Fact-Checking Terry McAuliffe‘s ’93 Million’ Lost to Gun Violence Claim

Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe claimed Wednesday at a press conference (video below) that “we lose 93 million Americans a day to gun violence.” The Virginia governor’s claim was quickly challenged by a reporter, who said that it sounded like “a big number.”

Speaking after the targeted shooting of Republicans practicing for the Congressional Baseball Game, Gov. McAuliffe corrected himself by reducing the number to 93 Americans lost to gun violence on a daily basis.

Neither claim is true.

According to the latest statistics (2015) from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), there was an estimated 1,197,704 violent crimes committed around the nation. But Mr. McAuliffe said we “lose” said number of Americans each day, clearly indicating fatalities.

The estimated number of murders in the nation was 15,696 for that year.

Even if they were all attributable to gun violence, at most, it breaks down to only 43 murders each day. But all violent crimes aren’t committed by individuals with firearms. Of the total violent crimes for the year, firearms were used in only 71.5% of the cases.

That breaks down to roughly 31 violent crimes each day attributable to guns. While that’s not insignificant, it’s a far cry from the 93 Gov. McAuliffe claimed were committee each day.

This man has a long and recklessly history of using fake statistics when emotions are running high. Gov. McAuliffe, a known anti-gun zealot, decided to push for gun control at an inappropriate time with falsehoods.

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