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Obama Calls Texas Church Shooting ‘Act Of Hatred,’ Calls For ‘Violence And Weaponry’ To Be Reduced

By Patricia Ramirez
Published on: 14:26 PST, Nov 5, 2017

Mere hours after gunman Devin P. Kelley opened fire on a Texas church, killing at least 26 and wounding dozens more, former President Barack Obama tweeted out his condolences to the victims and a reeling nation. As CNN reports, the ex-POTUS was quick to call the shooting an “act of hatred,” stopping short of using the words “domestic terrorism.” However, when it came to singling out the issue behind the latest instance of senseless and deadly gun violence in the United States, Obama didn’t hesitate before pointing out that “weaponry in our midst” is part of the problem.

The former President also called upon a higher power to help provide the wisdom necessary to take “concrete steps” toward reducing both weaponry and violence in America. Throughout his presidency, Obama repeatedly called for tighter gun control, particularly better mental health screenings and more restrictions on assault-style rifles. It has been reported that the gun used in Sunday’s church shooting was a “Ruger AR assault-type rifle,” which allowed him to fire off dozens of rounds in rapid succession.

In his double-tweet expression of grief for the victims of the Texas church shooting, Barack Obama assured his social media followers that he and his are grieving alongside the community of Sutherland Springs, where the shooting occurred. He also vowed to stand with the injured as they move toward recovery from the physical and emotional trauma of the Sunday morning attack on their house of worship.

As the nation struggles to come to terms with yet another deadly mass shooting, the second in just over a month, many social media users responded positively to the ex-POTUS’ call to action. Some social media users pleaded with Barack Obama to “come back,” while others applauded the Democrat for his immediate focus on gun control in response to the Texas church shooting.

At least one Twitter user used Barack Obama’s condolences as a platform to attack Donald Trump’s response to the Texas church shooting versus his response to the Manhattan truck attack that took place on October 31. In that attack, which was carried out by Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov and left 8 dead, a rental truck was deliberately driven onto a bike path near the World Trade Center.

As CNN reports, the Saipov was a native of Uzbekistan living in the United States since 2010, and he reportedly carried out the attack in the name of ISIS. Immediately following the Manhattan truck attack, Trump called for policy changes and a step-up of “extreme vetting,” similar to Barack Obama’s calls for greater gun control in the wake of this Sunday’s mass church shooting.

Trump even went so far as to call for the death penalty for Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov, despite the fact that the suspect in the Manhattan terror attack has yet to be convicted of a crime.

Donald Trump’s response to the Texas church shooting, however, was much more ambiguous. In stark contrast to Barack Obama’s call to action and tone focusing on America’s controversial issue with “weaponry and violence,” Donald Trump chose to be much more subdued in his reaction.

Tweeting from Japan, where he’s in the midst of an Asian tour, Donald called on God to be with the people of Sutherland Springs. The current POTUS further claimed to be monitoring the situation from across the Pacific.

In a later statement that was again a stark contrast to the words of his predecessor Barack Obama, Trump spoke once again of “thoughts and prayers.” Calling the Texas church shooting an “act of evil,” vowed to follow the developments in the investigation closely and added that “our hearts are broken.” Unlike Obama, POTUS 45 declined to mention gun control or even America’s gun violence problem in his official statement.

Unlike his response to the Manhattan truck attack, Trump didn’t offer his thoughts on an appropriate sentence for the perpetrator of Sunday’s church shooting. However, in the case of Devin P. Kelley, caucasian and ex-military, he didn’t escape the scene of his alleged crime alive and was found dead of a gunshot wound miles from the Sutherland Springs First Baptist Church.

In the aftermath of Sunday’s deadly Texas church shooting, Barack Obama wasn’t the only one to respond to the tragedy with a call to action. Leaders from across the country have taken time to offer their condolences and opinions as locals struggle to come to terms with what unfolded in Texas just before noon today. Along with thoughts and prayer, many also took the opportunity to talk gun policy and the danger of waiting for yet another attack to make necessary and possibly life-saving changes to U.S. gun laws.

Like President Obama, Democratic Senator Chris Murphy responded to the Texas church attack with a call to action on gun control. Not surprisingly, calls for tougher gun laws were split along party lines.

What are your thoughts on Barack Obama’s response to Sunday’s Texas church shooting? Was it inappropriate for the ex-POTUS to interject politics into his condolences? Or, was the aftermath of yet another senseless, seemingly preventable mass shooting on U.S. soil the perfect time to talk about the proverbial elephant in the room? Let us know in the comments below.

[Featured Image by Charles Rex Arbogast/AP Images]

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