Bill Maher Gets Basic Gun Fact Wrong After Kansas City Shooting

Bill Maher managed to make an unfortunate mistake when talking about gun laws in Missouri.

Kansas City was rocked Wednesday when a shooting erupted during the Super Bowl parade for the Chiefs. One woman was killed, more than 20 were injured and two minors were charged. Most details about possible motive and who the suspects are remain largely unknown.

People have spent a lot of time unleashing hot takes about guns in America. Many of the takes have been borderline suffocating as people seem to not understand basic facts or current laws.

While Bill Maher is usually a solid voice of reason, he managed to slip up when talking about gun laws in the aftermath of the shooting.

Bill Maher makes mistake on basic gun laws.

"No background checks. That's the law in Missouri. No background checks. In Missouri, 79% support background checks. Nationally, 87%," Maher said on the Friday night episode of "Real Time with Bill Maher."

There's just a big problem with his statement. It's not correct. In fact, it's incredibly incorrect, something Maher is generally very careful to avoid.

Background checks from licensed gun dealers are federally mandated. States have little to no power over them.

Bill Maher makes mistake on gun laws in Missouri after Kansas City shooting. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) was launched in 1998 after the 1993 passage of the Brady Act in order to complete the mandatory federal background checks. If you buy a gun from a licensed dealer, you have to do a background check. It's not state law. It's federal law, and the law applies to every single state in America.

Even the incredibly anti-gun organization Giffords Law Center admits this is the case and states on its website, "Missouri, all firearms transfers by licensed dealers are processed directly through the FBI."

Now, some states don't require background checks for some private sales. Missouri is one of those states. For example, my father could sell me a shotgun and wouldn't have to conduct a background check. However, this can quickly trend into a very gray area. Selling one gun in a private transaction isn't likely an issue, but if it's a common occurrence, the government can and does step in arguing the seller is behaving as an official dealer.

Either way, Maher's claim there are "no background checks" in Missouri is simply false. There are absolutely background checks in Missouri because it's the federal law. 

Bill Maher gets basic gun fact wrong in aftermath of Kansas City parade shooting. (Credit: HBO)

Did Maher purposely spread a lie about guns? Almost certainly not. He just got it wrong, but as a man with a massive platform and perhaps the most recognizable liberal pundit in America, he has the duty and obligation to make sure his facts are correct.

That's even truer when talking about a topic like guns in the aftermath of a shooting. It's a highly-charged and polarizing topic where emotions often dominate the narrative.

Not only should emotions not be involved, but we all have to make sure the facts being debated and discussed are correct.

In this case, Maher got it wrong, and should definitely do his best to not do it again, given his incredible reach and popularity. Let me know what you think at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.