Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt shared a post to Instagram that asked people to pray for the victims following the tragic shooting at a Minneapolis church that claimed the lives of two children. However, not all is what it initially seems.
A look at the full post, originally made by The Conservateur, a conservative lifestyle magazine, reveals a second slide that blames a “demonic force” for the shooting.
The full post reads, “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.”
“This is a corruption of minds to commit horrific acts of violence. We pray for the victims, their families, and the entire annunciation community during this grueling time. And yes, prayers do count and do work.”
Language similar to that used in the post has been liberally deployed by Trump allies and supporters in the hours since the shooting, which took place at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
Following the discovery that the shooter may have been transgender—FBI Director Kash Patel identified the shooter as a male, but legal documents requesting a name change show the shooter identified as female—MAGA was quick to suggest a correlation between their gender identity and the shooting and begin blaming “the trans agenda.”
Commentator Matt Walsh was one such figure, posting on X that “now is precisely the moment when trans militants are the MOST dangerous. They’ve lost. The game is over. Now they’re more desperate than ever,” and that it was “time to have a national conversation about common sense restrictions on transgenders.”
Bo Loudon, Barron Trump’s best friend, tweeted, “America does NOT have a “gun problem.” America HAS a transgender problem. Transgenderism needs to be labeled as a MENTAL ILLNESS!”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem shared a statement to social media, confirming that the shooter was a 23-year-old “claiming to be transgender”.
The statement continued, “This deranged monster targeted our most vulnerable: young children praying in their first morning Mass of the school year. This deeply sick murderer scrawled the words ‘For the Children’ and ‘Where is your God?’ and ‘Kill Donald Trump’ on a rifle magazine.”
“This level of violence is unthinkable. Our deepest prayers are with the children, parents, families, educators, and Christians everywhere. We mourn with them, we pray for healing, and we will never forget them.”
We have confirmation that the shooter at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, MN was a 23 year-old man, claiming to be transgender.This deranged monster targeted our most vulnerable: young children praying in their first morning Mass of the school year. This deeply sick…
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) August 27, 2025
Despite claims from conservatives that transgender people are overrepresented in mass shooting events, a report from the Violence Prevention Project identified just one trans shooter out of over 200 who carried out mass shootings between 1999 and 2024—Audrey Hale, who killed six people in a 2023 shooting at a Nashville elementary school. 192 of the 200 shooters included in the report were men.
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