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John,
In Iowa over the weekend, another shooting at a school resulted in the death of a sixth-grade student and at least seven others injured, including students and school staff.
Trump said the shooting is “so surprising to see here” (narrator: it actually isn’t—shootings in schools and many other public places have occurred in both rural and urban parts of the country, with no clear link to demographics or density). And then he ended with a note as callous as we’ve come to expect from him and his MAGA followers: “But we have to get over it” he said.
Other GOP contenders for president, as well as the usual cowards in Congress or running for federal office, at least offered their typical empty thoughts and prayers. Trump waited 36 hours, and then simply told everyone to get over it.
No one present at that school when the gunman rampaged is going to just “get over it.” None—not a single one—of those young, impressionable kids is going to ever get over it. And the parents who lost their child to senseless murder will certainly not get over it.
Leaders don’t shake off uncomfortable situations. They don’t shrug in the face of life or death problems. They confront these situations with empathy, compassion, and a resolve to understand the issue and do everything they can to fix the problem.
I am a proud gun owner, and take my ownership seriously and responsibly. Closing every loophole on background checks, instituting red flag laws, and making real investments in mental healthcare are all things that we need to do to reduce and prevent gun violence and mass shootings.
But we’ve gotten so numb to this happening time and again that the GOP frontrunner for president can simply tell us to “get over it” and blithely move on with his revenge tour.
Our political system cannot abide cowards like Trump and my opponent Troy Balderson who would rather run away from controversy than attempt to resolve it. We need people who will put leadership and service above self, and who will not buy into the gun lobby propaganda that there is literally nothing we can do to prevent these awful tragedies. They are lying to us. We can do more.
I pledge to put our safety and our children’s safety above nonsense political games. When it comes to kids dying by firearms in the hands of those who should never have them, I won’t get over it—and neither should you.
Thank you for your support for someone who will fight for our kids and our communities.
-Jerrad
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