Tennessee Rep. Jim Cooper Jim CooperHouse Democrat to DeJoy: 'Is your backup plan to be pardoned like Roger Stone?' House Democrats call on State Department for information on Uighur prisoner Ekpar Asat Pelosi weighing bringing House back from August recess early over USPS issues: reports MORE (D) called for limited access to “military-grade assault weapons” after a gunman opened fire at a Waffle House near Nashville, Tenn., killing four people.

“Nashville woke up to devastating news. We mourn the innocent victims and thank our brave first responders. Many will say now is not the time to discuss change. But now IS the time,” Cooper, who represents Tennessee’s 5th District, wrote on Twitter.

“We can and must do everything possible to prevent these tragedies and keep Americans safe," he tweeted. "That starts with restricting widespread civilian access to military-grade assault weapons.”

Nashville woke up to devastating news. We mourn the innocent victims and thank our brave first responders. Many will say now is not the time to discuss change. But now IS the time. We can and must do everything possible to prevent these tragedies and keep Americans safe. — Jim Cooper (@repjimcooper) April 22, 2018

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Police are searching for the suspected gunman, CNN reported.

A spokesman for the Metro Nashville police said a restaurant customer stopped the shooting by rushing the gunman.

"He saw the gunman looking at his rifle. At that point, the shots had stopped. So he decided to rush the gunman, actually wrestled that assault rifle away, tossed it over the counter. At that point, the gunman then fled," said Don Aaron, according to the network.

The police department tweeted a photo of the rifle used to carry out the attack.