Vice President J.D. Vance publicly condemned former Biden press secretary and MSNBC host Jen Psaki Thursday for criticizing Americans for praying in response to the shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis.
The controversy comes less than a day after a 23-year-old gunman, identified as Robin Westman, opened fire through a window during a Mass at the Catholic church, killing two children, ages 8 and 10, and injuring 17 others, including 14 children.
Westman, armed with a rifle, a shotgun, and a pistol, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the back of the church, according to Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara. Seven of the wounded, including two children, were reported to be in critical condition. Authorities have yet to determine a motive for the attack, which occurred during the first week of the school year.
Less than three hours after the shooting, Psaki, 46, a former White House press secretary under Biden, took to X to express frustration with those offering prayers for the victims. “Prayer is not freaking enough. Prayers does [sic] not end school shootings. [P]rayers do not make parents feel safe sending their kids to school. Prayer does not bring these kids back. Enough with the thoughts and prayers,” Psaki wrote.
On Thursday, Vance responded to Psaki’s comments: “We pray because our hearts are broken. We pray because we know God listens. We pray because we know that God works in mysterious ways, and can inspire us to further action. Why do you feel the need to attack other people for praying when kids were just killed praying?”
The vice president later followed up with a second post, asking, “Of all the weird left wing culture wars in the last few years, this is by far the most bizarre. ‘How dare you pray for innocent people in the midst of tragedy?!’ What are you even talking about?”
On Thursday, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt condemned Psaki’s comments as “incredibly insensitive and disrespectful to the tens of millions of Americans of faith across this country who believe in the power of prayer, who believe that prayer works."
Psaki, who hosts “The Briefing” on MSNBC, did not respond to Vance’s comments, but her sentiments on prayer were echoed by other Democratic leaders.
During a media briefing Wednesday, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey urged the nation not to talk about “thoughts and prayers,” noting the victims were already praying when the shooting occurred. “Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now. These kids were literally praying. It was the first week of school, they were in a church,” Frey said.
Despite his comments on prayer, Frey, in April 2023, became the first mayor of a major U.S. city to allow mosques to broadcast the Islamic call to prayer five times a day.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, in response to Leavitt's comments, noted, as Frey did, that the victims were shot while in a prayer service.
“These children were literally praying as they got shot at,” wrote Newsom, believed to be the early favorite for the Democratic nomination in 2028. As governor, Newsom ordered the closure of all churches statewide from March to May 2020 as part of Sacramento’s “stay-at-home” orders during the coronavirus pandemic.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, offered a more measured response, acknowledging both the need for prayer as well as taking further action to prevent another tragedy. “It’s my strongest desire that no state, no community, no school, ever experiences a day like this,” he said. “Keep us in your thoughts and prayers, but also keep us in the thoughts for action. Keep us in the ideas that we can work together.”
Authorities said Thursday that while investigators have not arrived at a motive for the shooting, four search warrants executed at the church and three other locations uncovered “additional firearms” as part of those searches.
Westman’s mother is believed to have worked for the church prior to her retirement in August 2021. Mary Grace Westman was identified in a 2020 state document as the mother of Robert Paul Westman.
In January 2020, Westman changed his name from Robert to Robin, according to a state document leaked to social media. The document reportedly indicated Westman “identifies as a female and wants her name to reflect that identification.”
