Texas gubernatorial candidate Beto O'Rourke, a Democrat, interrupted Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's press conference on Wednesday, publicly admonishing Abbott for offering "nothing" to his constituency after a school shooting in Uvalde left nineteen children and two teachers dead.
"You are doing nothing," O'Rourke said to Abbott's face after walking up to the stage. "You said this was not predictable, this was totally predictable, and you choose not to do anything."
Beto O’Rourke interrupts ongoing press conference by Texas Gov. Abbott and other officials. pic.twitter.com/qa8YY0ghQy
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) May 25, 2022
Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin immediately attempted to shout the interruption down, telling O'Rourke "Sir, you are out of line. Please leave this auditorium."
"The time to stop the next shooting is now, and you are doing nothing," O'Rourke, who is challenging Abbott, pressed on.
McLaughlin later called the gubernatorial candidate "a sick son of a b**ch who would come to a deal like this to make a political issue."
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At one point, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tex., who was also in attendance, told O'Rourke to "sit down."
O'Rourke was shortly escorted out of the event.
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
RELATED: At least 21 dead in Texas school shooting: "They f**king failed our kids"
Later, in a widely shared video from outside the presser, the Texas Democrat castigated Abbott for attributing the shooting to mental health problems while refusing to expand Medicaid, which includes mental health coverage. O'Rourke also brought up the need for Texas to institute red flag laws, which allow the police to temporarily confiscate firearms from gun owners if they present a danger to themselves or their communities.
"Why are we letting this happen in this country?" he asked a crowd. "Year after year, city after city. This is on all of us – if we do not do something. I'm going to do something, and I'm not alone. The people of Texas are with us."
Beto making my point about Medicaid expansion after being ejected from the press conference: pic.twitter.com/wOqGMqtmbw
— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) May 25, 2022
"These massacres are not natural disasters, acts of God, or random. They are totally predictable, direct consequences of the choices made by Greg Abbott and the majority of those in the Texas legislature," O'Rourke wrote to supporters in a Wednesday email.
O'Rourke's interruption was met with swift rebuke from Republicans.
Beto O’Rourke’s disgusting publicity stunt today proves he lacks the decency or capacity to care for anyone other than himself and his flailing political career.
— The RGA (@GOPGovs) May 25, 2022
He’s unfit to serve Texas and it’s why he resorts to selfish displays like today’s. https://t.co/zErBzkxR1X
Beto O’Rourke’s candidacy should end today.
— Irene Armendariz-Jackson For Congress (@ArmendarizDis16) May 25, 2022
What he did by hijacking this tragedy is the most disgraceful act I have ever witnessed in politics.
He should be absolutely ashamed and run out of Texas!
"Beto danced on the dead bodies of children," far-right personality Mike Cernovich tweeted. "He'll be celebrated by the regime media for this. They have no decency."
Beto’s Disgraceful Interruption Was a Wholly Empty Gesture | Opinion by @charlescwcooke https://t.co/ZyfagySh5Y
— National Review (@NRO) May 25, 2022
Beto O'Rourke doesn't want to solve gun violence. He's flipped and flopped on the issue repeatedly. He just wants the issue to excite the progressive base.
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) May 25, 2022
During the presser, the governor said that Ramos had no known mental health issues. But according to The Washington Post, Ramos was well-known for his reclusion and aggressive outbursts. As Ramos grew older, friends said, his condition sharply deteriorated. The troubled teen reportedly developed a fixation with guns and would shoot his BB gun at random strangers.
"He posted videos on his Instagram where the cops were there and he'd call his mom a b*** and say she wanted to kick him out," one former friend said. "He'd be screaming and talking to his mom really aggressively."
RELATED: Republicans don't care about kids — just imaginary children
