Parkland victim's dad: Trump 'lied to me and all the other victims' of mass shootings

Fred Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter Jamie was killed in the Parkland school massacre last year, called out Trump for his rhetoric on mass shootings and inaction on gun violence.

CNN host Alisyn Camerota asked Guttenberg to respond to Trump’s claim the day before that victims of gun violence have “love for me.”

Guttenberg noted that after the Parkland shooting, Trump “lied to me and all the other victims that day and he’s done it again since the other mass shootings.” After mass shootings, Guttenberg said, Trump makes public pronouncements about addressing gun violence and suggests he will take action, “but then he says ‘but I spoke to the NRA’ and walks away from it.”

The father then directly addressed the camera, speaking to Trump.

“Mr. President, I don’t care about you. This is not about love or hate. I don’t care about you,” he said. “I care about what you do and I hate what you are doing because you are using the pain of the victims of gun violence to speak in a way that allows you to look like you’re going to be doing something, only to play games with their emotions and not do it in the end.”

“I don’t care about you, Mr. President, but I hate what you do,” he continued. “It is time for you to stop talking on this topic until you are ready to give Mitch McConnell the go-ahead to open up the Senate and actually take on legislation. Enough.”

Trump repeatedly claimed to support additional background checks in the aftermath of the mass shootings in Dayton and El Paso, but after multiple conversations with NRA head Wayne LaPierre, he began to back off the popular solutions, again.

Polling has shown overwhelming support for background checks and other gun safety legislation, which also has the backing of mayors, police chiefs, and veterans.

But Senate Majority Mitch McConnell has blocked bills addressing the issue that passed in the Democratic-controlled House, dismissing calls for action as mere “theatrics.” McConnell also refused to bring back the Senate to address gun violence despite the growing death toll.

Even when not involved in the policy issues surrounding guns, Trump has provoked anger and disappointment.

Trump used his visit to El Paso to brag about his crowd sizes and insult his critics. While reporters were banned from covering Trump’s meetings with victims and first responders, it took pictures and created propaganda montages of its own for Trump to promote on Twitter. At least five of the victims of the shooting refused to meet with Trump.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.