As Uvalde tells Biden to 'do something'; he pledges 'we will'
President Joe Biden tried to comfort families in the south Texas town of Uvalde on Sunday after the nation's deadliest school shooting in a decade as federal officials announced they would review local law enforcement's slow response to the attack.
Anger has mounted over the decision by law enforcement agencies in Uvalde to allow the shooter to remain in a classroom for nearly an hour while officers waited in the hallway and children inside the room made panicked 911 calls for help.
The president and first lady Jill Biden wiped away tears as they visited memorials at the Robb Elementary School where the gunman killed 19 students and two teachers, laying white roses and paying respects to makeshift shrines to the victims.
“Do something,” a crowd chanted outside Sacred Heart Catholic Church as Biden exited after attending mass.
“We will,” he answered.
The Bidens are also visiting with victims' families and survivors for several hours before later meeting with first responders.
Police say the gunman, 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, entered the school on Tuesday with an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle after earlier shooting his grandmother, who survived.
Official accounts of how police responded to the shooting have flip-flopped wildly. The U.S. Department of Justice on Sunday said it would review local law enforcement response at the request of Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin.
The Texas visit is Biden's third presidential trip to a mass shooting site, including earlier this month when he visited Buffalo, New York after a gunman killed 10 Black people in a Saturday afternoon attack at a grocery store.