Republican Rep. Andy Ogles from Tennessee faced backlash after a recent Christmas card photo resurfaced online. The photo showed Ogles, his wife, and two of their children posing with rifles in front of their Christmas tree. The controversy grew after the recent mass shooting at a private Christian grade school in the same district he represents, leaving three children and three adults dead. Critics questioned his tone-deafness and glorification of guns. Ogles, however, defended the photo and his right to bear arms when asked if he had any regrets. The congressman has yet to issue an official statement about the controversy.

In another related article, a former friend and classmate of the Covenant shooter, Audrey Hale, has come forward to say that she received a disturbing message on the morning of the shooting. Averianna Patton, Hale’s former basketball teammate, says that Hale sent her an Instagram message saying that the post she made about Patton was a suicide note, and that she planned to die that day. Patton sought advice from her father and then contacted the national suicide prevention line and the Davidson County Sheriff's Office to report the message, but no action was taken before the shooting occurred. The authorities later found and killed Hale, who had murdered six people at the school.