Trump Praises TX Gun Laws, Armed Churchgoers for Ending Shooting in 6 Seconds
In a series of tweets, President Donald Trump praised the armed churchgoers who ended an attempted mass shooting in a matter of seconds on Sunday.
Keith Thomas Kinnunen, a 43-year-old who was disguised with a fake beard, wig and a hat, shot and killed two people at the West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, Texas.
Things could have been far worse, however, had the shooter not been dispatched in a matter of seconds by concealed weapons carriers in the congregation.
According to Fox News, the fatal shot was delivered by Jack Wilson, a firearms instructor and volunteer head of church security.
“The only clear shot I had was his head because I still had people in the pews that were not all the way down as low as they could. That was my one shot,” he told reporters.
On Monday, the president thanked the heroes and let members of the congregation know his thoughts were with them.
“Our prayers are with the families of the victims and the congregation of yesterday’s church attack. It was over in 6 seconds thanks to the brave parishioners who acted to protect 242 fellow worshippers,” Trump tweeted.
“Lives were saved by these heroes, and Texas laws allowing them to carry arms!”
Our prayers are with the families of the victims and the congregation of yesterday’s church attack. It was over in 6 seconds thanks to the brave parishioners who acted to protect 242 fellow worshippers. Lives were saved by these heroes, and Texas laws allowing them to carry arms!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 31, 2019
“Armed congregants quickly stopped a crazed church shooter in Texas,” he wrote in a second tweet.
“If it were not for the fact that there were people inside of the church that were both armed, and highly proficient in using their weapon, the end result would have been catastrophic. A big THANK YOU to them!”
Armed congregants quickly stopped a crazed church shooter in Texas. If it were not for the fact that there were people inside of the church that were both armed, and highly proficient in using their weapon, the end result would have been catastrophic. A big THANK YOU to them!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 31, 2019
It should go without saying that the heroes of the church shooting would be publicly lauded by politicians and public figures. Key word there: should.
Take the reaction of Beto O’Rourke, who built his entire presidential campaign around the idea he was going to take away Americans’ guns.
So saddened to hear about another church shooting in Texas, this one in White Settlement near Fort Worth. Clearly what we are doing in Texas, what we are doing in this country, when it comes to guns is not working. https://t.co/krwcpL1lih
— Beto O’Rourke (@BetoORourke) December 29, 2019
“So saddened to hear about another church shooting in Texas, this one in White Settlement near Fort Worth,” O’Rourke tweeted.
“Clearly what we are doing in Texas, what we are doing in this country, when it comes to guns is not working.”
No mention of the men who stopped the shooter, mind you. No hats off to them or anything. It was all about how what we were doing with guns wasn’t working.
Even still, Trump’s tweet isn’t the kind of candor on the matter you would expect out of a president, even a Republican.
I know Twitter wasn’t a big thing during the George W. Bush presidency and we were all still on CompuServe and Prodigy back in the days when George H.W. Bush was president — those of us who were even online — but do you picture either one of those guys being this straightforward about this?
He’s absolutely right on the matter, too. This would have been catastrophic if it weren’t for responsible concealed carriers ending this in just a matter of seconds. Furthermore, gun laws weren’t the problem, they were the reason the shooter was stopped in the first place.
Take, for instance, the Texas law that allows individuals to concealed carry inside an establishment unless that establishment specifically bans firearms. In the wake of the White Settlement shooting, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton praised the legislation.
“This [law] worked,” Paxton told Fox News’ “The Story with Martha MacCallum” on Monday. “We cannot stop every incident, and we can’t change the fact that there are people who are mentally ill.”
The best way to stop it, therefore, is to have your proverbial good guy with a gun at the scene. It certainly worked here — and that’s a fact that conservatives, including the president, need to advertise.
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