Kamala Harris says 'enough is enough' after deadly Texas elementary school shooting

Vice President Kamala Harris condemned the mass shooting at a Texas elementary school that killed at least 14 students and a teacher on Tuesday and called on elected officials to pass reforms to ensure it ‘never happens again.’

‘So while we don’t know all the details yet, we do know that there are parents who have lost children – families that have lost children – and their loved ones of course, and many others who may have been injured,’ the vice president said.

‘So, I would normally say in a moment like this, we would also say, naturally, that our hearts break. But our hearts keep getting broken. You know, I think so many – there’s so many elected leaders in this room, you know what I’m talking about. Every time a tragedy like this happens, our hearts break. And our broken hearts are nothing compared to the broken hearts of those families.’ 

She added, ‘And yet it keeps happening.’ 

Speaking at the annual summit for the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies, Harris called on those in the room specifically to examine their role in enacting change.

‘I think we all know and have said many times with each other, “Enough is enough.” Enough is enough. As a nation, we have to have the courage to take action and understand the nexus between what makes for reasonable and sensible public policy to ensure something like this never happens again.’ 

Vice President Kamala Harris addressed the devastating shooting at a pre-planned event in Washington, DC

A child looks on through a glass window from inside the Ssgt Willie de Leon Civic Center, where students had been transported from Robb Elementary School after a shooting, in Uvalde, Texas on May 24

A child looks on through a glass window from inside the Ssgt Willie de Leon Civic Center, where students had been transported from Robb Elementary School after a shooting, in Uvalde, Texas on May 24

A child looks on through a glass window from inside the Ssgt Willie de Leon Civic Center, where students had been transported from Robb Elementary School after a shooting, in Uvalde, Texas on May 24

'Please know that this is a room full of leaders who grieve with you, and we are praying for you, and we stand with you,' Harris said to the people of Uvalde during her remarks

'Please know that this is a room full of leaders who grieve with you, and we are praying for you, and we stand with you,' Harris said to the people of Uvalde during her remarks

‘Please know that this is a room full of leaders who grieve with you, and we are praying for you, and we stand with you,’ Harris said to the people of Uvalde during her remarks

Adding that President Joe Biden is due to speak shortly, Harris continued: ‘But for now, I will just say to the people of Uvalde – Please know that this is a room full of leaders who grieve with you, and we are praying for you, and we stand with you.’

”It is difficult at a time like this to think about much else. But I do look around this room, and I know who is here, and I know this is a room full of American leaders who knows and have the courage to take a stand.’

Biden will address the nation at 8:15pm tonight after a gunman killed 15 people at a Texas elementary school, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre announced.

Biden ordered all flags at the White House and on federal grounds to fly at half-staff until sundown on May 28 in honor of the victims.

President Joe Biden spoke with Texas Governor Greg Abbott while aboard Air Force One, White House communications director Kate Bedingfield announced

President Joe Biden spoke with Texas Governor Greg Abbott while aboard Air Force One, White House communications director Kate Bedingfield announced

President Joe Biden spoke with Texas Governor Greg Abbott while aboard Air Force One, White House communications director Kate Bedingfield announced

The president was briefed on the devastating mass shooting while aboard Air Force One, as he returns from his first trip to Asia as commander-in-chief.

While on the plane he spoke with Texas Governor Greg Abbott to ‘to offer any and all assistance he needs,’ communications director Kate Bedingfield revealed. 

He ‘will continue to be briefed regularly as information becomes available,’ his press secretary said.

‘His prayers are with the families impacted by this awful event, and he will speak this evening when he arrives back at the White House,’ Jean-Pierre added.

She called the shooting a ‘horrific’ event. 

Biden was visiting with leaders in South Korea and Japan to reaffirm the United States’ commitment to allies in the region and as a warning for China that it cannot operate unchecked.

But he’s returning to face the deadliest school shooting of his administration, and the worst since a teenage gunman killed 17 people at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida in February 2018.

Police walk near Robb Elementary School following the deadly shooting, Tuesday, May 24

Police walk near Robb Elementary School following the deadly shooting, Tuesday, May 24

Police walk near Robb Elementary School following the deadly shooting, Tuesday, May 24

At least 14 students are dead along with one teacher, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced

At least 14 students are dead along with one teacher, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced

At least 14 students are dead along with one teacher, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced

The 18-year-old shooter was also killed by police, officials said

The 18-year-old shooter was also killed by police, officials said

The 18-year-old shooter was also killed by police, officials said

At least 14 elementary school students and one teacher are dead after an 18-year-old opened fire in Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas’ governor told the press on Tuesday afternoon.

