'I'm angry': CNN's Don Lemon rails against Trump's empty promises on gun violence

Opening his Thursday night show, CNN host Don Lemon took a moment to blast those politicians who play the broken record of "thoughts and prayers."

"You've heard a lot of people offering thoughts and prayers for the 17 people who lost their lived in a Florida high school yesterday," he began. "Students and 19-year-old who had been expelled. a 19-year-old who had absolutely no business having a gun. None whatsoever. We should all know better by now than to offer empty words about thoughts and prayers. I don't want you to misunderstand me at all, heartfelt sympathy and prayers are very powerful, we all need them from time to time, but we need to turn those thoughts and prayers into action. we need to do it now. we can't waste one more day waiting for another shooter somewhere to erupt in deadly violence and end the lives of more innocent Americans. Leaving families in almost unimaginable pain."

He played the clip of the grieving mother who screamed into CNN cameras earlier today at President Donald Trump.

"It almost impossible to listen to that without feeling her pain, her rage is heartbreaking," Lemon continued. He explained that Lori Alhadeff has every right to be angry. "I'm angry. Most people are angry. People across this country are angry. They're frustrated. She is so right to demand action at this point. If she can't, my goodness, who can? To demand that President Trump do something. This is what the president did today, he managed to talk about this senseless slaughter without even mentioning the word 'gun.'"

Lemon called on Trump to do what Alhadeff demanded.

"She was very loud and clear about it. Stop guns from getting into the wrong hands," Lemon noted. "Stop the slaughter of innocent Americans. Stop playing politics with our lives and the lives of people we love. Because if you don't do something, this will happen again and again and again. The proof is in that, all you have to do is go back and watch the tape. Just do a google search. You can see the same thing happens every single time. And our lawmakers do nothing. There have already been eight school shootings this year. We're at February 15th, the day after Valentine's Day. Barely -- about a month into the year and there have been eight already this year."

He cited 48 mass shootings last year and asked how Trump can face Americans after promising he would drain the swamp and stand up to lobbyists. He has not.

Watch the commentary below: