President Donald Trump’s tweet Thursday highlighting the mental illness of the man charged in the deadly mass shooting at a Florida high school has angered gun control advocates who point to an Obama-era gun checks regulation he repealed last year. “So many signs that the Florida shooter was mentally disturbed, even expelled from school for bad and erratic behavior. Neighbors and classmates knew he was a big problem. Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!,” Trump wrote in the tweet. The tweet suggests the man, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz who is the suspected gunman, should have been reported. (He was by at least one man, who reported him to the FBI.) The tweet also sparked an outcry amongst gun control advocates who noted that Trump repealed an initiative last February that that would have made it harder for people with mental illness to buy a gun. The Obama-era regulation, which was enacted after the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, would have required the Social Security Administration to send records of beneficiaries with severe mental disabilities to the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System. The measure would have affected about 75,000 people found mentally incapable of managing their financial affairs.
So many signs that the Florida shooter was mentally disturbed, even expelled from school for bad and erratic behavior. Neighbors and classmates knew he was a big problem. Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 15, 2018
So many signs that the Florida shooter was mentally disturbed, even expelled from school for bad and erratic behavior. Neighbors and classmates knew he was a big problem. Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!
President Trump calls for focus on mental health after 18th mass shooting of 2018.
— Trymaine Lee (@trymainelee) February 15, 2018
But, wait…
Trump signs bill revoking Obama-era gun checks for mental illness https://t.co/l4OPPgaPk1 via @nbcnews
President Trump calls for focus on mental health after 18th mass shooting of 2018.
But, wait…
Trump signs bill revoking Obama-era gun checks for mental illness https://t.co/l4OPPgaPk1 via @nbcnews