Page 32 - 3-5 aug

A4 U.S. NEWS
Monday 5 august 2019

2020 Democrats lay blame on Trump’s rhetoric for shootings

By HUNTER WOODALL and have already passed the
HOPE YEN House,” Warren said. “It’s
Associated Press not everything we need
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — to do on gun safety, but
Democratic presidential we could take important
candidates sought to lay steps, and we could dem-
blame Sunday on President onstrate to the American
Donald Trump following a people that the gun manu-
pair of mass shootings in facturers are not the ones
Ohio and Texas, saying his who are calling the shots in
language against minori- Washington.”
ties promotes racial division The candidates and Sen-
and violence. ate Democratic leader
At public events and on Chuck Schumer calling for
television, several candi- the Senate to come back
dates pointed to a need may not get their wish. Mc-
for more gun restrictions, Connell fell and fractured
such as universal back- his shoulder Sunday at
ground checks. But they home in Kentucky.
directed much of their criti- On Sunday, Trump tweeted
cism at Trump, seeking to praise of law enforcement
draw a link between the and said that “information
shootings in Dayton and El is rapidly being accumu-
Paso that have left more lated in Dayton” and that
than two dozen dead President Donald Trump, with first lady Melania Trump, speaks to the media before boarding Air “much has already be
and months of presidential Force One in Morristown, N.J., Sunday, Aug. 4, 2019. learned in El Paso.”
rhetoric against immigrants Associated Press “Hate has no place in our
and people of color. you are not actively work- gin with.” “At best, he’s black church in Las Vegas. country, and we’re going
“There is complicity in the ing against hate, calling condoning and encour- Sen. Bernie Sanders to take care of it,” Trump
president’s hatred that un- it out, you are complicit in aging white nationalism,” opened a town hall meet- declared before board-
dermines the goodness and what is going on.” Buttigieg said. “We have ing with a moment of si- ing Air Force One for the
the decency of Americans South Bend Mayor Pete a president of the United lence and by calling for uni- flight back to Washington
regardless of what party,” Buttigieg said confronting States who has chosen to versal background checks from New Jersey, where
New Jersey Sen. Cory Book- white nationalist terrorism use his words in a way that for firearms purchases and he spent the weekend.
er said. “To say nothing in a would be embarrassing for have been about selling more restrictions on assault While connecting “hate”
time of rising hatred, it’s not a president who “helped hate and division among weapons. and mental illness to the
enough to say that ‘I’m not stoke many of these feel- us,” she told reporters be- “Assault weapons are de- shootings, Trump made no
a hate monger myself.’ If ings in this country to be- fore attending services at a signed for one reason. They direct mention of gun laws,
are military weapons. And I a factor brought up by
don’t have to explain that Democratic officials and
to the people in Las Vegas those seeking their party’s
who experienced the worst nomination to challenge
gun tragedy in the history Trump’s reelection next
of this country,” Sanders year.
said. He urged Senate Ma- He tried to assure Ameri-
jority Leader Mitch McCo- cans he was dealing with
nnell to call senators back the problem and defend-
to Washington, saying the ed his administration in
Senate should “have a light of criticism following
special session to address the latest in a string of mass
gun violence in America shootings. “We have done
and let us finally have the much more than most ad-
courage to take on the ministrations,” he said, with-
NRA.” out elaboration. “We have
He also called out the pres- done actually a lot. But
ident. perhaps more needs to be
“I say to President Trump, done.”
please stop the racist anti- In El Paso, authorities were
immigrant rhetoric,” he investigating whether the
said. “Stop the hatred in attack was a hate crime
this country which is cre- after the emergence of
ating the kind of violence a racist, anti-immigrant
that we see.” screed that was posted
The call for McConnell online shortly beforehand.
to bring senators back to Detectives sought to de-
deal with gun violence was termine if it was written by
echoed by other candi- the man who was arrested.
dates, including Sen. Eliza- The border city has figured
beth Warren. prominently in the immigra-
“We should vote within 48 tion debate and is home
hours on the two back- to 680,000 people, most of
ground check bills that them Latino.q