Joe Biden Uses Abe Shinzo Assassination to Again Condemn ‘Gun Violence’

President Joe Biden reacted to the assassination of former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo on Friday, using his death to again condemn “gun violence.”

“While there are many details that we do not yet know, we know that violent attacks are never acceptable and that gun violence always leaves a deep scar on the communities that are affected by it,” Biden said in his statement.

The president was late to react to the news of Abe’s assassination, issuing a statement just before 9:00 a.m. EST.

“I am stunned, outraged, and deeply saddened by the news that my friend Abe Shinzo, former Prime Minister of Japan, was shot and killed while campaigning,” Biden said in his statement.

The president also expressed sadness that Abe was “engaged in the work of democracy” when he was shot and killed.

File/U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden(R) toasts PM of Japan Shinzo Abe, as he co-hosts a luncheon with U.S. Secretary John Kerry in honor of Japan on April 28. (PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty)

Other leaders showed more urgency in expressing their condolences to Japan and the Abe family. Former President Donald Trump first reacted to the shooting of Abe around 1:00 a.m. EST and then later to news of his death at around 5:00 a.m., as Breitbart News reported.