Marjorie Taylor Greene Says U.S. Must Study Factors Behind Mass Shootings

Marjorie Taylor Greene has said Americans need to study anti-depressant drugs and "other factors that cause mass shootings" after eight people were killed by a gunman at a mall in Allen, Texas, on Saturday afternoon.

The attacker was shot dead by a police officer who was in the mall answering an unrelated call. Speaking on Saturday evening, Allen Fire Chief Jonathan Boyd said another seven people were receiving medical treatment after being injured, with three in critical condition.

The latest bloodshed has rekindled the fiery debate about gun violence in the United States, with the country recording 199 mass shootings so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive.

Greene retweeted a video purporting to show the Allen gunman, dressed in black and lying in a pool of blood after he had been shot by a police officer. She commented: "This is exactly what this monster deserves.

"Thank God for the brave officer that courageously ran into the line of fire to save others.

"We pray for the victims and their families and an end to the mental illness, drugs, and evil forces that cause people to commit such horrors."

The House Republican continued: "The federal government must partner with states for mental hospitals and drug rehab centers for the good of our society.

"We must fund and support police officers and prosecutors must put criminals behind bars.

"We need to study SSRI's and other factors that cause mass shootings.

"Our nation is plagued with mental illness, drug addiction, homelessness, and out of control crime. We have to fix it."

SSRIs, or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, are a class of drugs often used to treat depression and related mental health conditions. Medical experts have previously dismissed any primary link between SSRIs and mass shootings.

Greene's remarks sparked a mixed reaction on Twitter, with some people praising the police, whilst others suggesting Greene was trying to divert attention away from guns.

One Twitter user replied: "If you're going to be dumb you better be tough. Good guy with a gun for the Win."

Another added: "Only in Biden's America."

However other users focused on the firearms issue, with one writing: "Stop praying for victims and pass the sensible gun laws that are overwhelmingly supported by Americans."

A second sarcastically added: "But it's not the guns, right?"

Newsweek has contacted Marjorie Taylor Greene for comment by calling her Washington D.C. office.

Greene, a high-profile Donald Trump ally, claimed she had the "evidence" needed to impeach President Biden on Wednesday.

She has been touted as a possible Trump running mate for 2024, although a recent Rasmussen poll predicted the Republican match-up would lose to a Biden/Harris ticket by 44 percent of the vote to 40 percent.