Donald Trump has been taking a lot of flack for his response to the Parkland school shooting, and not just by talking heads on cable news but the survivors of the tragedy itself. Marjorie Stoneman Douglas students are taking matters into their own hands, spearheading the #NeverAgain movement and organizing the March For Our Lives which will take place in Washington D.C. next month, advocating for sensible gun control.
Meanwhile, Trump’s solution seems to be focused on putting guns into the hands of teachers and giving them bonuses for doing so.
But Trump’s seemingly lack of understanding extends beyond just proposing rational solutions, but just knowing how to be a compassionate leader in times of tragedy. While visiting the Broward Health North hospital following the attack, a beaming Trump was photographed giving the thumbs up while posing with shooting victims.
Likewise, in a New York Times piece questioning the president’s empathy, survivor Samantha Fuentes (seen in the above segment on Megyn Kelly Today) describes a phone call she had with Trump as she lay recuperating in the hospital after having both of her legs shot in the assault.
“He said he heard that I was a big fan of his, and then he said, ‘I’m a big fan of yours too.’ I’m pretty sure he made that up,” she said in an interview after being discharged from the hospital. “Talking to the president, I’ve never been so unimpressed by a person in my life. He didn’t make me feel better in the slightest.”
Ms. Fuentes, who was left with a piece of shrapnel lodged behind her right eye, said Mr. Trump had called the gunman a “sick puppy” and said “‘oh boy, oh boy, oh boy,’ like, seven times.”
What better way to console the victim of a horrific attack than by immediately throwing yourself a compliment. The Times points out that the call is reminiscent of the one received by Myeshia Johnson, widow of fallen U.S. Army Sgt. La David Johnson. “He knew what he signed up for, but it hurts anyways,” she claims the president told her on the call.
(Via New York Times, Mediaite)