HOUSTON — Just three days after a mass shooting in Uvalde that left at least 19 elementary school children and two adults dead, national and statewide Republican politicians -- including former President Donald Trump -- are set to speak in Houston as part of a forum kicking off this year's NRA annual meeting.
On May 12, the NRA announced Trump would headline the 2022 NRA Institute for Legislative Action Leadership Forum at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston on Friday, May 27.
Also set to speak along with Trump, are Tex Gov. Greg Abbott, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Houston), and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, among others.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) was slated to attend the forum but will no longer be attending, due to an "unexpected change" in his schedule, a press secretary told WFAA.
"NRA members are thrilled that President Trump will be joining us at this year's NRA-ILA Leadership Forum," said Jason Ouimet, executive director of NRA-ILA in the May 12 announcement. "President Trump has always stood tall for the constitutional freedoms in which his fellow NRA members believe... President Trump recognizes the Second Amendment is about liberties that belong to all Americans, and knows that our right to self-defense is non-negotiable."
The shooting in Uvalde took place Tuesday afternoon at Robb Elementary, where at least 19 students and two adults were killed.
Salvador Ramos, the 18-year-old who was identified as the shooter, is also dead. In a Tuesday press conference about the shooting, Abbott said authorities believed Ramos entered the school building with a handgun and possibly a rifle.
Abbott also issued a statement following the shooting, stating that Texans across the state are grieving for the victims and that he and his wife are mourning the loss, while urging Texans to come together to show support for those suffering.
"I have instructed the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Rangers to work with local law enforcement to fully investigate this crime," Abbott's statement read. "The Texas Division of Emergency Management is charged with providing local officials all resources necessary to respond to this tragedy as the State of Texas works to ensure the community has what it needs to heal.”
The NRA-ILA Forum, called by the NRA "a celebration of Second Amendment rights," will begin at 2 p.m. May 27.