Rep Joe Kennedy: It ‘Makes Me So Angry’ GOP Tries to Make Shootings a ‘Mental Health Issue’

Friday on ABC’s “The View,” Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-MA) criticized Republicans for focusing on mental health and its role in school shootings.

Kennedy said, “The issue I think we have to acknowledge, One is that this is a complex one and it’s a hard one. Two, the thing that makes me so angry in part of this debate that does get framed largely from my Republican colleagues is that this is a mental health issue. Folks the data on this could not be more clear, people with mental illness are far more likely to be victims of crime than perpetrate them.”

He continued, “Study after study shows when it comes down to the mass shootings the vast majority are not perpetrated by people suffering from mental illness. Now, are there circumstances, where someone is mentally ill? Yes. Do we need to invest in mental health care? Absolutely. You know what the first big bill coming out of Congress under this administration was? A bill to cut Medicaid, the largest payer of mental health service in this country by $800 billion. So don’t turn around and tell me this is a mental health issue when you just tried to cut the biggest payer of it by $800 billion.”

Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN