Politics

Abbott, O’Rourke engage in first debate, discuss gun control, migrant busing, and abortion

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On Friday, the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley hosted the first, and only debate for the Texas gubernational debate.

Republican Governor Greg Abbott and his Democratic challenger Beto O’Rourke faced off in a debate on Friday, less than 6 months before the day of the election.

Some of the topics frequently raised during the debate were on immigration, abortion and gun control. The Uvalde school shooting played a big part in the debate.

O’Rourke hit out at Abbott by saying he has “everybody else” for mass shootings while “misleading this state.”

“It’s been 18 weeks since their kids have been killed, and not a thing has changed in this state to make it any less likely that any other child will meet the same fate. All we need is action, and the only person standing in our way is the governor of the state of Texas.”

Abbott was shown a video about the Uvalde school shooting and the question was put to him on why he wouldn’t raise the minimum age to buy a gun. Abbott said that this action would likely be deemed “unconstitutional” under recent court rulings.

“We want to end school shootings, but we cannot do that by making false promises,” Abbott said.

Abbott said he was in favor of background checks for juveniles who want to purchase a gun, but stopped short at supporting “red flag” laws, stating that these laws “would deny lawful Texas gun owners their right to due process.”

O’Rourke said that if he is elected, he will make it a priority to remove assault style weapons such as AR-15’s, raise the minimum age to buy a gun to 21 and also enforce “red flag” laws.

“This is the common ground,” O’Rourke said.

The bussing of migrants also came up during the debate.

Abbott has come under criticism for bussing migrants to Democrat-led cities such as New York City, Washington DC, Martha’s Vineyard, and even on the doorstep of Kamala Harris’s residence.

While defending his decision to bus the migrants out-of-state, Abbott also denied that New York Mayor Adams ever reached out to him to discuss this.

“Mayor Adams has never called my office, never talked about it in my administration. And so, what he’s saying is just flat out false,” said Gov. Abbott. “There has been communication between non-governmental organizations in Texas as well as the ultimate location, whether it be Washington, D.C., or New York.”

O’Rourke commented on the bussing of migrants by saying “We don’t need any more stunts. We need solutions. We need those coming here to follow our laws. We need to make sure our laws follow up.”

When the topic of abortion came up, Abbott said that in cases of rape or incest “…we can to assist and aid the victim, and that is to help get them medical assistance that they need and the care that they need, but also to know what their options are.”

He added, “They’re going to know that [in] the state there are alternatives to abortion program provides living assistance, baby supplies, all kinds of things that can help them also with increased funding for prenatal and postpartum care.”

O’Rourke was open about his support for abortion, saying that he “will fight to make sure that every woman in Texas can make her own decisions about her own body, her own future and her own health care and will work with the legislature and my fellow Texans to return us to the standard that Texas women want in the first place, Roe vs. Wade.”

ARTICLE: PAUL MURDOCH

MANAGING EDITOR: CARSON CHOATE 

PHOTO CREDITS: NBCDFW.COM

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Paul Murdoch

Paul, 37, is from Scotland in the UK, but currently lives and works in Bangkok. Paul has worked in different industries such as telemarketing, retail, hospitality, farming, insurance, and teaching, where he works now. He teaches at an all-girls High School in Bangkok. “It’s a lot of work, but I love my job.” Paul has an active interest in politics. His reason for writing for FBA is to offer people the facts and allow them to make up their own minds. Whilst he believes opinion columns have their place, it is also important that people can have accurate news with no bias.

Paul, 37, is from Scotland in the UK, but currently lives and works in Bangkok. Paul has worked in different industries such as telemarketing, retail, hospitality, farming, insurance, and teaching, where he works now. He teaches at an all-girls High School in Bangkok. “It’s a lot of work, but I love my job.” Paul has an active interest in politics. His reason for writing for FBA is to offer people the facts and allow them to make up their own minds. Whilst he believes opinion columns have their place, it is also important that people can have accurate news with no bias.

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