10/4/2017

CRISIS/GUNS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump landed in Las Vegas on Wednesday to pay his respects after one of the deadliest mass shootings in American history.
‘Everyone remains in our thoughts and prayers,’ Mr. Trump tweeted before Air Force One touched down.
‘It’s a very, very sad day for me personally,’ Mr. Trump said earlier on Wednesday. ‘We’re going to pay our respects and to see the police who have done really a fantastic job in a very short time.’
Late Sunday a gunman fired into a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip, killing 58 people and himself and injuring more than 500 others…
As for Las Vegas, Mr. Trump said law enforcement was learning more about the gunman, Stephen Paddock, a 64-year-old retired accountant. Those details, Mr. Trump said, would be ‘announced at the appropriate time.’ So far, the authorities have not identified a motive for the massacre.
The president’s visit comes as Democrats called for tighter control on guns, particularly for firearms accessories like bump stock, which enabled Mr. Paddock to fire hundreds of rounds per minute into a crowd attending a concert.
Republicans immediately pushed back against calls for gun control, but Mr. Trump said on Tuesday that ‘gun laws’ would be discussed in the future.”

-Eileen Sullivan and Mark Landler, “Trump Visits Las Vegas to Pay His Respects After Shooting,” The New York Times online, Oct. 4, 2017