Stephen Colbert got contemplative on Monday's episode of The Late Show, after another mass shooting at a church in Texas.
Gunman Devin Kelley shot 26 people dead and injured around 20 others in the tragedy in Sutherland Springs Sunday.
Colbert described how events such as the church massacre and the Las Vegas shooting in October—the largest mass shooting in U.S. history—make Americans feel "heartbroken" but also "powerless" because of the government's reluctance to enforce stricter gun laws.
The late-night host called for Americans to exercise their right to vote for "someone who will do something," seemingly taking a shot at President Donald Trump and his administration.
"No one does anything," Colbert said. "And that seems insane. It can make you feel hopeless. Hopelessness is not the answer. You cannot give up in the face of evil."
"So, what do you do? If you're not going to be hopeless, but you feel powerless, how do you get the power back? There is one power you must never forget—you can vote. In 2018 [during the midterm elections], vote for someone who will do something. This is an active evil and the only thing necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing."
Colbert condemned the lack of action after the Vegas shooting in early October, when Stephen Paddock killed 58 people using semi-automatic weapons enhanced by bump fire stocks which can make guns shoot like a military weapon.
"Nothing gets done after what happened in Las Vegas. They can't even pass a restriction on those bump stocks that turn a semi-automatic weapon into an almost fully automatic weapon. No one's talking about that," said the host.
Colbert also called out the gun industry for profiting from the violence.
"There are some truly evil people out there who want you to feel powerless, just for a buck. If you feel powerless enough, you know what might make you feel more powerful? Going to buy a gun. It's a vicious cycle. Violence happens, nothing gets done to get rid of the guns, and people buy more guns to protect themselves and now there are just more guns out on the street."
