SAN ANTONIO — Candidate for Texas governor Beto O'Rourke interrupted a press conference to confront Gov. Abbott and Texas leaders in Uvalde Wednesday.
Governor Abbott was joined by GOP Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, as well as other GOP leaders, in an update on the Uvalde schooting. 19 children and 2 teachers were killed when a gunman entered Robb Elementary School in Uvalde CISD Tuesday.
At the event, O'Rourke stood up and addressed leaders, saying the shooting was "predictable" and challenging them on gun policies.
"The time to stop the next shooting is right now," O'Rourke said at the event.
See the full confrontation below. Warning: the video does contain explicit language:
O'Rourke was quickly escorted out of the news conference by security.
As the debates over gun control continue, members of this tight-knit community are forced to endure a long and difficult grieving process. Adolpho Hernandez is one of them.
Hernandez, who has lived in Uvalde for 35 years, was also at the press conference. He said he came “thinking that these guys (state and local lawmakers) were actually going to do something to help.”
Instead, he said Abbot’s visit to Uvalde was mocking to the community.
“We don’t need his fake promises,” he said. “We need help… everything that he’s not offering is what we need.”
Hernandez tells KENS 5 his nephew witnessed and survived the shooting Tuesday morning. He’s raising three kids in Uvalde, with a fourth child in college.
“Mi familia, estamos bien,” he said. “My family, we’re OK."
"Pero mi comunidad esta derrotada estan en agonía, en dolor, no sabemos que vamos hacer,” he added. “But my community is defeated, they’re in agony, in pain. We don’t know what we’re going to do.”
When we asked Hernandez if he believed lawmakers should put stricter gun laws in place, he said, “I’m a gun lover, but 18 (years old, and being able to) buy an assault rifle? That’s ridiculous.”
Hernandez was able to talk to O’Rourke about what his community is going through.
After O’Rourke was escorted out of the news conference by security, he told reporters Texas needs stricter gun laws, saying the shooter should not have been able to purchase an AR-15.
“Stop selling AR-15s in the State of Texas… have universal background checks, we don’t have them… red flag laws or extreme risk protection orders which stop a shooting before it happens…safe storage laws," he added. "Those are four solutions that have been brought up by the people of Texas."
Abbott resumed speaking after O'Rourke's interruption, saying now is the time for Texans and Americans to come together and show support for the Uvalde community.
"There are no words that anyone can come up with here and shout that can heal those broken hearts," the governor said. "We need to focus on the healing and hope that we can provide to those who have suffered unconscionable damage."
Before Wednesday’s press conference, Abbott said he had a long discussion with law enforcement, community leaders and elected officials. Abbott said he asked the sheriff and mayor of Uvalde: “What is the problem here?”
“They were straightforward with me and said, 'We have a problem with mental health illness in this community,'" Abbott said, adding that the most immediate action would be provide mental health resources to the community.
However, moments before, Abbott said the gunman had no known mental health history.
Also at the news conference, he said the shooter, identified as 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, shot his grandmother before taking her car and crashing it in front of the school. He then ran into the school through a back door that accesses the hallway.
Ramos was a high school dropout and reportedly had no criminal history, although authorities say they are investigating whether he has a juvenile record. He reportedly had no mental health history.
Gov. Abbott said Ramos posted three times on Facebook leading up to the incident:
1. "I'm going to shoot my grandmother."
2. "I shot my grandmother."
3. "I'm going to shoot an elementary school."
O'Rourke spoke to reporters after he was escorted out of the press conference, saying that AR-15-style weapons should only be used by the military on a battlefield.
Earlier Wednesday, officials confirmed Ramos recently legally purchased two AR platform rifles from a "local federal firearms licensee."
Watch more of O'Rourke's comments to reporters below: