Following yet another tragic mass shooting in the United States large numbers of prominent Republicans took to Twitter to offer their ‘thoughts and prayers’ in a show of solidarity for those affected.
But after the massacre in California, which saw 14 people murdered, GOP presidential contenders were conspicuously silent on the issue of gun control. Instead, the Republicans were preaching about prayer.
However a number of powerful voices reacted angrily to the posts. One of those was Senator Chris Murphy who was serving as Representative of Connecticut’s 5th District when Adam Lanza opened fire on Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, killing 20 children and six staff.
Taking to Twitter he said:
Just five months after the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting, efforts to institute tighter gun control laws were thwarted by the National Rifle Association (NRA).
Critics have accused Murphy of religious insensitivity, but the New York Daily News came down on the side of Senator Murphy, running the front page…
In a separate statement Senator Murphy wrote:
As we await the facts from the chaos on the ground, I can only pray that America’s leaders will do something — anything — that prevents more communities from knowing this sorrow. Congress’ number one responsibility is to keep our constituents safe, and not a single senator or member of Congress can go back to their state this weekend and claim that they are doing their job.
While politicians are entitled to their faith many of them find themselves in the unique position to actually do something about the seemingly never-ending run of shootings that take place in the U.S. Senator Murphy’s words serve to highlight what needs to be done, as it seems no one is answering the prayers.
