‘Spare us your prayers’: Ted Cruz faces backlash after Texas mall shooting kills eight

Texas US senator Ted Cruz's comment Saturday that he was "praying" for families of the eight victims killed in a shooting at a shopping mall in his state has sparked outrage as many critics say the Republican should advocate for meaningful gun control rather than repeatedly invoke prayer after mass, deadly violence.

Cruz and other fellow Texas Republicans have faced similar backlash for citing general emotional support, thoughts, prayers, or a combination thereof after the slayings in Allen, Texas, on Saturday.

Criticism of Cruz grew several hours after the shooting when he tweeted: "Heidi and I are praying for the families of the victims of the horrific mall shooting in Allen, Texas. We pray also for the broader Collin county community that's in shock from this tragedy."

"The only accountability we can hope for is that gun extremists like you are thrown into the ash heap of history."

Star Trek actor George Takei added: "You're worse than useless."

Another Twitter user said thoughts and prayers "are nothing but blasphemy and evil". Yet another quipped: "Have you tried turning the prayer machine off and back on again."

Cruz has received more than $442,000 from organization which support keeping guns as accessible as possible, according to Axios and Open Secrets. He has used language referring to thought and prayers rather than restrictions on guns in reaction to other previous mass shootings in his state.