Liar, Liar, Liar....

Trump: 'We'll be talking about gun laws as time goes by'

By POLITICO STAFF

President Donald Trump on Tuesday hinted that he’ll be wading into the debate over new gun control measures, but said such conversations will likely happen later.

On his way to Puerto Rico, Trump praised the police response to the shooting that killed at least 59 people and injured more than 500 — the deadliest mass shooting in modern history. And he said conversations about gun control are forthcoming.

“What happened in Las Vegas is in many ways a miracle. The police department has done such an incredible job, and we'll be talking about gun laws as time goes by,” Trump told reporters when asked if the shooting would prompt him to take up new legislation.

Asked about a pending bill that would loosen restrictions on purchasing gun silencers, Trump said, "We’ll talk about that later.”

The White House on Monday sidestepped questions about gun control, with press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders saying “today is not that day” for a conversation about any new gun violence prevention measures. Democratic lawmakers, however, immediately called for new controls, and started pressuring their Republican colleagues.

More details have been emerging about the arsenal that the shooter, Stephen Paddock, had in his Las Vegas hotel room as he massacred concert-goers from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel. Authorities said he had at least 23 firearms in the room, and that they had retrieved an additional 19 firearms, as well as explosives and several thousand rounds of ammunition from his home in Mesquite, Nevada. Paddock committed suicide before authorities were able to break into his room, officials said.

Paddock’s motivation is still unclear, but Trump said on Tuesday that he was clearly a troubled man.

“He was a sick man, a demented man. A lot of problems I guess,” Trump said. “And we're looking into him very, very seriously, but we're dealing with a very sick individual.”