UVALDE, Texas (AP) — Surrounded by fellow Republicans on a high school stage, Gov. Greg Abbott was finishing his opening remarks on the killing of schoolchildren and teachers in Uvalde, Texas, when Beto O’Rourke stepped forward from his seat. in the audience.
“Gov. Abbott, I have something to say,” the Democrat challenging Abbott for governor this fall said Wednesday, pointing a finger at his rival. “The time to stop the next shooting is right now, and you’re not doing anything.”
A mix of boos and cheers arose from the crowd as the former congressman and 2020 presidential candidate spoke briefly and was then escorted out of the room. Senator Ted Cruz, standing behind Abbott, shook his head and said “sit down!” while a woman in the crowd chanted: “Let him speak.” Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin called O’Rourke a “sick son of a bitch.” Some people cried.
And with that, the briefing morphed into a discussion similar to what is happening in many corners of the United States after another school shooting that left a staggering death toll: 19 children and two teachers.
Democrats want to talk about enacting restrictions on who can own a gun and what kinds of guns should be available, while Republicans say such laws are pointless, preferring to focus on other issues like school safety, or preventing the discussion.
“We need all Texans right now to put aside their own agendas, think about someone other than ourselves, think about the people who are hurt,” Abbott said immediately after O’Rourke walked out, raising his voice.
Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, taking the microphone moments later, insisted that now was the time to focus on the victims and their families, adding, “This is not a partisan issue. This is not a political issue.”
But for many, including those in the high school audience, partisanship and politics are inescapable. Tuesday’s mass shooting in the small town west of San Antonio was just the latest to occur in Texas in recent years. After a gunman killed 23 people in a 2019 racist attack on Hispanics at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas lawmakers relaxed gun laws.
Abbott said Wednesday that he considers the steps the Republican-controlled Legislature took in 2019 to be the “deepest” action anywhere in the US to stop school shootings. He and other GOP officials said the proper place to focus is on mental health and “hardening schools,” or making them safer, rather than restricting guns.
He called existing gun laws in Chicago, New York and California ineffective.
“I hate to say this, but there are more people getting shot every weekend in Chicago than there are in Texas schools. And we have to realize that people who think that ‘Well, maybe we’ll just implement stronger gun laws’ are going to figure that out: Chicago, Los Angeles and New York refute that thesis,” he said.
Meanwhile, O’Rourke stood outside in the parking lot, where he continued to call for gun control.
“If we do nothing, we will continue to see this,” he said, “year after year, school after school, child after child.”
The residents of Uvalde also echoed the two sides of the debate.
Ariana Diaz, 17, said she has friends in the tight-knit community who lost their siblings and mothers. Speaking outside her high school, where her press conference was held, Ella Diaz said she would like to see O’Rourke elected governor. She noted that the shooter was 18 years old and could buy two guns.
“It’s not right,” she said. “She is only 18 years old. She’s not even old enough to buy an alcoholic drink. She shouldn’t be old enough to buy a gun.”
Laura Ligocky, 41, said that as a mother, the shooting was “heartbreaking” but that she doesn’t see gun restrictions as a solution.
“Everyone wants gun control, and I don’t think it’s helping,” he said, in the parking lot where O’Rourke was calling for gun restrictions. “I think it’s making things worse.”
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Burnett reported from Chicago. Associated Press reporter Jake Bleiberg contributed from Dallas.
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