May: Massacre should jolt US into action on firearms
Prime Minister joins the debate about weapons sales as president hints at talks on tougher controls
THERESA MAY hinted that the horrific events in Las Vegas should jolt America into considering action on gun crime as Donald Trump suggested he was prepared to wade into the divisive debate on the right to bear arms.
Gun control advocates are demanding action to tighten laws that allowed Stephen Paddock to assemble an arsenal of more than 40 deadly weapons, including assault rifles modified to fire as fast as fully automatic machine guns.
Speaking on ITV’S This Morning, the Prime Minister said: “It’s obviously up to America what gun laws they put in place. I think that most people would look at this and assume that America will be so shocked by this attack that they would want to take some action.”
When the US president was asked whether the deadliest mass shooting since the 19th century would prompt a rethink of America’s gun laws, he replied: “What happened in Las Vegas is in many ways a miracle. The police department has done such an incredible job, and we’ll be talking about gun laws as time goes by.”
White House officials have said it is too early to begin thinking about prevention measures.
Public support for restrictions typically soars after mass killings but rarely results in legislation.
In the meantime, Republican leaders said they were shelving a bill that would have loosened restrictions on the purchase of silencers.
Mr Trump was once seen as an ally of the gun control movement, advocating tighter controls on the purchase of assault rifles. But he was backed by the powerful National Rifle Association during last year’s presidential election campaign when he promised to defend Americans’ right to bear arms.
He described Paddock, 64, as “a sick man, a demented man. A lot of problems, I guess”, adding: “We’re looking into him very, very seriously, but we’re dealing with a very sick individual.”
Republican leaders called for unity and prayer as they announced they would not be putting their silencer bill to a vote.
“We are all reeling from this horror in Las Vegas,” said Paul Ryan, the speaker of the House of Representatives. “This is just awful.”
The bill had become a focal point of anger for gun control advocates, such as Hillary Clinton, who said the carnage could have been much worse if the gunmen had used a suppressor to hide his location.
♦ Mr Trump yesterday visited Puerto Rico, ravaged by Hurricane Maria, where he remarked that officials should be “proud” because the death toll was not as high as “a real catastrophe” like Hurricane Katrina.
Mr Trump and his wife Melania were briefed on relief efforts, after which he commented: “If you look at a real catastrophe like Katrina, and you look at the hundreds and hundreds of people that died – what is your death count? Sixteen. You can be very proud of all of your people.”
Doctors, however, warned that significant numbers of people are now at risk of dying from treatable diseases because they cannot access routine prescriptions.
Mr Trump visited the affluent Guaynabo district, telling a family who showed him their damaged home to “have a good time”, before heading to an aid distribution centre where he tossed rolls of toilet paper into the crowd.