LAS VEGAS (AP) – Declaring it “a sad day” for himself personally and the nation, President Donald Trump traveled Wednesday to the city where a gunman killed 59 people at a concert. He is meeting with survivors and law enforcement officials in the aftermath of the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history.
Air Force One landed at the airport near the famed Las Vegas strip on a bright, sunny morning.
Trump headed to the city days after a gunman on the 32nd floor of a hotel and casino opened fire on people at an outdoor country music festival below. The Sunday night rampage by Stephen Craig Paddock killed at least 59 people and injured 527, some from gunfire and some from a chaotic escape.
“It’s a very sad thing. We are going to pay our respects and to see the police who have done really a fantastic job in a very short time,” Trump said. He told reporters before departing the White House that authorities were “learning a lot more” about Paddock and it would be “announced at an appropriate time. It’s a very, very sad day for me personally.”
Trump was joined by first lady Melania Trump. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said he and Rep. Mark Amodei, a Nevada Republican, also would make the trip.