Donald Trump addressed the “horrific” shooting at a Florida university, but ended up reinforcing his “obligation” as president using an “often used phrase.”
Yesterday (April 17), a person with a gun opened fire at Florida State University , killing two people and injuring at least six others, according to investigators.
An FSU student named Phoenix Ikner is accused of the shooting. The 20-year-old is allegedly the son of a police officer and used his mother ‘s old service weapon .
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US President Donald Trump was asked during a press conference in the White House Oval Office about the shooting, and the POTUS responded: “These things are terrible.”
Trump then issued a controversial nine-word sentence about him being “a great defender of the Second Amendment,” noting that “from the beginning” he has “protected it.”
Trump argued: “The gun doesn’t shoot, the people do. It’s a phrase that’s probably used too often.”
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“I’ll tell you it’s a shame I only heard about it now. I know the area very well, I know the school very well. And we’ll talk more about it later, let’s see what happens.”
When asked what he meant by “see what happens,” Trump said: “Just in terms of what happens as far as legislation, that’s been going on for a long time.”
He finally resolved it to reporters in nine words: “I have an obligation to protect the Second Amendment.”
“I ran on the Second Amendment — on many other things — and I will always protect the Second Amendment.”
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And it didn’t take long for people to have their say online.
Trump’s comments were controversial (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
One Twitter user said: “If guns aren’t the problem, why do countries with fewer guns have fewer mass shootings? If people are the problem, why not support laws that keep guns out of dangerous hands?”
“The guy picks and chooses which parts of the constitution he wants to follow,” added another.
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A third commented: “’The gun doesn’t shoot, people do,’ he says, like someone defending a haunted blender after it cut up their neighbor.
“This man would trip over a rake, appeal to gravity, and still blame the Constitution.”
A fourth said: “I’m a gun owner. People need to understand that the 2nd Amendment and common sense gun laws can coexist, it’s not partisan and no one is going to want our guns.”
While a fifth said: “You can be pro-gun, pro-2A and pro-gun legislation.”
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The suspect in the university shooting was shot and taken to the hospital, where he is being treated for “serious but non-life-threatening injuries,” according to Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell.
The motive for the attack remains unclear and the names of those killed have not yet been publicly released.
