Obama responds to Uvalde massacre, calls out gun lobby and GOP for showing ‘no willingness to act’

Responding to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, former President Barack Obama shared a statement on Twitter mourning the 19 students and two adults who were killed.

“Across the country, parents are putting their children to bed, reading stories, singing lullabies—and in the back of their minds, they’re worried about what might happen tomorrow after they drop their kids off at school, or take them to a grocery store or any other public space,” Obama tweeted.

“Michelle and I grieve with the families in Uvalde, who are experiencing pain no one should have to bear. We’re also angry for them,” he continued. “Nearly ten years after Sandy Hook—and ten days after Buffalo—our country is paralyzed, not by fear, but by a gun lobby and a political party that have shown no willingness to act in any way that might help prevent these tragedies.”

Obama served as president from 2009-2017. The Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre of 26 people took place in December 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut. Victims included 20 children ages 6 to 7.

“It’s long past time for action, any kind of action. And it’s another tragedy—a quieter but no less tragic one—for families to wait another day,” Obama added in a subsequent tweet. “May God bless the memory of the victims, and in the words of Scripture, heal the brokenhearted and bind up their wounds.”

The Uvalde shooter was identified as high-school senior Salvador Ramos, 18, who was shot dead. He allegedly shot his grandmother before going to the elementary school near San Antonio with two assault rifles. His motive is still unknown.

The mass shooting comes less than two weeks after an alleged white supremacist killed 10 people inside a grocery store in Buffalo, New York.