Texas Representative Wesley Hunt (R) has released a statement regarding the school shooting that took place at The Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee.
“On Monday, a homicidal maniac walked into the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee and butchered six people, three were children the age of nine,” stated Rep. Hunt.
The Texas lawmaker named the victims of the violent attack, stating, “The victims were identified as Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, William Kinney, Cynthia Peak, Katherine Koonce, and Mike Hill.”
Many people have lauded the officers who took down the suspect as heroes.
“MNPD Officers, Rex Engelbert and Michael Collazo, rushed towards the gunfire, engaged evil and put down the active shooter,” said Rep. Hunt.
He continued, saying, “Many children and staff at the Covenant School are alive today because of the heroism displayed by these officers.”
Many lawmakers have called for action regarding the protection of children from gun violence. Hunt shared a similar sentiment. However, he did not offer any specifics.
“Yesterday’s horrific tragedy is another illustration of why Congress must act to harden our schools and protect what is most precious to all of us, our children. There is simply no excuse for schools across the country to be soft targets,” stated the Texas representative.
“In the weeks ahead, I look forward to working with any member of Congress who is willing to tackle this issue head-on.”
Hunt expressed how he disagreed with the presumed removal of guns from the hands of American citizens.
“Let me also be very clear. Under no circumstances should law-abiding citizens be subjected to additional restrictions of their Second Amendment rights because of the actions of a mentally ill and deranged murderer,” stated Hunt.
He attempted to assure Texans that the issue du jour was not a gun problem but instead something different.
“America doesn’t have a gun problem, it has a values problem, and until we address the underlining cause of this illness that has stricken the very fabric of our society, we must do the only reasonable thing we can to protect our children and that’s securing our schools,” said Hunt.
The congressman’s words are in stark contrast with many of the Democratic lawmakers in the state. Furthermore, they ignore the recent data on gun violence being the leading cause of death for children in the United States.
“From 2019 to 2020, the relative increase in the rate of firearm-related deaths of all types (suicide, homicide, unintentional, and undetermined) among children and adolescents was 29.5% — more than twice as high as the relative increase in the general population,” said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
