Chicago mayor lashes out at Ted Cruz after he illuminates inconvenient facts about gun violence

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot lashed out at "coward Republicans" and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Monday after Cruz made keen observations about the Windy City's crime epidemic.

The Texas Republican said Monday that "gun control doesn't work" and pointed to Chicago as an example.

"Disarming law-abiding citizens isn't the answer. Stopping violent criminals—prosecuting & getting them off the street—BEFORE they commit more violent crimes is the most effective way to reduce murder rates. Let's protect our citizens," Cruz said.

Cruz's comments came in response to news that Chicago suffered another weekend of violence. Weekend violence is common in Chicago, but it spikes over holiday weekends, including this year's Labor Day weekend.

In all, seven people were murdered and nearly three dozen others were injured in weekend gun violence, staggering numbers that eclipsed last year's Labor Day weekend violence. The city has had 338 homicides this year.

In response, Lightfoot, who was elected in May, told Cruz to "keep our name out of your mouth."

"60% of illegal firearms recovered in Chicago come from outside IL—mostly from states dominated by coward Republicans like you who refuse to enact commonsense gun legislation," she wrote on Twitter.

Gun control was thrust back into the national debate over the weekend after another shooting tragedy in Odessa, Texas, left seven people dead and more than 20 others injured.