Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Tim Walz slammed Republicans' fixation with things like children's books about gay penguins instead of school shootings.
Walz's remarks came after four people were killed in a mass shooting at Georgia's Apalachee High School. The shooter, a 14-year-old boy, was charged with four counts of felony murder; his father, Colin Gray, has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the killings and faces additional charges of involuntary manslaughter and cruelty to children.
At one point, Walz referenced And Tango Makes Three, a children's book that tells the story of two male penguins, Roy and Silo, who create a family together. Conservatives have previously claimed the book uses penguins to "promote the LGBTQ agenda" and opposed its inclusion in school libraries.
Speaking at a national dinner for the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Walz said:
"Think about it in this room. This is what these folks are focusing on, spending all their time. Like reading about two gay penguins who love each other is somehow going to turn your children gay. Here’s what I tell you, it’s a fact of life: some people are gay."
Walz also made a reference to recent words from former President Donald Trump's running mate J.D. Vance, who called the gun violence epidemic a "fact of life" after the shooting while calling for strengthened security measures in public schools:
“But you know what’s not a fact of life? That our children need to get shot dead in schools. That's not a fact of life."
You can hear what he said in the video below.
Many echoed Walz's criticisms.
The Harris campaign previously criticized Vance for his remarks.
Harris-Walz campaign spokesperson Ammar Moussa also responded to Vance in an official statement subtitled "Trump and Vance Think 'We Have to Get Over' and 'Deal With' School Shootings" condemning his words:
"Yesterday, Vice President Harris said 'it doesn't have to be this way' in response to another senseless school shooting. Donald Trump and J.D. Vance think school shootings are 'a fact of life' and 'we have to get over it.'"
"Vice President Harris and Governor Walz know we can take action to keep our children safe and keep guns out of the hands of criminals. Donald Trump and J.D. Vance will always choose the NRA and gun lobby over our children. That is the choice in this election."
Harris has previously called for universal background checks and an assault weapons ban and leads the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, a marked difference from Trump, who did not offer policy proposals when responding to a question about the shooting during a Fox News town hall.
Trump said we live in "a sick and angry world for a lot of reasons and we're going to make it better, and we're going to heal our world." In January, following a mass shooting in Perry, Iowa, he said people "have to get over it — we have to move forward.”
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