Beto O'Rourke interrupts Texas school shooting press conference, gets escorted out  

Texas gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke interrupted a press conference in Uvalde, Texas, about the Texas elementary school shooting on Wednesday to confront Governor Gregg Abbott and other officials. 

"Gov. Abbott, I have to say something," yelled O'Rourke about 15 minutes after the televised event began. “The time to stop the next shooting is right now and you are doing nothing.”

"You said this is not predictable. This is totally predictable," he said about Tuesday’s shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas that left 19 students and two teachers dead. 

"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," the former El Paso, Texas congressman added.

Beto O’Rourke interrupts ongoing press conference by Texas Gov. Abbott and other officials. pic.twitter.com/qa8YY0ghQy

— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) May 25, 2022

Before the interruption, Abbot said that stricter gun laws were not the “real solution” to incidents like the one that happened on Tuesday. 

"People who think maybe we can implement tough gun laws and we can solve it—Chicago, New York and LA disprove that thesis. Chicago teaches you that what you are talking about isn't a real solution," Abbott said. 

O’Rourke, who has been vocal about gun control in the past, said that the Texas governor’s "only interest is the gun lobby."

"Five of the worst mass hosting in US history, right here in this state in the last five years. He was governor for every single one of them," O'Rourke continued.

Several officials reacted to O’Rourke’s comments.

“You're out of line and an embarrassment," said Texas Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. 

“I can’t believe that you’re a sick son of a bitch that would come to a deal like this to make a political issue,” the Mayor of Uvalde, Don McLaughlin, said, according to Texas Tribune. 

"Sit down and don't play this stunt," Senator Ted Cruz told O’Rourke.

O’Rourke was escorted out of the premises by security officers. 

Meanwhile, the governor addressed the attendees, calling for unity. “There are family members that are crying as we speak," he said. "There are family members whose hearts are broken. There’s no words that anybody shouting can come up here and do anything to heal these broken hearts.”

"This is on you, until you choose to do something different," he told Abbott as he was leaving the room. 

Abbot and O’Rourke will face off in the next gubernatorial race in November.