[Blackwell:] Welcome back. I'm Victor Blackwell live in El Paso, Texas, at the scene of one of the two mass shootings this week. We have heard from President Trump on the shooting here in El Paso several times since it happened. And now we are hearing from the president on the shooting overnight in Dayton. Let's go to Boris Sanchez who is traveling with the president in New Jersey. Boris, good morning to you. And what are we hearing from the president?
[Boris Sanchez, Cnn White House Reporter:] Hey, good morning, Victor. Yes, we just heard from the White House press shop that President Trump has been briefed on the smooth in Dayton and he is monitoring developments. The president tweeting out a short while ago: God bless the people of El Paso and God bless the people of Ohio. He then went on to write this, quote: The FBI local and state law enforcement are working together in El Paso and in Dayton, Ohio. Much is already been learned, law enforcement was very rapid in both instances. Updates will be given throughout the day. The president yet again finding himself in a situation where he has to offer condolences to communities that have been ravaged by gun violence. We should point, the president is scheduled to return to Washington, D.C. at approximately 4:00 p.m. today. There's no indication that is going to going to move up that up in order to get to Washington sooner. He often makes statements before he departs his estate in New Jersey. We will see what the president says later today, Victor.
[Blackwell:] All right. Boris Sanchez for us there in Berkeley Heights Boris, thank you. I should let you know, we are awaiting a news conference from the Del Sol Medical Center where some of the people were shot here in El Paso were taken. Medical officials will speak in a moment. You can see a live shot of the podium being set up. As soon as that happens, we will take you to that live. In the meantime, I have with me Texas State Representative Cesar Blanco. This is his district. He just told me a moments ago that he shopped at this Walmart. So you are familiar with this community, but this now crime scene behind us. Thank you, first, for being with us, and our condolences to you. This is your community.
[Rep. Cesar Blanco , El Paso, Texas:] It is.
[Blackwell:] Your neighbors and friends.
[Blanco:] It is.
[Blackwell:] What are you feeling this morning?
[Blanco:] Well, first of all, our condolences to the victims and families in Dayton. Miles separate us, but our grief unites us. So be strong Dayton. You know, it's a tragic thing. Something like this is just shocking. It is the 250th mass shooting. El Paso is 249. It is unfathomable these things continue to happen all over the country. Yesterday, I was at a family reunification center, which is where I attended school as a kid. It is just tragic. We must do more as elected officials to make sure we are protecting innocent people and our citizens here in our country.
[Blackwell:] One of the elements of reunification, Customs and Border Protection tweeted out that people, if they are concerned about there being some operation related to what happened here, that they should not be because there were some fear that people would not come forward or make themselves known, their presence known in relation to being in the country undocumented.
[Blanco:] Sure.
[Blackwell:] Is there some degree of mistrust? Is there some real reason that people should be fearful?
[Blanco:] Well, El Paso County is home to a lot of family detention centers, child detention centers. This is ground zero where family separations occurred as a result of this administration's policies. There is naturally going to be fear and folks not trusting necessarily any law enforcement if you're an immigrant. Clearly, this gunman's motives were racially motivated. We have seen his manifesto that describes which unfortunately has been a common term used by many politicians as an invasion in our country. So, immigrants are scared. And scenes here are scared of what could happen now. Today is Sunday. People will be going to church. I've received phone calls that people are afraid to go to church, but make no mistake, we will get through this and our community will remain strong.
[Blackwell:] Are free to go to church because of gathering in a group.
[Blanco:] People just don't know what could happen in public places, and gatherings.
[Blackwell:] In El Paso, because one of the things that this city is boasts about and is so proud about is the degree of safety.
[Blanco:] According to the FBI, we are one of the safest cities in America. It is unfortunate that this type of mass murder has occurred in our community.
[Blackwell:] What's the first step to getting back to that degree of safety, that feeling of security?
[Blanco:] I think it takes community coming together. I think it takes our community leaders speaking out in public and reassuring that our local law enforcement is among the best in this country. We must not be deterred by these acts of violence. We must continue to move on and go about our lives and and and win. But I think we as a country need to take a close look at what we value in this country. Is it machinery or human beings? And I think human beings should always be taken into consideration. These are the most important things.
[Blackwell:] No one ever suspects that something like this will happen in their community, near their home, in places that they are with which they're familiar. But now that it has, have you had time to reconcile El Paso with mass shooting? I mean being part of that group with all the other communities we have covered, that yours is one of them?
[Blanco:] We'll I'll give you an example. Most of my family lives in and around this area. IN fact, I grew up in these apartments across the street here. And I sent my mom a message and asked her to have the whole family check in via mass text message to account for everyone. That's our new reality. Thankfully, everyone was ok. But unfortunately for 20 individuals who have been killed here and 26 others who are fighting for their lives, that's not the case. And our thoughts and our prayers go out to them.
[Blackwell:] State Representative Cesar Blanco thank you so much for being with us this morning. A new reality. That's a phrase that we have used and have heard in this city now, that they are talking about in Dayton. We have talked about in communities that have suffered through mass shootings before. Will anything change? We'll have that conversation this morning. And we'll check in on the investigation in Dayton. Of course, there is that news conference at Del Sol Medical Center for the latest on the victims of those who are suffering from injuries. We'll bring all of it to you as our special live coverage continues.