THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
_________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release April 2, 2014
STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT
ON SHOOTING AT FORT HOOD
Chicago Cut Steakhouse
Chicago, Illinois
Below please find a corrected transcript: The initial transcript left off three words, which are bracketed below.
6:46 P.M. CDT
THE PRESIDENT: Hello, everybody. I just got off the phone with Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Sandy
Winnefeld to get the latest report on the situation in Fort Hood. Obviously we’re following it closely. The situation is
fluid right now. But my national security team is in close contact with not just the Defense Department but the FBI.
They are working with folks on the ground to determine exactly what happened to make sure that everybody is secure. And
I want to just assure all of us that we're going to get to the bottom of exactly what happened.
Any shooting is troubling. Obviously this reopens the pain of what happened at Fort Hood five years ago. We know these
families. We know their incredible service to our country and the sacrifices that they make. Obviously our thoughts and
prayers were -- are with the entire community. And we are going to do everything we can to make sure that the community
at Fort Hood has what it needs to deal with the current situation, but also any potential aftermath.
We're heartbroken that something like this might have happened again. And I don't want to comment on the facts until I
know exactly what has happened, but for now, I would just hope that everybody across the country is keeping the families
and the community at Fort Hood in our thoughts and in our prayers. The folks there have sacrificed so much on behalf of
our freedom. Many of the people there have been on multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. They serve with valor; they
serve with distinction. And when they’re at their home base they need to feel safe. We don't yet know what happened
tonight, but obviously that sense of safety has been broken once again. And we're going to have to find out exactly what
happened.
The Pentagon will undoubtedly have further briefings for you as we get more details [about what happened.]
Thanks, everybody.
END 6:48 P.M. CDT