'I am enraged': Father of Parkland shooting victim blasts the listening session Trump held with mass-shooting survivors
- The father of a Parkland school shooting victim criticized a listening session President Donald Trump held with survivors and family members of victims of school shootings.
- "I want them to look me in the eye and acknowledge the role that guns play in the hunting of my daughter," he said.
- He criticized Trump's discussion for dodging what he believed was a glaring factor in school shootings.
The father of a victim of the Parkland school shooting criticized a White House listening session President Donald Trump held with survivors and family members of the victims of school shootings on Wednesday.
Fred Guttenberg's 14-year-old daughter, Jaime, was killed in the deadly February 14 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.
"My daughter was hunted last week," Guttenberg said on CNN. "She wasn't just a simple little thing. She was massacred. My daughter, who was the energy in the room. She brought beauty and joy to everyone she was around."
"I am enraged to hear our politicians, including in that little circular sit-down session in the president's office today not be able to use the phrase that guns are a problem," Guttenberg continued. "I am enraged. I want to hear our elected officials, I want them to look me in the eye and acknowledge the role that guns played in the hunting of my daughter."
During the discussion, Trump weighed the merits of eliminating gun-free zones in schools and allowing armed teachers who have "special training" to access their firearms in schools.
"Gun-free zone to a maniac, because they're all cowards ... is 'Let's go in and let's attack because bullets aren't coming back at us,'" Trump said. "If you do this, and a lot of people are talking about it, and it's certainly a point that we'll discuss, but concealed-carry for teachers and for people of talent, of that type of talent."
Guttenberg took exception to the idea: "And what I heard today, is that 'We need to arm students and teachers so that we'll have shoot-outs in the hallways?' I mean, come on. There was pandemonium. My daughter and other kids were running for their lives."
"So what are we supposed to have? More casualties? I'm enraged," Guttenberg said. "I want to hear real solutions, but you can't talk about real solutions until you can actually say what the problem is. And the problem is guns. And I don't diminish anything else with regard to mental health, or all the other factors because they're all critically important. But guns are the issue."
Guttenberg made his statement moments before a CNN town-hall meeting where lawmakers, such as Rep. Ted Deutch and Sens. Bill Nelson and Marco Rubio of Florida were set to engage with participants about the best ways to move forward.
"I want to hear people speak truth to action." Guttenberg said.