Actor McConaughey backs gun legislation as son of oldest Buffalo shooting victim testifies

{O/C} The son of the oldest Buffalo shooting victim has demanded bold moves by the U.S. government to stem the nation's gun violence epidemic.

The crusade against gun violence also got some star power at the White House today.

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No, Uvalde-born Matthew McConaughey's not here for filming, but spurring the American government on to take on the mammoth task of gun reforms.

The irony is, Uvalde was where McConaughey learned to venerate a gun, but also gutted by a deadly elementary school shooting rampage.

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MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY, Actor:

Uvalde is where I was taught to revere the power and the capability of the tool that we call a gun.

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Then came the heart-piercing story of the death of 10-year-old victim Maite Rodriguez, an aspiring marine biologist.

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Green Converse with a heart on the right toe. These are the same green Converse on her feet that turned out to be the only clear evidence that could identify her after the shooting.

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He also stressed the battle entailed stricter gun control measures that would come into their own.

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We need to raise the minimum age to purchase an AR-15 rifle to 21. We need a waiting period for those rifles. We need red-flag laws and consequences for those who abuse them. These are reasonable, practical, tactical regulations to our nation, states, communities, schools, and homes.

{VO}

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing concerning the two mass shootings, the son of 86-year-old Buffalo shooting victim Ruth Whitfield added to the acrimonious debate as he condemned rebellious senators as broken reeds.

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GARNELL WHITFIELD Jr., son of Ruth Whitfield killed in Buffalo rampage:

Is there nothing that you personally are willing to do to stop the cancer of white supremacy and the domestic terrorism it inspires? Because if there is nothing, then, respectfully, senators, you should yield your positions of authority and influence to others that are willing to lead on this issue.

{VO}

But good-faith efforts are now underway to forge a deal this week as U.S. President Joe Biden has met with Senator Chris Murphy, who's spent the bulk of his career wrestling with gun violence across the United States.