Vice President Mike Pence will head to Sutherland Springs, Texas on Wednesday to meet with victims and families of those killed by a gunman who killed 26 people and wounded many more during a church service on Sunday.
Vice President Mike Pence will head to Sutherland Springs, Texas on Wednesday to meet with victims and families of those killed by a gunman who killed 26 people and wounded many more during a church service on Sunday.
Pence and second lady Karen Pence will depart Washington D. C. for San Antonio at noon, from where they will head to Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston for a visit with shooting victims.
„Our goal is very simple,“ Pence told Fox News. „I just want to assure the families there that they have the support of the American people. They have the prayers of the American people.“
A pool report states that Pence will also meet with local law enforcement officials around 4:30 p.m. for a briefing on the shooting and recovery efforts in the town. An estimated 6 percent of the small town of Sutherland Springs‘ population died Sunday in the shooting.
Sunday’s shooting marked the deadliest mass shooting in the state of Texas‘ history.
From there, the Pences will head to Floresville High School, where they will meet with the families of the victims and participate in a prayer vigil. Pence will deliver remarks at the vigil before the two return Wednesday night to Washington, D. C.
President Trump is currently in the middle of his longest foreign trip so far as president, as Trump visits five Asian nations on a nine-day visit to the continent. During a press conference in South Korea, Trump was asked by a reporter about the possibility of „extreme vetting“ for gun purchases.
“If you did what you’re suggesting, there would have been no difference three days ago, and you might not have had that very brave person who happened to have a gun or a rifle in his truck go out and shoot him, and hit him and neutralize him,” Trump said Tuesday.
“And I can only say this: If he didn’t have a gun, instead of having 26 dead, you would have had hundreds more dead. So that’s the way I feel about it. Not going to help.”
