US President Donald Trump on Thursday said the mass shooting at Florida State University (FSU) was "terrible," but remained firm in his defence of gun rights and the Second Amendment.
At least two people were killed and six others sustained injuries after 20-year-old FSU student, Phoenix Ikner, opened fire near the campus student union Thursday afternoon. Ikner, who was shot by police and is currently in custody at a hospital, remains in stable condition. The motive behind the shooting is still under investigation.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said, "These things are terrible. But the gun doesn't do the shooting, the people do - a phrase that's used probably too often," he said.
"It's a shame. I'm just hearing about it now. I know the area very well, I know the school very well, it's Florida," he added.
Authorities confirmed that Ikner used a handgun belonging to his mother, Jessica Ikner, a veteran deputy with the Leon County Sheriff's Office. She had retained the firearm after the department upgraded its service weapons. Ikner was also found carrying a shotgun, though it is unclear whether it was used during the attack.
Asked whether the tragedy might make him consider any changes to current gun laws, Trump said, "I'm a big advocate of the Second Amendment, I have been from the beginning," he said. "I protected it."
The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights, and it protects the individual right to keep and bear arms.
Trump added that he does not plan on pushing for any legislative changes in response to the FSU shooting. "This has been going on for a long time. I have an obligation to protect the Second Amendment, I ran on the Second Amendment among many other things, and I will always protect the Second Amendment," Trump said.
He added he would "have more to say" later, but only "in terms of what happened."
Phoenix Ikner, a political science major and a registered Republican, had previously commented on a campus protest against President Donald Trump's inauguration in January. In an archived interview with FSU's student newspaper, he commented on the protest, saying, "These people are usually pretty entertaining, usually not for good reasons. I think it's a little too late, he's [Trump] already going to be inaugurated on January 20 and there's not really much you can do unless you outright revolt, and I don't think anyone wants that."
Following the shooting, the newspaper removed Ikner's quote from the article, saying that they did not wish to amplify the "voice of an individual responsible for violence".
The university has cancelled classes and events through Friday, and increased security measures are in place as the investigation continues.
