Trump tweets ‘thoughts and prayers’ for YouTube shooting victims

President Trump tweeted his “thoughts and prayers” Tuesday for the shooting victims at YouTube headquarters in San Bruno. President Trump tweeted his “thoughts and prayers” Tuesday for the shooting victims at YouTube headquarters in San Bruno. Photo: Alex Wong / Getty Images Photo: Alex Wong / Getty Images Image 1 of / 94 Caption Close Trump tweets ‘thoughts and prayers’ for YouTube shooting victims 1 / 94 Back to Gallery

President Trump tweeted his “thoughts and prayers” Tuesday for those shot at YouTube headquarters in San Bruno, a go-to reaction to mass shootings that gun-control advocates have criticized as a substitute for action.

“Was just briefed on the shooting at YouTube’s HQ in San Bruno, California. Our thoughts and prayers are with everybody involved. Thank you to our phenomenal Law Enforcement Officers and First Responders that are currently on the scene,” Trump tweeted.

Police said three people were wounded Tuesday when a woman opened fire with a handgun before she fatally shot herself. Law enforcement sources identified the woman late Tuesday as Nasim Aghdam, a disgruntled YouTube video maker.

Offering “thoughts and prayers” has been a common response among public officials to mass shootings in recent years. Trump offered “thoughts and prayers” after a Kentucky school shooting in January in which two children died. In February, he tweeted “prayers and condolences” to the 17 people killed in a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.

Gun-control proponents have made the phrase an issue, saying it disguises officials’ failure to take measures to limit mass shootings. After the Florida shooting, a student at Stoneman Douglas High tweeted, “Do something instead of sending prayers. Prayers won’t fix this.”

San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón agreed, saying Tuesday that “those with the authority to reduce gun violence in this country have once again offered nothing more than thoughts and prayers. Right-wing lawmakers crow about law and order while bending at the knee for the (National Rifle Association) — the industry flacks for the ultimate threat to public safety. The hypocrisy is lost on no one.”

After the Florida shooting, Trump offered contradictory signals on gun control, at one point urging members of Congress to work on “one terrific bill” that could include a ban on assault weapons and expanded background checks to cover all commercial gun sales, both of which are opposed by the NRA. The president quickly abandoned the idea, and eventually proposed funding for providing “rigorous” gun training for some school employees and improving criminal checks for gun buyers.

Trump tweeted that arming school employees would be “a big & very inexpensive deterrent.”