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Florida school shooting survivors lash out at Donald Trump, saying 'how dare you divide us'

David Hogg, a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, speaks at a rally calling for gun control: REUTERS
David Hogg, a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, speaks at a rally calling for gun control: REUTERS

Survivors of the deadly school shooting in Florida have blasted Donald Trump over his response to the attack, saying it was needlessly divisive.

"You're the president. You're supposed to bring this nation together, not divide us," said David Hogg, a 17-year-old student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in South Florida, speaking on NBC's "Meet the Press."

"How dare you," he added.

Mr Hogg was responding to the US president's tweet on Saturday that asked "why didn't" the Democrats pass gun control measures during the brief time they controlled Congress with a supermajority in the Senate.

Mr Trump also criticised the FBI's failure to act on tips that the suspect was dangerous, saying they spent "too much time" investigating Russia's role in the 2016 election.

The president was at his Florida estate on Sunday but did not mention the attack in a series of tweets.

After more than a day of criticism from the students, the White House said the president would hold a "listening session" with unspecified students on Wednesday and meet with state and local security officials on Thursday.

Florida politicians, meanwhile, scrambled to produce legislation in response to the February 14 attack that killed 17 people.

Nikolas Cruz, a 19-year-old who had been expelled from the school, is being held without bail in the Broward County Jail, accused of 17 counts of first-degree murder.

In a TV interview, Republican Senator Marco Rubio embraced a Democratic bill to allow courts to temporarily prevent people from having guns if they are determined to be a threat to themselves or others.

Governor Rick Scott, also a Republican, is expected to announce a legislative package with other Republican leaders this week.

Emma Gonzalez, another student who survived the attack, cited Mr Trump, Mr Rubio and Mr Scott by name in a warning to politicians who are supported by the National Rifle Association.

"Now is the time to get on the right side of this, because this is not something that we are going to let sweep under the carpet," she said on "Meet the Press."

The students' pointed comments are the latest signs of increased pressure for gun control after the massacre.

The students have vowed to become the face of a movement for tighter firearm regulations. They are also calling for anti-gun violence demonstrations in Washington and other cities on March 24.

Organisers behind the Women's March, an anti-Trump and female empowerment protest, called for a 17-minute, nationwide walkout by teachers and students on March 14.

The Network for Public Education, an advocacy organisation for public schools, announced a day of walkouts, sit-ins and other events on school campuses April 20, the anniversary of the 1999 shooting at Columbine High School in Colorado that left 12 students and one teacher dead.