On Tuesday, an 18-year-old gunman entered an Uvalde, Texas elementary school with a long rifle and proceeded to kill 19 children and two teachers in a single classroom. On Wednesday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott—a longtime NRA supporter who has been instrumental in relaxing state gun laws—held a press conference to pass the buck to “mental health illness.”
During the press conference, Democratic Texas gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke interrupted Abbott, saying, “The time to stop the next shooting is now, and you are doing nothing. You’re offering us nothing.”
It was cathartic to see O’Rourke express some fraction of the frustration and rage that people across the country are feeling in the wake of the shootings in Uvalde, Buffalo, Laguna Woods, and every other U.S. city that has become associated with a senseless and unimaginably traumatizing mass shooting. As he was ejected from the room, he continued to lambast Abbott, saying: “This is on you, until you choose to do something different. This will continue to happen. Somebody needs to stand up for the children of this state or they will continue to be killed, just like they were killed in Uvalde yesterday.” In reply, Abbott appeared to denounce O’Rourke’s behavior, asserting, “We need to focus not on ourselves and our agendas.”
I’ve only lived in Texas for half a year, but I know I’m not alone in my current thinking, which goes like this: Actually, we want our legislators to have agendas. We want the people we elect to represent us to pass sensible gun legislation that will make it harder for our children and their teachers to be slaughtered in their classrooms—and if they can’t or won’t, they shouldn’t enjoy the privilege of uninterrupted public appearances. If citizens have to live in fear of death, politicians should be prepared for a response.
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