Two Indian nationals working in the US plus an American were shot in a bar in Olathe Kansas. One of the Indians was killed.
Srinivas Kuchibhotla died shortly after Wednesday’s attack at a bar in Olathe, Kansas. His friend Alok Madasani, also from India, and an American were hurt.
The killing dominated news bulletins in India and social media, where some blamed Donald Trump’s presidency.
The FBI is investigating and at some point may declare this a hate crime. How they can not come to that conclusion eludes me given the statement purported to have come from the accused shooter:
The FBI is now investigating possible motives for the crime at Austins Bar and Grill, with race among them. Witnesses said that just before opening fire the gunman shouted: “Get out of my country.”
So what is the White House response?
White House spokesman Sean Spicer said that any loss of life was tragic but that it would be absurd to link events to Mr. Trump’s rhetoric.
Mr. Spicer is an expert on potential terrorism now? I think it would be absurd to not link events like this to Mr. Trump’s rhetoric. And I think it is absurd to make such a comment until the final determination from the FBI.
And I think it’s absurd that this is the totality of the White House response, when the president has taken every opportunity he can find to use Twitter to attack his supposed enemies…but can’t take a moment to denounce incidents like this. There should have been an instantaneous comment from the White House denouncing exactly this type of violence and clearly labelling it a terrorist act.
As a side note, Sean Spicer called the president Mr. Trump?
And a final thought:
Mr Kuchibhotla’s wife, Sunayana Dumala, described her husband as a “loveable soul”.
Speaking at a news conference, she described the US as “the country that he loved so much” and called the shooting a “hate crime”.
I’m sure you called for President Obama to do the same thing ‘instantaneously’ after the Fort Hood shooting, as well.