A post shared on Facebook claims actor Clint Eastwood said that “the problem is not guns,” but rather “hearts WITHOUT GOD” and “Schools without prayers.”

Facebook/Screenshot

Verdict: False

There is no record of Eastwood making such a statement. Eastwood’s lawyer denied the actor made the comment.

Fact Check:

A gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas May 24, according to NPR. In the wake of the shooting, the Senate approved a bipartisan package on gun control, which would strengthen background checks for those under 21 who seek to purchase a gun, The New York Times reported.

A May 25 Facebook post claims Eastwood weighed in on the gun control debate. “The problem is not guns. It’s hearts WITHOUT GOD. Homes WITHOUT discipline. Schools without prayers. Court room WITHOUT justice,” reads the post, which attributes the statement to the actor. The alleged quote has also surfaced on Twitter in the past.

Clint Eastwood: “The problem is not guns. It’s hearts without God,homes without discipline,schools without prayer, and courtrooms without justice.”

— Schban (@Shcnab) October 5, 2019

There is no evidence Eastwood made the statement. Check Your Fact found no credible news reports that attribute such a statement to him. The actor also does not maintain a verified public account on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter where he might post such a comment.

John Marks, a lawyer for Eastwood, confirmed in an email to Check Your Fact that the Oscar-winner did not make the statement in question. (RELATED: Did Beto O’Rourke Tweet ‘It’s Time To Ban Gun Ownership Across The Board’?)

An internet search revealed that Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott made a similar statement during a speech at the National Rifle Association’s 2018 annual convention in Dallas, according to NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth. “You know someone said that, the problem is not guns. The problem is hearts without God. It’s homes without discipline. It’s communities without values,” said Abbott.

This is not the first time a statement has been misattributed to Eastwood. Check Your Fact recently debunked a claim that suggested the actor stated “if you could reason with a democrat, there wouldn’t be any democrats.”