House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) struggled to explain why he voted against a bipartisan bill promoting mental health services in an effort to stop gun violence — even as he argued that the Minneapolis Catholic school shooter was mentally ill.

Emmer was questioned by ABC’s Martha Raddatz on ABC’s This Week.

“You talk about what can be done,” Raddatz began. “After mass shootings in Buffalo and in Uvalde, Texas. Congress passed the bipartisan Safer Communities Act. It provided hundreds of millions of dollars for schools to expand mental health services, enhance safety measures. You did not vote for that bill. Why?” she asked.

Emmer seemed peeved by the line of questioning.

“I don’t remember the reasons that I didn’t vote for that bill,” Emmer answered. “I gotta tell you, we did a lot for Uvalde. But you can’t replace those children, Martha. You can’t. And you can’t help that community. We’re talking about getting on the front end, Martha, we’re talking about — we need to have the resources —”

Raddatz interrupted, saying, “This bill sounds like it might’ve done that.”

“We need to get to the root cause,” Emmer continued. “Martha. Okay, that would have done that? That would have identified this young man’s mental health condition? This would have actually identified him as a danger to himself and the community before this ever happened? No, that’s the part that we’ve got to identify.”

Emmer posted to X the day after the shooting to link Gov. Tim Walz’s (D-MN) support of Minnesota’s “Trans Refuge” law with the tragedy that took the lives of two young children.

The law, that took effect in 2023, “prevents out-of-state laws from interfering in the practice of gender-affirming health care” in Minnesota.

“Instead of helping solve the mental health crisis in Minnesota, Tim Walz and the DFL [Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party] have exacerbated it with their ‘trans refuge’ law. They should repeal it immediately.”

The suspect, who took their own life after the shooting, reportedly identified as trans woman

Watch the clip above via ABC News.

The post GOP Lawmaker Struggles to Explain Why He Voted Down Bill That Would Have Provided Mental Health Funding He Now Wants to Help Prevent Mass Shootings first appeared on Mediaite.

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