to say he was under arrest for the mass shooting.

“They started telling me about the incident, a shooting involving multiple people,” Mr Brink said in an interview.

“And then I go on to find out it’s a gay bar. I said, ‘God, is he gay?’ I got scared, ‘S***, is he gay?’ And he’s not gay, so I said, ‘Phhhewww…’”

Watch the full interview with CBS 8 below.

Local breweries in Colorado Springs create day-long fundraiser for shooting victims and families

Thursday 24 November 2022 13:50 , Johanna Chisholm

More than 20 local breweries in Colorado Springs will be pooling resources for a day-long fundraiser, with a portion of tabs going towards providing financial support for the victims and survivors of the Club Q mass shooting last Saturday.

The “Brews for Q” fundraiser will pass on the day’s sales to charity campaigns set up after the attack that left five dead and more than a dozen injured at the popular LGBT+ nightclub.

A Facebook event for the fundraiser, put on by one of the local breweries, The Public House, describes how they are “joining many local establishments for #BrewsForQ this #SmallBusinessSaturday to raise money for the victims and their families”.

“From 12-5 pm on November 26, $1 from pints poured at both PH locations will be donated to a verified victim fund,” the event description adds.

Motive in attack remains unclear as investigation continues

Thursday 24 November 2022 13:30 , Johanna Chisholm

The motive behind the Club Q attack that left five people dead and at least another 18 injured is still under investigation by authorities.

Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, has been charged with five counts of first-degree murder and five counts of committing those crimes as part of a bias attack.

Prosecutor Michael Allen said that the suspect, who appeared in court on Wednesday via video with visible injuries to his face and neck, was “physically competent” to stand trial.

His next hearing is scheduled 6 December.

Father of Colorado Springs suspected shooter said he was told Aldrich died years ago

Thursday 24 November 2022 13:10 , Johanna Chisholm

Aaron Brink, a former porn actor and MMA fighter, told CBS8 he received a call on Sunday night from his child’s public defender to say he was under arrest for the mass shooting.

During the course of that interview with the San Diego-based news outlet, Mr Brink, 48, said that his ex-wife Laura Voepel called him in 2016 to say that their child, who was born Nicholas Brink, had changed their name and died by suicide.

“His mother told me he changed his name because I was in (reality tv show) Intervention and I had been a porno actor,” Mr Brink told CBS8.

He had continued to believe that his child was dead until six months ago, when he got a call out of the blue from Aldrich.

According to Mr Brink’s account, Aldrich was “pissed off” and wanted to “poke at the old man”.

He went on to say he taught his child how to fight at a young age and “praised him for violent behaviour”.

“I told him it works. It is instant and you’ll get immediate results,” Mr Brink told CBS8.

Who are the victims of the Club Q shooting?

Thursday 24 November 2022 12:50 , Johanna Chisholm

Here’s what we know so far about the five people who were killed.

Who were the people killed in the Colorado Springs LGBT+ nightclub shooting?