Trump ducks on gun control
In a solemn address from the White House yesterday, President Donald Trump condemned the gunmen who carried out two deadly mass shootings over the weekend and the racism that motivated one of them – but stopped short of calling for stricter gun laws to prevent future attacks.
‘‘These barbaric slaughters are an assault upon our communities, an attack against our nation and a crime against all of humanity,’’ Trump said. ‘‘Hate has no place in America. In one voice, our nation must condemn racism, bigotry and white supremacy.’’ As the death toll rose to 31 from the twin shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, a divisive president who regularly issues harsh antiimmigrant rhetoric – and who has often re-tweeted statements and images from known white supremacists – struggled to comfort a grieving, inflamed nation. Reading from a teleprompter, Trump vowed to act ‘‘with urgent resolve’’ to end the uniquely American epidemic of mass shootings, blaming the internet, violent video games and mental health problems as contributing factors.
But Trump pointedly did not endorse rising calls for stricter laws to keep guns out of the hands of likely killers, and did not call for Congress to return from summer recess to consider new reforms.
He instead held the individual shooters responsible, describing one as ‘‘wicked’’ and the other as a ‘‘twisted monster.’’
‘‘Mental illness and hatred pull the trigger, not the gun,’’ Trump said.
Hours earlier, Trump had suggested on Twitter that he could support ‘‘strong background checks’’ for gun buyers if Congress should enact them, but he did not repeat that pledge in his comments.
‘‘Republicans and Democrats must come together and get strong background checks, perhaps marrying this legislation with desperately needed immigration reform,’’ he tweeted.
Lawmakers and White House aides largely dismissed his suggestion that two of the nation’s most politically combustible issues could advance in Congress by being tied together, however. Trump had endorsed gun law reforms, including expanded background checks, after the 2018 school shooting in Parkland, Fla., but quickly reversed himself after meeting with the National Rifle Association.
The co-sponsors of a bill to strengthen background checks, Sen. Joe Manchin III, D-W.Va., and Sen. Patrick J. Toomey, R-Pa., both spoke with Trump yesterday about taking up their legislation, which failed to garner the required 60 Senate votes to advance in 2013 months after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. – LA Times