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Congressman Cohen Notes Timing of Trump Call to Tennessee Waffle House Hero

May 14, 2018

Call to James Shaw Jr. “better late than never”

WASHINGTON – President Trump finally made a call to James Shaw Jr., the hero who disarmed the April 22 Nashville Waffle House shooter, on Monday, a day after Steve Cohen (TN-09) chided Trump for not having done so in an MSNBC interview Sunday. The Congressman made the following statement:

"President Trump finally got around to calling James Shaw Jr. Monday, and reportedly commended him for his ‘quick thinking' fully three weeks after the Nashville man disarmed a gunman who had just killed four people, wounded two more and was attempting to reload. Shaw is one of our nation's cultural heroes and the fact it took the President this long to acknowledge him speaks volumes. While the President may not have demonstrated his own quick thinking in this regard, it is better late than never that he has done so."

Congressman Cohen told MSNBC's Alex Witt on Sunday that he was disappointed Trump had yet to honor Shaw and said he suspected it was because Shaw, an African American, is "not of the race that Mr. Trump appeals to."