Henry Cuellar (Democratic Rep. from Texas) mourned the tragedy of the mass shooting in his home state over the weekend. He said the U.S. needs to understand the “root cause” of mass murders because tragedies happen even in blue states with strict gun laws.
There are always reasons for people to commit mass shootings, as well as indicators. Cuellar told Shannon Bream, “Thank you for putting an end to it.”
A shooting took place on Saturday afternoon at the Allen Premium Outlets, located about 20 miles north of Dallas. Allen Police Chief Brian Harvey said that a local police officer “engaged” and neutralized the threat.
This is the second mass murder in Texas in a short period of time, following the execution-style shooting that left five people dead in Cleveland last Friday.
Cuellar stated that the U.S. needs to “get at the root causes” behind mass shootings. He supported mental health programs to help those in crisis and opposed calls for tighter gun laws.
“If only people would… tighten the laws. Just look at the blue state with strict gun laws. There are still mass shootings all over the United States. We need to figure out why.
Republican Texas governor Greg Abbott offered resources to the investigation on Saturday.
“Our hearts are with the people of Allen, Texas, tonight during this unspeakable tragedy,” Abbott said in the statement. “I have been in contact with Mayor Fulk and DPS Director McCraw as well as other state and local leaders and offered the full support of the State of Texas to local officials to ensure all needed assistance and resources are swiftly deployed, including DPS officers, Texas Rangers, and investigative resources.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom has called for greater gun control following the shooting.
