Donald Trump gave an uncharacteristically subdued response Friday to the shooting rampage in Munich, Germany, offering his prayers to the victims.
“Our prayers are with all those affected by the horrible attacks in Munich,” Trump said in a statement. “This cannot continue. The rise of terrorism threatens the way of life for all civilized people, and we must do everything in our power to keep it from our shores.”
He later tweeted, “Another attack, this time in Germany. Many killed. God bless the people of Munich.”
The statements come one day after Trump painted a foreboding picture of the US in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention, when he spoke of police killings, murders committed by undocumented immigrants and the threat of terrorism on US soil.
The Republican nominee’s response also contrasts with comments he made in the immediate aftermath of the terror attacks in France, where he said he would seek a declaration of war against ISIS, and his remarks after the nightclub shooting in Orlando, in which he took credit “for being right on radical Islamic terrorism.”
Presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton offered a cautious response Friday, tweeting, “Monitoring the horrific situation in Munich. We stand with our friends in Germany as they work to bring those responsible to justice.”
She did not address the attack at an afternoon campaign rally in Tampa, Florida.
Just hours before the Munich attack, President Barack Obama rebuked Trump for his convention speech.
“This idea that America is somehow on the verge of collapse, this vision of violence and chaos everywhere, doesn’t really jibe with the experience of most people,” Obama said at the White House.
After the attack, Obama told CBS News it didn’t prove Trump was right about the emerging threat of terrorism.
“Terrorism is a real threat, and nobody knows that better than me,” Obama said on “Face the Nation,” according to excerpts released Friday afternoon. “One of the best ways of preventing it is making sure we don’t divide our own country, that we don’t succumb to fear, that we don’t sacrifice our values, and that we send a very strong signal to the world and to every American citizen that we’re in this together.”
Former House speaker and Trump supporter Newt Gingrich, however, disagreed.
“How does President Obama square his comments today about sun shining and birds singing and no one should be afraid with the Munich attack,” Gingrich tweeted.
