The aftermath of the late August 2025 mass shooting in Minneapolis, which left two children dead and several others wounded, has ignited a fierce national debate—not just about gun control, but about the words and symbols people reach for in the wake of tragedy. At the center of this firestorm is Jen Psaki, former Communications Director for President Obama, President Biden’s first press secretary, and now a prominent political commentator for MSNBC. Psaki’s blunt rejection of the standard "thoughts and prayers" response has set off a cascade of reactions across the political spectrum, exposing deep rifts over faith, action, and the politics of grief.
Psaki’s comments, delivered on September 1, were unequivocal: “Prayer is not freaking enough. Prayers do 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.” According to The Flash Today, her words struck a nerve, especially among conservative officials and religious communities who see prayer as both solace and a call to action.
The backlash was swift and intense. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who succeeded Psaki, publicly rebuked her predecessor, stating, “I saw the comments of … Ms. Psaki, and frankly, I think they’re 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.” Leavitt’s critique didn’t stop there. In a pointed statement, she described the Minneapolis shooting as the work of a “demonic force,” specifically referencing the shooter’s transgender identity and condemning progressive leaders for politicizing the tragedy. Her words—“There is a demonic force moving when a transgender maniac sprays bullets at pews of Catholic school children. Shame on the progressive leaders and lawmakers who make this about the man in the White House, the second amendment or so-called trans bigotry”—were interpreted by many as a coded appeal to religious conservatives, according to Daily Kos.
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard also weighed in, offering a theological interpretation of Psaki’s stance. “So why is it that people like Jen Psaki and others have such a spontaneous, visceral negative reaction to those who are praying to God for refuge, strength, and for the well-being of the victims of this heinous attack? Because they do not believe in God or His love….Their response is rooted in their hatred of God. They want to be God. So they view Him as their competitor. They are agents of darkness and hatred, and the light of God’s love is a threat to their dark ambitions.”
Vice President JD Vance, meanwhile, struck a more conciliatory tone, emphasizing the role of prayer in processing grief and seeking guidance: “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.”
Psaki, for her part, refused to back down. She doubled down on her call for action, saying, “So the issue I raised yesterday and I will raise again today and I will not stop raising, is that people in power, like, say, people in the White House, who are using their platforms to do anything other than call for action for sensible gun safety measures—they’re doing anything else, like attacking me, which is a waste of time, they’re doing anything but saying what should be done to help prevent tragedies like the shooting in Minneapolis.” For Psaki, the real problem isn’t faith itself, but the substitution of platitudes for policy.
The controversy didn’t unfold in a vacuum. The shooter, Robin Westman, was in the process of transitioning from male to female. This detail became a flashpoint for right-wing commentators and politicians, who quickly labeled the attack as an act of "transterrorism." On social media and conservative platforms, Westman’s gender identity was blamed for the violence, overshadowing other factors such as mental illness and the illegal acquisition of firearms. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia declared, “If they are willing to destroy themselves and how God made them, then they are willing to destroy others, and we saw that happen today.”
Others on the far right, including figures like budget chief and Project 2025 author Russell Voight, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, faith advisor Paula White, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, framed the tragedy as part of a broader spiritual battle against nonbelievers and the LGBT community. They portrayed transgender individuals as threats to children and society, fueling a narrative of moral and existential crisis. According to Daily Kos, this rhetoric, though powerful among some evangelical communities, is not supported by data, which shows no “epidemic” of shootings by transgender people.
Former Congressman Adam Kinzinger, himself a product of evangelical culture, saw Leavitt’s language as a dog whistle to the religious right. Reflecting on his own experience—after voting to impeach Donald Trump, he received a letter from family members accusing him of joining “the devil’s army”—Kinzinger noted that many in his former community interpret tragedies through a lens of spiritual warfare, where evil spirits and nonbelievers are to blame. Leavitt’s prayerful public persona, including a widely shared video of her praying before a press briefing, only reinforced her standing among “Trumpvangelicals,” as Daily Kos put it.
The debate over “thoughts and prayers” is hardly new. The article by Malcolm L. Cross in The Flash Today highlights a similar episode following a school shooting in Georgia, where Governor Brian Kemp responded to questions about school safety with a call for “thoughts and prayers” rather than concrete policy proposals. Cross argues that while prayer can be powerful—especially when it leads to thoughtful action—it cannot substitute for the hard work of reform. “If expressions of ‘thoughts and prayers’ are simply substitutes for action, then Ms. Psaki should be taken more seriously,” he writes.
Cross, a longtime Stephenville resident and retired professor, suggests a way forward: the “Jen Psaki Challenge.” He urges readers to “pray, think, act, and repeat,” combining spiritual reflection with practical measures like supporting victims’ families, advocating for more effective gun control, improving mental health services, and designing safer public spaces. The goal, he says, is to prove that those who depreciate prayer are mistaken—not by words alone, but by deeds.
In the end, the Minneapolis shooting and its aftermath have laid bare not only the nation’s struggle with gun violence, but also the profound divisions over how to process and respond to tragedy. Whether one believes prayer is a prelude to action or a substitute for it, the challenge remains the same: to move beyond ritual words and toward solutions that might prevent the next heartbreak.