Thirteen students are being treated at Uvalde Memorial Hospital as well as a 45-year-old male who suffered a ‘graze.’

Salvador Ramos, 18, shot his grandmother before going to Robb Elementary School in Uvalde; engaging border patrol agents nearby in a shootout; and then barricading himself inside the school, killing 14 students and a teacher

Salvador Ramos, 18, shot his grandmother before going to Robb Elementary School in Uvalde; engaging border patrol agents nearby in a shootout; and then barricading himself inside the school, killing 14 students and a teacher

Salvador Ramos, 18, shot his grandmother before going to Robb Elementary School in Uvalde; engaging border patrol agents nearby in a shootout; and then barricading himself inside the school, killing 14 students and a teacher

The shooter, identified as 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, a student at Uvalde High School, had engaged in a shootout with Border Patrol officers and barricaded himself within the school facility. He died after a shootout with law enforcement, Abbott said.

‘Texans across the state are grieving for the victims of this senseless crime and for the community of Uvalde,’ the governor said in a statement. 

‘Cecilia and I mourn this horrific loss and we urge all Texans to come together to show our unwavering support to all who are suffering. We thank the courageous first responders who worked to finally secure Robb Elementary School.’ 

Abbott, along with Donald Trump and Texas Senator Ted Cruz, are slated to speak at a National Rifle Association event in Houston on Friday – just three days after the shooting.  

A visibly distraught Senator Chris Murphy questioned on the Senate floor: ‘What are we doing? What are we doing?’

‘We have another Sandy Hook on our hands,’ the Connecticut Democrat said.

He said it was a ‘choice’ to let the numerous mass shootings continue unabated without passing any meaningful reform. 

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre announced that Biden was being kept updated on the shooting

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre announced that Biden was being kept updated on the shooting

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre announced that Biden was being kept updated on the shooting

‘This wasn’t inevitable. These kids weren’t unlucky,’ Murphy said. ‘Nowhere else do little kids go to school thinking that they might be shot that day.’

His fellow Democrat lawmaker, Rep. Adam Schiff of California, expressed his horror at the situation before laying blame with Republicans for their resistance to harsher gun control measures.

‘The shooting at Robb Elementary in Texas is a horror. My heart aches for the families devastated by this tragedy and the Uvalde community,’ Schiff said.

‘Children are dying, and we could do something about it. But the GOP won’t stand up to the gun lobby. Shameful doesn’t begin to cover it.’

Uvalde School District Police Chief Pete Arredondo said in a press conference on Tuesday afternoon that the elementary school, which has 600 students enrolled, catered to children in grades two, three and four. 

Arredondo confirmed the shooter acted alone. 

GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales, whose district the shooting occurred in, said: ‘It is devastating when our innocent children become the victims of senseless violence. We are devastated.’

Gonzales was among the majority of Republican lawmakers who voted against expanding gun control measures on the federal level. 

Robb elementary school, which has 600 students enrolled, is located in Uvalde - 60 miles east of the Mexican border and 80 miles west of San Antonio

Robb elementary school, which has 600 students enrolled, is located in Uvalde - 60 miles east of the Mexican border and 80 miles west of San Antonio

Robb elementary school, which has 600 students enrolled, is located in Uvalde – 60 miles east of the Mexican border and 80 miles west of San Antonio

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi condemned the ‘monstrous’ shooting before directing her ire at colleagues that have stood in the way of gun reform. 

‘Words are inadequate to describe the agony and outrage at the cold-blooded massacre of little schoolchildren and a teacher at Robb Elementary School today,’ Pelosi said in a statement.

‘This monstrous shooting stole the futures of precious children, who will never experience the joys of graduating from school, chasing the career of their dreams, falling in love, even starting a family of their own.’

Referring to the multiple mass shootings in recent weeks, the Democrat continued: ‘Across the nation, Americans are filled with righteous fury in the wake of multiple incomprehensible mass shootings in the span of just days.’

‘This a crisis of existential proportions – for our children and for every American. For too long, some in Congress have offered hollow words after these shootings while opposing all efforts to save lives,’ she said.

‘It is time for all in Congress to heed the will of the American people and join in enacting the House-passed bipartisan, commonsense, life-saving legislation into law.’

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