CANDIDATES REACT Clinton, Trump, Sanders speak about Fla. massacre

Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump and Beie Sanders joined Washington leaders Sunday in responding to the mass shooting oveight at a Florida nightclub in which 50 people were killed and dozens more wounded.

"Horrific incident in FL. Praying for all the victims & their families. When will this stop? When will we get tough, smart & vigilant?" tweeted Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee.

Trump later took credit for being among the first to suggest the attack was terror related but suggested the real issue is stoping such violence.

"Appreciate the congrats for being right on radical Islamic terrorism, I don't want congrats, I want toughness & vigilance. We must be smart!" he tweeted.

At least 50 people were killed and another 53 wounded in the Sunday moing attack, in which the shooting held dozens hostage before being killed by police in a shootout.

Authorities have identified the shooter as Omar Mateen, 29, of St. Lucie County, Fla.

Police said early Sunday that they were investigating the possibility that the shooter had radical Islamic “leanings.”

As the day progressed, more evidence suggested Mateen had ties to Islamic terrorism, including the revelation by the FBI that he called 911 amid the attack to pledge his allegience to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Clinton, the likely Democratic nominee, posted on her Twitter feed: “Woke up to hear the devastating news from FL. As we wait for more information, my thoughts are with those affected by this horrific act. -- H"

She later issued a full statement saying the shootings were an “act of terror” and that as a result Americans must “redouble our efforts to defend our country from threats at home and abroad.”

Clinton did not mention evidence suggesting the shooter might have been inspired by the Islamic State but said protecting the country means “defeating inteational terror groups,” which includes countering their attempts to recruit people and “refusing to be intimidated.”

Clinton, like President Obama, suggested the attack makes clear again that fewer guns should be on the street and that attacking a LGBT nightclub during pride month was also “an act of hate.”

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Beie Sanders, D-Vt., tweeted: “It’s horrific. It’s unthinkable.”

President Obama said Sunday the massacre is being investigated as an “act of terror” but declined to mention whether it was related to radical Islam, amid such mounting evidence, and argued the attack was another example of too many available guns in the country.

“We know enough to say this was an act of terror and an act of hate,” Obama said from the White House Briefing Room. “As Americans we are outraged.”

He also ordered U.S. flags to be flown at half staff “as a mark of respect for the victims of the act of hatred and terror perpetrated on Sunday, June 12, 2016, in Orlando, Florida.”

Earlier in the day, the president was briefed by Lisa Monaco, assistant to the president for homeland security and counterterrorism, the White House said.

Vice President Biden cancelled a trip to Miami for Florida Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, after receiving a similar briefing.

A spokesman said Biden "offered his prayers for all those killed and injured in the shooting and sends his condolences to all the families and loved ones of the victims."

Florida GOP Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency, which will make additional resources available for local authorities.

He offered “thoughts and prayers” to all those affected by the attack, particularly the victims and their families, and praised the efforts of the first-responders.

“We will devote every resource available to assist with the shooting in Orlando,” Scott also said. “I would like to also thank all the first responders who quickly came to assist and help those in need. … For anybody who thinks they should do this, the state of Florida, local law enforcement, will be swift in their judgement.”

Rep. Alan Grayson, R-Fla., whose district includes the area in which the massacre occurred, said “more likely than not” the shooting was “an ideological motivated attack.”

Grayson also said the attack appears to be an “awful hate crime,” considering it occurred at a gay club.

“I wouldn’t be surprised,” he told reporters at a press conference in Orlando.

The attack at Pulse nightclub occured during LGBT pride month and Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting.

Grayson and others said Mateen appeared to carry out the attack alone.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said, "We are horrified and heartbroken to see such hate leveled at so many people hoping just to spend a night out dancing. … We will not allow hate and terror to succeed in blinding us with fear.”

Florida GOP Sen. Marco Rubio early in the day called the attack a “heartbreaking act of terrorism.”

He later arrived in Orlando to say investigators are “still leaing all of the facts” but that Islamic terrorists need to know “they will not win.”

Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McCoell, R-Ky., early Sunday also thanked first-responders, said “the nation's prayers are with the victims and their families” and that he’d wait for authorities to determine “the exact nature of this crime and whether it was coected to inteational terrorist groups."