Several of Texas’ top Republicans shared their thoughts and prayers after a gunman opened fire inside an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday, killing at least 19 children and two teachers. But the GOP lawmakers refused to support the possibility of any gun control measures as the nation reels in the wake of the worst school shooting since the Sandy Hook massacre in 2012.
Instead, the elected officials called for more armed teachers and even fortified schools meant to keep bad actors away from children, saying laws to limit access to firearms don’t work.
“Inevitably when there’s a murder of this kind, you see politicians try to politicize it, you see Democrats and a lot of folks in the media whose immediate solution is to try to restrict the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R) told reporters Tuesday as parents waited for news of their missing children, providing DNA swabs to police to help identify the young victims. “That doesn’t work. It’s not effective. It doesn’t prevent crime.”
