In Texas, Vice President Mike Pence met Wednesday with the families of victims of Sunday’s massacre at a church in the town of Sutherland Springs, in which shooter Devin Patrick Kelley used a semi-automatic assault rifle to kill 26 people while wounding 20 others. Kelley was able to purchase his rifle even though he’d been convicted by a military court on domestic abuse charges. Pence blamed “mental illness” and “bureaucratic failures” for the assault.

Vice President Mike Pence: “In just a few moments, we’ll meet with families of the fallen and put our arms around them and assure them that every American has them in their hearts. … It was a crime that the assailant was ever able to purchase a firearm in the first place. He lied on his application, had a history of mental illness, and there were bureaucratic failures.”

Pence is a longtime NRA member with an “A” rating from the gun lobby group. As a congressmember, he voted to block individuals from suing gun manufacturers, loosened rules on interstate purchases and voted for national legislation that would have allowed gun owners to carry concealed weapons.