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President Trump Blames Mental Health—Not Guns—for School Shooting

HeadlineFeb 16, 2018

At the White House, President Trump gave a speech Thursday in which he made no mention of guns, but instead spoke about mental health.

President Donald Trump: “Our administration is working closely with local authorities to investigate the shooting and learn everything we can. We are committed to working with state and local leaders to help secure our schools and tackle the difficult issue of mental health.”

President Trump’s comments sparked outrage from gun safety advocates, who pointed out that last February President Trump repealed an Obama-era regulation that made it harder for some people with severe mental disabilities to purchase firearms. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, the NRA spent over $52 million in political advertisements in the 2016 election—with more than $11 million spent in support of Trump’s campaign alone. We’ll have more on the Florida shooting and the United States’ epidemic of gun violence after headlines.

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