On Thursday, President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden flew to Orlando, FL, to honor the victims of Sunday's shooting at the gay nightclub Pulse [1]. The tragedy left 49 dead and 50 injured, making it the deadliest mass shooting in US history.
The two left white roses at a memorial set up at the Dr. Phillips Center For the Performing Arts in Orlando before Obama gave a speech about the massacre.
President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden lay flowers at a memorial to victims of the Orlando shooting http://cnn.it/1Uf4IZD
Posted by CNN [2] on Thursday, June 16, 2016 [3]
"If there was ever a moment for all of us to reflect and reaffirm our most basic beliefs that everybody counts and everybody has dignity, now's the time," said the president, encouraging more respect for the LGBT community and acknowledging the heroes of that night [4].
President Barack Obama in Orlando: "We have to end discrimination and violence against our brothers and sisters who are in the LGBT community." http://abcn.ws/23e5mqH
Posted by ABC News [5] on Thursday, June 16, 2016 [6]
Obama called on the need for stricter gun control laws [7] and said he met with families of the dead who begged him to take action to stop the mass shootings. "I held and hugged grieving family members and parents and they asked, 'Why does this keep happening?' And they pleaded that we do more to stop the carnage [8]," said Obama, according to CNN. "They don't care about the politics. Neither do I."
Obama also met with survivors, local law enforcement, and Pulse nightclub employees. Ahead, check out more photos of the touching visit.