Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin strayed from the Trump administration line Thursday, urging Congress to address the issue of gun violence in the wake of the Florida school shooting that claimed 17 lives.
"Personally, I think the gun violence — It's a tragedy what we've seen yesterday, and I urge Congress to look at these issues," he told a House Ways and Means Committee hearing about the budget, according to various reports.
Mnuchin is the first senior Trump administration official to call for a congressional review after Wednesday's massacre. The White House and many lawmakers have resisted calls for tougher gun laws — even after repeated mass shootings.
Rep. John Lewis, R-Ga., angrily pressed the treasury secretary on what the White House should doing in the wake of the latest gun tragedy.
Mnuchin said that despite his concern, gun policy is "out of my lane of responsibilities." But he said, "I assure you I will speak to the president other Cabinet members" about the issue.
During the hearing, The Hill tweeted out the surprising news:
The exchange came after Lewis asked if there was any money in President Donald Trump's new budget to address with gun violence.
Mnuchin said didn't know that level of detail about what's in the budget.
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