FILE - This Feb. 1, 2012 file photo shows then-Republican presidential candidate, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas speaking in Las Vegas. Ron Paul is exiting the political stage but his legions of rabble-rousing followers insist they are only getting started. Libertarian-leaning loyalists of the two-time Republican presidential candidate have quietly taken over key-state GOP organizations, ensuring future fights with the GOPs establishment and laying the groundwork for a future presidential candidate. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson, File)

Former Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) on Monday sought to tone down an earlier reaction to the killing of former Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle, taking to Facebook to clarify that he believed the incident to be "tragic and sad."

"As a veteran, I certainly recognize that this weekend's violence and killing of Chris Kyle were a tragic and sad event," Paul wrote. "My condolences and prayers go out to Mr. Kyle’s family. Unconstitutional and unnecessary wars have endless unintended consequences. A policy of non-violence, as Christ preached, would have prevented this and similar tragedies."

Earlier on Monday, Paul tweeted out a much more cynical take on the crime, saying that "Kyle's death seems to confirm that 'he who lives by the sword dies by the sword.'" He went on to argue that "treating PTSD at a firing range doesn't make sense," seemingly referring to reports that murder suspect Eddie Ray Routh had been struggling with mental health issues following his military service in the Iraq War.

While Paul's initial response was not uncharacteristic of a man who spent the majority of his career in Congress denouncing military intervention abroad for a variety of reasons, including the toll it took on American servicemembers, the nature of its tone drew immediate criticism from a variety of sources. Paul's son, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), was among those who voiced disagreement.