President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney
have reacted to a Wednesday shooting at the Washington DC
headquarters of the Christian conservative group Family Research
Council (FRC).
The FBI took 28-year-old Floyd Lee
Corkins into custody after he allegedly walked into the group's lobby
and shot the security guard before he was wrestled to the ground.
The guard, identified as Leo Johnson, was taken to a nearby hospital
and is in stable condition.
Corkins, who previously had volunteered
at a local gay community center, is believed to have acted alone.
Reports
that he was carrying Chick-Fil-A “materials” suggest that he was
acting against the beliefs of the FRC, which is opposed to gay
rights and received financial support from the fast-food chain.
Chick-Fil-A has become a cause celeb among conservatives who have
rallied to CEO Dan Cathy's side after he was criticized for saying
that gay marriage is “inviting God's judgment on our nation.”
(Related: Chick-Fil-A
Wednesdays support Dan Cathy's gay marriage opposition.)
“There is no place for such violence
in our society,” said Romney, the likely Republican presidential
nominee.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said
Obama expressed a similar sentiment and concern for the security
guard and his family: “This type of violence has no place in our
society.”