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Vance also visited 12-year-old student Lydia Kaiser, who is recovering from surgery at Children’s Minnesota in Minneapolis. Harry Kaiser, Lydia’s father and a gym teacher at Annunciation, thanked Vance for visiting.
“I couldn’t pass up the opportunity for my kids to meet a vice president,” he said, quoting from a letter he read to Vance. He added that he hoped the vice president could help pursue bipartisan legislation to help prevent mass shootings. “Thoughts and prayers haven’t been enough.”
Harry Kaiser embraces his wife, Leah, after the couple shared a statement about their daughter, Lydia, a victim of the Annunciation shooting, at a news conference at Children’s Minnesota hospital in Minneapolis. (Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
A crowd of several dozen protesters gathered nearby as the Vances visited Annunciation, shouting at them to “protect our kids!” Several protesters carried signs calling for action to prevent gun violence.
“Catholic mom praying for an assault weapon ban,” one sign read.
Patrick DuSchane, whose 3-year-old son was inside Annunciation during the shooting and whose pregnant wife, Laura, sprinted to the church to find the child, said Vance’s visit felt hollow.
“JD Vance has previously said school shootings are a fact of life, and he’s strongly endorsed by the NRA,” DuSchane said. “He’s shown us that he’s uninterested in policies that would have prevented this tragedy, and his visit feels performative at best. Frankly, he exemplifies thoughts and prayers without action, and I hope he proves me wrong.”
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