President Trump condemns mass shootings, white supremacy
Trump addresses the nation on mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton, announces steps to combat violence; chief White House correspondent John Roberts.
Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, has told President Trump to stay away from El Paso while the community mourns the massacre that left at least 22 dead.
Escobar, who represents the district that is home to the Walmart store where Saturday’s shooting took place, lashed out at the president on Monday morning -- placing some of the blame for the weekend’s tragedy at his feet.
“The president has made my community and my people the enemy,” she told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
“He has told the country that we are people to be feared, people to be hated.
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“I would ask his staff and his team to consider the fact his words and his actions have played a role in this.”
She continued: “All of this has happened because Hispanic people have been dehumanized. They have been dehumanized by the president, by his enablers, by other politicians.
“This is one of the lowest points in American history.”
After being asked about a tweet Trump sent on Monday morning, Escobar said: “From my perspective, he is not welcome here. He should not come here while we are in mourning.”
The comments came prior to Trump’s comments on Monday morning, in which he condemned the mass shootings in Texas and Ohio as barbaric crimes "against all humanity" and called for bipartisan cooperation to respond to an epidemic of gun violence. He blamed mental illness and video games but made no mention of more limits on sales of firearms aside from so-called "red flag laws."
Trump tweeted that he wanted legislation providing "strong background checks" for gun users, though he has not followed through with comprehensive legislation following prior attacks.
"We vow to act with urgent resolve," Trump said, speaking from the White House about shootings that left 31 dead. His scripted remarks came after two days of muted response to the shootings.
"In one voice, our nation must condemn racism, bigotry and white supremacy," Trump said, adding that he had directed the FBI to examine steps to identify and address domestic terrorism. "These sinister ideologies must be defeated. Hate has no place in America," he said.
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Trump’s remarks did little to quell the anger from 2020 Democratic hopefuls who are blaming his rhetoric as well as inaction on gun control in part for the violence.
“Listening to the president,” New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker said Monday after Trump’s speech, in comments shared on Twitter by his campaign manager. “Such a bulls—t soup of ineffective words.”
Another candidate, Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio, on Monday, tweeted “Fck me” after Trump mistakenly, at one point in his speech, said the Ohio shooting took place in Toledo. (It happened in Dayton.)
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For Ryan, the language appeared to be part of a deliberate approach: Earlier Monday, the longshot candidate went on CNN and tore into Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, saying, "Mitch McConnell needs to get off his a-- and do something.” On Sunday, he also tweeted, “Republicans need to get their s--- together and stop pandering to the NRA. Period.”
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