Obama: Don't turn the Fort Hood shootings into 'political theater'

Even as he travels through Asia, President Barack Obama said Saturday that he has ordered a full investigation of what happened last week at Fort Hood, Texas, and he promises accountability for mistakes made that allowed the tragic shootings.

The president, in his weekly radio address, said he is aware that Congress will pursue its own inquiries, "but all of us should resist the temptation to turn this tragic event into the political theater that sometimes dominates the discussion here in Washington"

"The stakes are far too high," Obama said.

Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.) told Fox News this week that administration officials delayed briefing members of Congress about the alleged gunman, raising "red flags" about what the White House was hiding.

Obama said in his address that the investigation is ongoing, and he will not "compromise" the investigation by discussing the details.

"But given the potential warning signs that may have been known prior these shootings, we must uncover what steps – if any – could have been taken to avert this tragedy," Obama said.

The president's Asia trip was shortened so he could attend the memorial service in Texas for the 13 killed last week.

"I am confident that justice will be done, and I will insist that the full story be told," Obama said.

A number of questions have been raised in the aftermath about what federal agencies knew about the shooter, Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, who apparently tried to contact al-Qaeda.

In Rose Garden remarks the day after the shooting, Obama cautioned Americans not to "jump to conclusions" in a situation where the shooter was a Muslim and reportedly made a statement praising Allah before he began shooting.

Obama issued a memorandum to relevant agency heads this week ordering a review of the inventory of federal files on Hasan. Preliminary results are to be presented by the end of this month to John Brennen, Obama's assistant for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism.

"Once we have those facts, we must act upon them," Obama said in his address. "If there was a failure to take appropriate action before the shootings, there must be accountability."