Vice President JD Vance slammed former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki after she attacked conservatives for praying for the victims of the Minneapolis Catholic school shooting that killed two children during Mass.
Psaki sparked outrage Wednesday when she posted on X that “Prayer is not freaking enough” following the tragic shooting at Annunciation Catholic School where a transgendered gunman killed two children ages 8 and 10 and seriously injured 17 others while they attended morning Mass.
“Prayers does not end school shootings. prayers 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 in her initial post attacking those offering prayers for the victims.
The former Biden administration official attacked President Donald Trump’s crime-fighting strategy, mocking the National Guard deployment in Washington, D.C.
“When kids are getting shot in their pews at a catholic school mass and your crime plan is to have national guard put mulch down around DC maybe rethink your strategy,” Psaki wrote in a second post.
Vance, a Catholic convert who was baptized in 2019, responded Thursday morning with a passionate defense of prayer.
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?
— JD Vance (@JDVance) August 28, 2025
“It is shocking to me that so many left wing politicians attack the idea of prayer in response to a tragedy,” Vance later wrote. “Literally no one thinks prayer is a substitute for action. We pray because our hearts are broken and we believe that God is listening.”
Trump himself called for prayer in his response to the attack, writing on Truth Social: “The White House will continue to monitor this terrible situation. Please join me in praying for everyone involved!”