President Barack Obama said Monday that he had pledged federal support after a shooting rampage this weekend in Kalamazoo, Michigan left six people dead, noting that the incident left the victims’ families “shattered.”
Speaking to the National Governors Association, Obama said that the shooting was another incident of a community “terrorized by gun violence” and again said the country needs to do more to keep “Americans safe.”
“I’ve got to assume that all of you are just tired as I am of seeing this stuff happen in your state,” Obama said. “So, that’s an area where we also need to partner and think about what we can do in a common sense way, in a bipartisan way without some of the ideological rhetoric that so often surrounds that issue.”
Authorities have said that suspect Jason Dalton, 45, was a driver for Uber and picked up at least one client during his hours-long shooting spree in western Michigan.
“Before I joined all of you, I called the mayor, the sheriff, and the police chief there, and told them that they would have whatever federal support they needed in their investigation,” Obama said. “Their local officials and first responders, by the way, did an outstanding job in apprehending the individual very quickly. But, you got families who are shattered today.”
