fundamentally changes the character of this country and it leads to violence.”
Cory Booker, the first African American US senator from New Jersey, highlighted Mr Trump’s use of
words like “infestation” and “invasion” as he accused the president of “giving licence to this kind of
violence”. “One of the lessons in my faith is that you reap what you sow,” the senator for New Jersey said.
“He’s responsible.”
Bernie Sanders also targeted the president as he urged the US to “come together to reject this dangerous
and growing culture of bigotry espoused by Trump and his allies”. “Instead of wasting money putting
children in cages, we must seriously address the scourge of violent bigotry and domestic terrorism,” the
Vermont senator added. “We must treat this violent racism like the security threat that it is.”
Mr Sanders also joined renewed calls for gun safety legislation following the shooting at a Walmart store
on Saturday. “After every tragedy the Senate, intimidated by the NRA’s power, does nothing,” he said.
“This must change. We need a president and congress that listen to Americans, not the ideology of a right-
wing extremist organisation. We must pass common sense gun safety legislation.”
California senator Kamala Harris urged the president to “have the courage to do something” and said
congress should pass “reasonable gun safety laws”, adding: “We shouldn’t have to live in fear of mass
shootings.”
Former vice president Joe Biden tweeted: “How many lives must be cut short? How many communities
must be torn apart? It’s past time we take action and end our gun violence epidemic.”
“Time to ban and buy back every assault weapon in America,” said California congressman Eric Swalwell.
Targeting the Republican leadership in Washington DC, Elizabeth Warren said: “Americans shouldn’t have
to live in fear that if they go to Walmart, or a festival, or school, or just walk down the street that they won’t
make it home alive. This has to stop.”
As it emerged that the suspect – a white man in his 20s named as Patrick Crusius – had posted a racist
manifesto online before launching the attack, Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg said the US
was “under attack from white nationalist terrorism”.
He said the attacker was “abetted by weak gun laws”, and added: “If we are serious about national security,
we must summon the courage to name and defeat this evil.”
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who was one of four female politicians attacked by Mr Trump in recent racist
tweets, said right-wing extremists were being radicalised on social media.
“White supremacy has quickly turned into a domestic terror crisis,” she said. “They rely on you thinking it’s
not a big deal. It is a big deal. White supremacy now makes up the majority of domestic terrorism in the
United States. They radicalise online.”
The congresswoman added: “We can no longer bear to see gun violence and mass shootings continue as a
norm in America. How many deaths to gun violence could have been preventable with responsible gun
safety laws? How many children would still have their mothers? Enough. It’s way past time we act.”
Gabrielle Giffords, the congresswoman who survived an attempted assassination by a gunman in Tucson,
Arizona, urged the president and Republican leader Mitch McConnell to call the Senate back from recess
“immediately”.
“I have no more words. I only have anger,” she tweeted. “We cannot afford to wait another day for
lawmakers to address this horrific national public safety threat.”
Mr Trump has faced widespread criticism during his presidency for calling immigrants “animals”, drug
dealers and rapists, and describing their arrival at the US-Mexico border as an “invasion”.