Greg Abbott Can ‘Go to Hell,’ Texas Senator Angrily Reacts After Shooting

Senator Roland Gutierrez, a Texas Democrat, criticized Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick over their response to gun violence in the state after a mass shooting occurred at an outlet mall on Saturday.

A gunman opened fire at shoppers and employees at Allen Premium Outlets in Allen, Texas, Saturday afternoon, killing eight people and injuring seven others. The suspected shooter, who has not been identified, was killed by an Allen Police Department officer who was on unrelated assignment at the mall.

The incident has sparked outrage across a state that has been trying to recover from a fatal mass shooting in Uvalde less than a year ago when 18-year-old Salvador Ramos used an AR-15 style rifle at Robb Elementary School to kill 19 children and two teachers. The school shooting sent shockwaves across the nation, but also created a new push for stricter gun control measures.

Though Abbott, Patrick, and GOP Senator Ted Cruz, among others, sent their thoughts and prayers for the families of the victims, Gutierrez expressed his anger about the lack of action in dealing with gun violence in the state.

Emergency vehicles line the entrance to the Allen Premium Outlets where a shooting took place on Saturday in Allen, Texas. Senator Roland Gutierrez, a Texas Democrat, criticized Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick over their response to gun violence in the state after a mass shooting at an outlet mall occurred on Saturday. Photo by Stewart F. House/Getty Images

“There is a special place in hell even for people that have this kind of problem staring them square in the face and have done nothing about it. I don’t care about their thoughts and I don’t care about their prayers,” the Democratic senator said during a TV appearance on MSNBC on Saturday. He tweeted a similar remark later that day.

Abbott said in a statement on Saturday that he has been in contact with state and local leaders following the shooting to make sure all needed assistance and resources are “swiftly” deployed, and added “our hearts are with the people of Allen, Texas tonight during this unspeakable tragedy.”

Meanwhile, Patrick also mourned the death of the victims in a statement that read: “Please join Jan and me in mourning the victims of the unspeakable tragedy in Allen. Please also join us in prayer for the victims’ families and friends along with the residents of Allen. We are grateful for our brave first responders who were deployed to stop the shooter and investigate this hideous crime. We are thankful for their bravery and courage.”

However, Gutierrez said during his MSNBC interview on Saturday that thoughts and prayers are not enough to implement solutions for shootings as he referenced the Uvalde mass shooting.

“This governor and this lieutenant governor, I’m sorry but they can go to hell. I am tired of these people saying this stuff and doing nothing,” he said.

Newsweek reached out by email to Gutierrez for additional comment.

Abbott is also facing backlash from others including California Governor Gavin Newsom who tweeted on Sunday that the Allen shooting is a “reminder that @GregAbbott_TX cut $211 million in mental health funding.”

Despite his stance about mental health, Abbott decided last year to cut nearly $211 million from the state’s Health and Human Services Commission, which oversees mental health programs among other health services in Texas. Still, he reiterated on Sunday the importance of addressing mental health issues.

When reached by email on Sunday morning, Abbott’s media team referred Newsweek to the governor’s comments on Fox News Sunday.

The Republican governor said during his interview with host Shannon Bream that addressing mental health issues is the “long-term solution” for gun violence in the country, adding that his state will be allocating funds to help with mental health issues.

“One thing that we can observe very easily is that there has been a dramatic increase in the amount of anger and violence that is taking place in America,” Abbott said. “And what Texas is doing in a big-time way is we are working to address that anger and violence by going to its root cause, which is addressing mental health problems behind it.”

In similar remarks after the Uvalde mass shooting, Abbott said the state and society “need to do a better job with mental health.”

“Anybody who shoots somebody else has a mental health challenge. Period. We as a government need to find a way to target that mental health challenge and do something about it,” Abbott said at the time, according to local news station KSAT.

In response to Abbott’s remarks on Saturday, political strategist Lindy Li tweeted: “Right on cue, Republicans are blaming the latest gun massacres on mental health, instead of guns. But Greg Abbott was the one who cut $211 MILLION in mental health funding 205 House Republicans voted AGAINST mental health services in schools. So don’t buy their b*******.”

Twitter user @fred_guttenberg also criticized Abbott’s remarks, writing: “Your statement is incomplete @GregAbbott_TX. You need to tell Texans the truth and explain why this keeps happening in Texas. You need to explain that your policies failed and that you lied. Your policies are to blame. Explain that in your statement. #AmericanCarnage.”

Meanwhile earlier this month, another shooting that rocked the state happened in Cleveland, Texas, when when Francisco Oropeza, 38, allegedly fatally shot five of his neighbors, including a 9-year-old boy, after they asked him to stop firing off rounds in his yard at night because a baby was sleeping. After a manhunt that lasted for days, law enforcement from dozens of agencies found Oropeza, a Mexican national who has been deported at least four times since 2009.

Though some think prayers and thoughts are not part of a resolution, Representative Keith Self, a Texas Republican, argued the opposite.

In an appearance on CNN, host Paula Reid asked Self for his response to criticism that “prayers aren’t cutting it” when it comes to addressing gun violence.

“Well, those are people that don’t believe in an almighty God who is absolutely in control of our lives. I’m a Christian. I believe that he is. Prayer is powerful in the lives of those people that are devastated. I know people want to make this political, but prayers are important, and they are powerful in the families who are devastated right now.”