Shooting was in many ways a miracle, says Trump

DONALD Trump sidestepped demands for tougher gun controls yesterday as he insisted the Las Vegas massacre was ‘in many ways a miracle’ because so many lives were saved.

The US President described Stephen Paddock as ‘demented’ and ‘very, very sick’ after he blasted dead 59 and injured more than 500 in America’s worst mass shooting. The gunman, 64, killed himself before police stormed the hotel room he was using to launch the attack.

Mr Trump’s comments came after Democrats in Congress and his defeated presidential rival Hillary Clinton called for tougher gun control in the wake of Sunday’s attack.

But the President, who will visit Las Vegas today, refused to be drawn on any changes to legislation, instead praising emergency services.

‘Look, we have a tragedy. What happened is, in many ways, a miracle,’ Mr Trump said as he departed the White House for a trip to Puerto Rico. ‘And we’ll be talking about gun laws as time goes on. But I do have to say, how quickly the police department was able to get in was really very much of a miracle. They’ve done an amazing job.’

In April, Mr Trump described himself as a ‘true friend and champion’ of the powerful US gun lobby group the National Rifle Association.

But Caleb Keeter, the lead guitarist of a country band playing at the Route 91 Harvest festival that was attacked, tweeted that he was abandoning his lifelong support for the right to bear arms.