Texas Governor candidate Beto O’Rourke is fed up with the state’s current governor, Greg Abbott, and today (May 25), O’Rourke let him know loud and clear.
During a televised press conference addressing the deadly mass shooting yesterday (May 24) at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, O’Rourke left his seat to call Abbott out on his gun safety stance.
Because Abbott was on stage, he was the only one between the two who had a mic, so it’s a bit hard to hear everything said, but video shows officers and other speakers rushing to stop O’Rourke.
A speaker can be heard telling O’Rouke to “sit down.” Other words hurled included, “You’re out of line and an embarrassment.” Another person from the stage yells, “Sir, you are out of line” repeatedly while angrily pointing and instructing him to “get out of the auditorium.”
CNN reporter Natasha Bertrand tweeted that O’Rourke was, indeed, escorted out.
“Beto O’Rourke just got up in the middle of the press conference to confront Texas Gov. Abbott directly and the police have just escorted him out,” Bertrand said.
It’s been less than an hour since the incident occurred and Twitter is blowing up with tweets in support of O’Rourke’s actions.
Fred Guttenberg lost his daughter Jaime in the Parkland school shooting in 2018. He tweeted, “You are my hero @BetoORourke. From the bottom of my heart, for my daughter Jaime and all victims of gun violence, thank you.”
Following the Parkland tragedy, Guttenberg has become determined to save lives and fight for gun safety in America according to his Twitter bio.
Another user added, “Wow! Beto O’Rourke just crashed Gov. Abbott’s press conference on the Uvalde Massacre and demanded he do something about the state’s gun problem. Thank you, @BetoORourke!”
Yesterday, O’Rourke used the social media platform to call Abbott out for not doing enough to protect the community from massacres like this. “The moment to stop Uvalde was right after Sandy Hook. After Santa Fe High. After El Paso. Instead, Abbott made it easier to carry guns in public. The moment to stop the next slaughter is right now,” he tweeted.
Today, authorities announced that 21 people, including 19 children and two adults, were fatally shot in yesterday’s attack. The accused gunman Salvador Ramos was shot and killed on the scene.