Controversial Twitter personality Tomi Lahren is in hot water once again after voicing her opinions on Saturday’s mass shooting in El Paso, Texas. She alleged that neither President Trump, nor the National Rifle Association (NRA) were to blame for the tragedy, which left 20 people dead and more than 20 others injured.
It’s not Trump’s fault. It’s not the NRA’s fault. When will our nation wake up and realize we have a youth mental health crisis likely caused by over-medication, absentee parents, and a culture that glorifies infamy and notoriety above God, family and community?
— Tomi Lahren (@TomiLahren) August 4, 2019
Lahren, 26, tweeted that the “youth mental health crisis” in America was the root of the problem. She claimed the alleged crisis was being fueled by a number of factors. Lahren speculated that a lack of the right core values was largely to blame.
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She instantly faced backlash as a result of her comments, with users flocking to the replies to prove Lahren wrong.
“We have mentally ill in Canada. We have video games in Canada. What we don’t have is mass shootings daily. That’s because we have strict background checks. Certain types of guns are banned,” one Twitter user wrote.
“Was it the absentee parents who told this dude the States are being infested with an invasion from Mexico?” another commented, referring to previous comments made by President Trump and an alleged racist manifesto written by the shooter.
“Nope, white nationalism and racism are not a mental illness they are a choice and it is being incited and upheld by Trump and the GOP, other countries have mental illness….they don’t have 250 shootings in 216 days, what would be the difference? No access to guns right!” a third reply read.
“I have pets more self-aware than you,” another person tweeted.
“Wrong. The US is only unique in that we make guns easily available & we have leaders & overpaid uninformed pundits spouting hate unchecked. Look in the mirror,” someone else wrote on Twitter.
Despite Lahren’s opinions, the shooting suspect in the El Paso massacre is likely to face capital charged following an investigation, officials revealed during a press conference on Saturday. The suspect has been identified as Patrick Crusius, according to NBC News.
Since surrendering to police, he’s been cooperating with authorities, answering questions about the attack and more, NBC News reported. Federal prosecutors are treating the shooting as an act of domestic terrorism. El Paso Police Chief Greg Allen declined to reveal what kind of comments the alleged shooter shared with investigators, but did say Crusius was speaking openly.
“He was forthcoming with information,” Allen told reporters, according to NBC News. “He basically didn’t hold anything back. Particular questions were asked and he responded in the way it needed to be answered.”
Prosecutors said on Sunday they intend to seek capital punishment, NBC News reported.
“He is eligible for the death penalty. We will seek the death penalty,” Jaime Esparza, El Paso District Attorney, told reporters, according to NBC News. “The loss of life is so great we have never seen anything like this in our community.”
She continued, “Like the bright sunshine today, that is us. We are really a good, loving community, but we will hold him accountable.”
Not long after Esparza made her statement, John Bash, the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Texas, said prosecutors working with him were investigating Crusius “with a view towards bringing federal hate crime charges … and federal firearms charges which carry a penalty of death.”
Conversely, the shooting suspect in the Dayton, Ohio mass shooting that occurred just hours after the one in El Paso is dead. The alleged shooter, identified as Connor Betts, was shot one minute after his rampage started. He killed
