Virginia residents pay their respects at a makeshift memorial for reporter Alison Parker, 24, and cameraman Adam Ward, 27, at the gate of WDBJ television studios. Trump on shooting of journalists: 'This isn't a gun problem'

Donald Trump lamented the state of mental illness in the United States on Thursday, calling it “just a massive problem,” one of many the country has.

But Wednesday’s shooting that killed two journalists in Virginia and injured another woman represented “a mental problem,” not “a gun problem,” Trump said in an interview on CNN’s “New Day.”


Instead of focusing on gun control, Trump said, as president he would focus more on dealing with mental health issues.

“This was a very sick man, and it’s just too bad that we can’t figure these things out beforehand. I mean, everybody sees the signals, but nobody thinks a thing like this could happen,” Trump said of the shooting that claimed the lives of reporter Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward on live television. “They see people and they think they’re disturbed, but what are you going to do, put them in jail for the rest of their life? You know, put him in jail for the rest of his life ‘cause he looks a little bit off, and he turned out to be very off.”

Asked whether he would do something about the ease with which people are able to acquire guns, Trump said he would not make it more difficult for “sane people” to get them.

“Well I don’t think I would, because this is really a sick person. This isn’t a gun problem. This is a mental problem,” Trump said in reference to the perpetrator of the crime, who later succumbed to a self-inflicted gunshot wound. “It’s a very complex situation. I’m a very strong Second Amendment person.”

Citing Chicago’s tough gun laws and its rampant crime, Trump suggested that fewer guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens does not make anyone safer.

Addressing the situation further, Trump said he knew the area where the shooting happened, and the “people are amazing,” noting that it has been “very inspiring to watch” the journalists’ colleagues react.

It’s unfortunate that no one saw the issues with the former station employee and did something about them, Trump said.

“And even if they did, what would you do? You’d say, ‘Oh, he said he’s going to blow up.’ Probably hear that all the time, but in this case, it happened. Too bad that we can’t figure it out beforehand, but it’s a very tough thing to do,” he added.