‘Shame On You!’ Tucson, Virginia Tech Victims Shout At Lawmakers

“Shame on you!” An angry reaction was registered in the Senate yesterday, and attendees Patricia Maisch and Lori Haas both reportedly shouted that phrase as the 46 senators who voted against gun reforms in the wake of the Newtown, Connecticut massacre in Connecticut.

One of the women who reportedly shouted “shame on you” at senators blocking legislation to, among other things, expand background checks was Patricia Maisch, who disarmed Tucson shooter Jared Loughner after he killed several people and severely wounded former congresswoman Gabby Giffords.

Lori Haas is the mother of a Virginia Tech survivor, and both were present in the gallery as the Senate failed to move ahead with reforms to gun laws despite widespread public support for such measures.

In what may be an ironic twist, ThinkProgress reports that the women allege they were then themselves background checked after the outburst. The progressive site wrote in a post about the “shame on you” incident and its aftermath:

“As [Patricia Maisch and Lori Haas] left the Senate gallery, a police officer approached and asked them to follow him. The three walked downstairs to a public hallway, where they were peppered with questions: ‘What’s your name?’ ‘Where are you from?’ ‘What are your Social Security numbers?'”

The report continues:

“The officer left to run a background check on the women, who were instructed to sit on a bench. Another uniformed officer watched over them, even escorted Haas to the bathroom and told her she couldn’t lock the stall door.”

Haas herself uses that word to describe what occurred after the “shame on you” outburst — she told the site:

“The irony is not lost on me and it’s not lost on the American public. Very ironic that an hour and a half investigation into two women shouting in the Senate gallery takes place and yet real criminals and other prohibited purchasers get willy nilly access to fire arms.”

President Obama used similar wording after the Senate’s inaction, calling the outcome “shameful.”