:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/adn/TX5U7FFCSCKXADCS4QREYIHRDA.jpg)
AUSTIN, Texas — Gov. Greg Abbott rejected the need for gun control and instead emphasized the importance of mental health funding in an interview on Sunday about the mass shooting at an Allen shopping mall.
Fox News Sunday host Shannon Bream presented the governor with a recent poll that found overwhelming support for expanding gun buyer background checks, raising the age to buy a firearm and flagging people who are a danger to themselves.
Abbott, a third-term Republican, did not endorse any of the measures. Instead, he said Texas lawmakers are looking to further penalize people who illegally possess guns and pump more money into mental health programs.
“We are working to address that anger and violence by going to its root cause, which is addressing the mental health problems behind it,” he said. “People want a quick solution. The long term solution here is to address the mental health issue.”
Eight people were killed and at least seven more were injured when a gunman opened fire at Allen Premium Outlets on Saturday.
[Suspect in fatal Texas mall shooting identified as 33-year-old man]
The shooting promises to jumpstart the debate over gun control bills in the waning days of a legislative session where Republicans have shown little appetite for such measures, despite aggressive lobbying by parents who lost their children in the Uvalde mass shooting last year.
A bill sought by the families to raise the age to buy AR-style rifles from 18 to 21 is languishing in a House committee where it has not been brought up for a vote. The deadline for the bill to advance is next week.
On social media, Democrats laid blame for Saturday’s shooting on lax gun laws in Texas.
Sen. Roland Gutierrez, a Democrat who represents Uvalde, said on Twitter that he’s disgusted that Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick “have done NOTHING to keep us safe” from gun violence.
“We need to change and implement #CommonSenseGunSafety solutions, and we need to do it THIS session,” he wrote.
Rep. Justin Holland, a Rockwall Republican, said too little is known about the Allen shooter “to determine what, if anything, could have prevented this atrocity.”
“You can’t legislate evil,” Holland said on Twitter.
Houston Rep. Jarvis Johnson disagreed, saying a common theme has united mass shooters in Texas. “They all used assault-style weapons and massacred innocent people,” Johnson, a Democrat, posted on social media.
Police also have not released information about the type of gun used in the shooting. But in photos of the scene circulating online, a rifle is seen next to the body of a man dressed in tactical gear who is believed to be the gunman.
Since Abbott took office in 2015, there have been a number of high profile mass shootings in churches, schools and shopping centers across the state.
After the Santa Fe school shooting in 2018, Abbott floated a raft of gun policies, including red-flag laws that temporarily remove firearms from people considered a danger to themselves or others. But he retreated amid backlash from conservatives and gun rights groups.
Following later mass shootings that killed 23 in El Paso, seven in Midland and 21 in Uvalde, Abbott shied away from gun control and instead oversaw a loosening of state firearm laws. Last session, the GOP-led Legislature eliminated the need for a license or training to carry a loaded handgun in public places.
On Sunday, Abbott said tougher gun laws haven’t stopped mass shootings.
“We’ve seen an increased number of shootings in states with easy gun laws as well as states with very strict gun laws,” he said. “I think that the state in which the largest number of victims occurred this year is in California, where they have very tough gun laws.”
[Civilians who gave first aid to Texas outlet mall shooting victims describe chaos]
There have been 91 people killed or injured in mass shootings in California this year, compared to 90 in Texas, according to data from the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as having at least four victims.
Texas has had the most mass shootings of any state in the country so far this year.
Abbott will be visiting Allen on Sunday to “begin the process of providing hope and healing,” he said. “Our main priority right now is to help and support those families and the Allen community.”