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A viral photo of Democratic Texas gubernatorial candidate Beto O'Rourke interrupting incumbent Republican Governor Greg Abbott's press conference has people on Twitter in total awe and hoping even more for his victory in November.
The press conference was held in response to the deadliest school shooting in 10 years at a Uvalde, Texas elementary school Tuesday.
Flanked by Republican Senator Ted Cruz and leaders of the local police force that waited an hour to enter the school while onlookers begged them to intervene, Abbott predictably pledged to do absolutely nothing about the shooting.
Instead, he simply blamed it on "the status of mental health in our society," a repeatedly disproven theory.
Like most Americans, O'Rourke has simply had enough.
He interrupted Abbott's performative press conference to rail against his inaction before being shouted down and forcibly removed from the venue by police.
And one photo captured the moment perfectly.
This is the leader that we need right now. Keep going @BetoORourke. pic.twitter.com/HTdlVJIHV4
— Kate Hoit (@KateHoit) May 25, 2022
People were floored by the powerful image.
\u201c@KateHoit @BetoORourke And this is THE photo that tells the story with no words. Wow!\u201d— Kate Hoit (@Kate Hoit) 1653512847
\u201cMy god, that photo of Beto.\u201d— John Aravosis \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\uddec\ud83c\uddf7\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (@John Aravosis \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\uddec\ud83c\uddf7\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08) 1653568694
\u201c@KateHoit @BetoORourke This picture is everything.\u201d— Kate Hoit (@Kate Hoit) 1653512847
During the press conference, Abbott offered no solutions whatsoever, instead appealing to Texans to help comfort the families of the victims. He also asserted "there was no meaningful forewarning of this crime," a claim that is false.
O'Rourke did not hold back in his words to Abbott, whom he excoriated for "doing nothing."
You can watch the exchange below.
\u201c"It's on you."\n\nIn a striking moment, Texas gubernatorial candidate @BetoORourke interrupts Gov. Greg Abbott's press conference about the Uvalde shooting.\u201d— The Recount (@The Recount) 1653501106
Beto O'Rourke confronts Abbott pic.twitter.com/HTJTLduoca
— Acyn (@Acyn) May 25, 2022
\u201c\u201cNow is the time to stop the next shooting ... In each case we say this isn\u2019t the time. Now is the time \u2014 like, literally right now. That\u2019s why I\u2019m here.\u201d\n\n\u2014 Texas gubernatorial candidate @BetoORourke on Gov. Greg Abbott saying now is not the time to politicize a shooting\u201d— The Recount (@The Recount) 1653501106
O'Rourke called the Uvalde tragedy "totally predictable" and told Abbott:
"The time to stop the next shooting is right now and you are doing nothing."
The Republican crowd onstage immediately erupted in invective, with Senator Cruz calling O'Rourke "pathetic" and another man calling O'Rourke a "sick son of a b*tch" before leveling Republicans' favorite accusation every time a mass shooting happens--that O'Rourke was trying to politicize a tragedy that is inherently political.
When they were finished hurling profanity-laden insults at O'Rourke, members of the party that claims to stand for moral values, personal accountability and freedom of speech had O'Rourke forcibly removed by police.
So he simply held his own press conference outside.
After getting booted, Beto went outside and kept going pic.twitter.com/2gCystHOr7
— Brandon Friedman (@BFriedmanDC) May 25, 2022
There, he placed blame for the shooting squarely on Abbott's shoulders, invoking his inaction on the 2019 El Paso mass shooting as a precursor to Uvalde.
"[T]hese kids died because the governor of the state of Texas, the most powerful man in the state, chose to do nothing."
"After every one of these, he holds a press conference just like this – and I wish to hell when he came to El Paso that someone would have stood up and held him to account and confronted him and shocked the conscience of this state into doing something."
O'Rourke went on to rail against Abbott's record on both gun-control laws and access to medical care that would help improve the "status of mental health in our society" on which Abbott blamed the Uvalde shooting.
"He's refused to expand Medicaid, which would bring $10 billion a year, including mental health care access for people who need it."
"He's refused to champion red flag laws..."
"He's refused to support safe-storage laws so young people cannot get their hands on their parents' weapons."
O'Rourke then called upon Texans to join him in fighting gun violence in the state and across the country.
"Why are we letting this happen in this country? Why is this happening in this state? Year after year, city after city..."
"...I am going to do something and I'm not alone. The people of Texas are with us, the majority of people in Texas are with us. Well, we've got to stand up to this."
"We just can't accept this theater or business as usual, and accept the next shooting."
On Twitter, many felt O'Rourke's response to Republican inaction was nothing short of heroic.
You are my hero @BetoORourke. From the bottom of my heart, for my daughter Jaime and all victims of gun violence, thank you. pic.twitter.com/zW3msBSmo3
— Fred Guttenberg (@fred_guttenberg) May 25, 2022
Confront every Republican politician the way that Beto just did.
— No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen (@NoLieWithBTC) May 25, 2022
Beto O'Rourke has had just about enough of your bullshit
— Jeff Tiedrich (@itsJeffTiedrich) May 25, 2022
Robert Francis O’Rourke was the only man in the room with balls enough to call out a Governor who has made it easier for anyone to buy a gun.
Bravo Beto!! #AbbottCruzMassacre
— TheDPlucky (@d_plucky) May 26, 2022
As a Texan, I am extremely proud of Robert Francis O'Rourke aka Beto for calling out Assbott's bullshit at the press conference. Assbott acts like he's innocent, but he's not. He is absolutely responsible for what happened in Uvalde. Freakin' rat bastard. #AbbottCruzMassacre
— KT (@sloyoroll01973) May 26, 2022
And many felt Beto's actions made the hypocrisy and fecklessness on the part of Abbott and the Republicans leading his press conference all the more glaring.
The cops got Beto out of there about 100x faster than they got the shooter out of the elementary school https://t.co/8B7PKUrmCJ
— Ben Wexler (@mrbenwexler) May 25, 2022
Beto O’Rourke getting yelled at like he just interrupted the Klan lighting a cross on fire. pic.twitter.com/R2zuELucVJ
— Ron Filipkowski 🇺🇦 (@RonFilipkowski) May 25, 2022
Look at these good ol’ boys terrified at the sight of Beto O’Rourke. https://t.co/OG8MsaC2x0
— bettemidler (@BetteMidler) May 25, 2022
Were any of the obese Texas Sherrifs or whatever’s pointing at @BetoORourke in outrage the leaders of Law Enforcement organizations that did not enter the school and stop the killing? Were any the incompetent leaders of organizations that froze in terror as opposed to acting?
— Steve Schmidt (@SteveSchmidtSES) May 26, 2022
They are more upset Beto interrupted the press conference than 19 kids dead. https://t.co/VH2r99D5kc
— Rex Chapman🏇🏼 (@RexChapman) May 25, 2022
Texas has some of the laxest gun laws in the entire country—which itself has the laxest gun laws of any developed nation on Earth.
Abbott is an outspoken supporter of the National Rifle Association.
Both he and Senator Cruz are still slated to speak at an NRA convention in Houston tomorrow.