Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), a gun rights proponent who represents the Nashville district that includes the school where six people were shot dead on Friday, has offered “thoughts and prayers” to the victim’s family.
“My family and I are devastated by the tragedy that occurred at Covenant School in Nashville this morning,” Ogles said. “We send our thoughts and prayers to the families of the missing. As a father of three, I am deeply saddened by this senseless act of violence. I am monitoring the situation and cooperating with local officials.
The new congressman drew a swift backlash from Democrats, gun control advocates and other social media users, who highlighted a gun-glorifying Christmas photo he posted on Facebook in 2021. In the picture, Ogles and his family, including children, posed with a large firearm .
Those who spoke out included: Fred Guttenberg, who became a prominent gun control advocate after his daughter Jaime was killed in the 2018 Parkland school shooting; Shannon Watts, founder of the gun violence prevention group Moms Demand Action; Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas); and Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio).
“How much more blood will it take?” Escobar tweeted. “That. At. gun.”
Landsman said he had spoken with the Ogles last week about their children.
“If people like Andy would say, ‘hey, we don’t need these kinds of weapons,’ we could make real change,” Landsman wrote. “I’ll ask him this week.”
Ogles’ office did not immediately return a request for comment.
Ogles represents Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District, which includes Covenant Schools. A 28-year-old killed three students – all aged between 8 and 9 – and three adults in a private Christian school on Friday, the police said. The shooter, who authorities said was armed with a rifle, an assault rifle-style pistol and a handgun, died after being shot by police.
On Ogles’ campaign website, he said he would “fight tirelessly” to protect Second Amendment rights. He said: “Disarming the people is the most effective way to liberate them, and we must remain vigilant against those who want to destroy our civil liberties.”
Formerly the mayor of Maury County, Tennessee, Ogles told his House bio that he was recognized as “the most conservative mayor in Tennessee.”
In February, Ogles was revealed to have embellished several elements of her résumé, including her degrees and her work fighting international sex trafficking.
He wasn’t the only lawmaker to send a prayer Monday. Rep. Lauren Boebert, who shared the same family Christmas photo in 2021, also suppressed for his vain message of violence.