RIGHTEOUS OUTRAGE: Beto O’Rourke crashes Abbott press conference to call out the hypocritical Texas governor
Democratic Texas Gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke just crashed Governor Greg Abbott’s press conference and is being lauded by many for his bold and audacious move. Just one day after a shooting took the life of 19 children and two adults at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, TX, Governor Abbott (R-TX) has been making the obligatory and predictable talking point rounds. But today, his cynical hypocrisy was exposed when his opponent, O’Rourke, publicly called him out on his useless rhetoric.
CNN‘s Kaitlan Collins tweeted a clip of a visibly angry Beto o’Rourke calling the Governor’s actions “totally predictable” and labeling Abbott’s inaction as totally inadequate.
“You are doing nothing,” O’Rourke said as he confronted the Republican governor with righteous indignation on behalf of all Texans.
Beto O’Rourke interrupts ongoing press conference by Texas Gov. Abbott and other officials. pic.twitter.com/qa8YY0ghQy
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) May 25, 2022
O’Rourke reminded Abbott of Santa Fe High School and El Paso, Texas, the locations of two mass shootings, in 2018 and 2019, that took place in the state and left a total of 33 people dead.
On the morning of May 18, 2018, Dimitrios Pagourtzis – a junior at Santa Fe High School, just south of Houston, TX – carried out an attack that left 10 classmates dead and others injured. According to the Texas Tribune, Pagourtzis was not only armed with a .38 revolver and shotgun, but with “explosive devices” — Molotov cocktails, and a CO2 device — that had been found on the High School campus.
That Santa Fe shooting happened just six months after a lone gunman entered First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, TX, killing 26 innocent people in what the Texan Tribune called at the time the “deadliest shooting at a place of worship in American history.”
Victims ranged in age from 5 to 72 and included the daughter of the church’s pastor and an expectant mother. The Sutherland Springs massacre took place exactly eight years after a gunman killed 13 people at the Ft. Hood army base in Killeen, TX.
On the anniversary of the Sutherland Springs tragedy, Abbott spoke at the memorial. In a typical, canned “I’m gonna say something, while not doing anything” speech, he told those in attendance:
“The horrific shooting that took place here could’ve ripped this community apart ─ but it didn’t. Instead, you came together and turned to the Lord for strength, guidance, and healing. While we may never fully understand why these things happen, we know it is through Him that we can overcome these challenges. Through Him, we have the hope and assurance that good always triumphs over evil. Together, we will work every day to honor the memory of those who died.”
Just a month after the Santa Fe High School massacre, Abbott cowered to gun lobbyists – walking back his earlier mention of passing potential “red flag” laws in this tweet after getting pushback from 2nd Amendment gun nuts:
I agree with you 110%.
I wish you’d read the plan before commenting. It specifically requires full due process before anyone’s right can be compromised. Moreover I don’t advocate red flag laws. Only that it is something the legislature can consider. #txlege #2A https://t.co/PhdUyU55Hf— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) June 25, 2018
Beto O’Rourke, righteous in his anger, has good reason to be furious. A little over a year after the Santa Fe shooting, O’Rourke’s hometown of El Paso, TX would experience tragedy when a gunman drove hundreds of miles across the state and killed 23 innocent people at an area Walmart and injuring over two dozen more in a murderous shooting spree, that was inspired by hateful right-wing rhetoric and speech.
The gubernatorial hopeful has called on Abbott to cancel the NRA’s planned event this Friday in Houston in order to send a signal to the gun lobby that things are different this time.
Governor Abbott, if you have any decency, you will immediately withdraw from this weekend’s NRA convention and urge them to hold it anywhere but Texas.
— Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) May 25, 2022
Also scheduled to attend the NRA conference are coup conspirators, former president Donald Trump and U.S. Senator Ted “Cancun” Cruz (R-TX). So far there’s no indication of plans to cancel or re-schedule the ill-timed and inappropriate event.
When it comes to caring about children, don’t expect much if the GOP is involved – unless your name happens to be Remington or Smith & Wesson.
Follow Ty Ross on Twitter @cooltxchick
