.
. >>> PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE BETO
O’ROURKE IS NOW IN EL PASO, HIS
HOMETOWN.
HOMETOWN. LET’S.
LET’S. >> I KNEW -- MOTIVATED BY
HATRED, BY RACISM, BY AN
INTOLERANCE THAT IS FOREIGN TO
EL PASO.
EL PASO. IT HAD TO BE BROUGHT SOMEWHERE
ELSE INTO THIS COMMUNITY TO DO
SOMETHING LIKE WHAT WE’RE SEEING
RIGHT NOW.
RIGHT NOW. AND SO I WOULD JUST SAY THAT IN
ADDITION TO EVERYTHING THAT
WE’RE DOING FOR OUR FELLOW EL
PASOANS RIGHT NOW AND MEETING
THEM IN THIS TIME OF SUFFERING
AND NEED AND CRISIS, IN ADDITION
TO MAKING SURE THAT WE CHANGE
OUR LAWS SO IT IS HARDER FOR
SOMETHING LIKE THIS TO HAPPEN
AGAIN, I THINK WE ALSO HAVE TO
ASK OURSELVES ABOUT THE LEVEL OF
HATRED AND RACISM THAT WE’RE
SEEING IN THIS COUNTRY RIGHT NOW
THAT COULD LEAD TO AN EVENT LIKE
THE ONE WE SAW HERE TODAY.
THAT IS ON ALL OF US TO BOTH
CALL OUT AND TO STOP AND IN OUR
CASE IN EL PASO, TO BE THE
EXAMPLE OF HOW WE DON’T JUST
RESPECT ONE ANOTHER, WE EMBRACE
OUR DIFFERENCES AS THE VERY
SOURCE OF OUR STRENGTH.
SO COULD NOT BE MORE PROUD OF EL
PASO AND THE WAY WE’RE
RESPONDING TO THIS TRAGEDY
TODAY.
TODAY. HAPPY TO TAKE YOUR QUESTIONS.
>> SIR, REGARDING THE MANIFESTO
AND EVERYTHING THAT WAS IN IT,
FEARS ABOUT HISPANIC
IMMIGRATION, ALL THAT, DOES ANY
OF THIS FALL AT THE FEET OF
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP AND HIS
RHETORIC THAT’S BEEN GROWING
TURNOVER LAST COUPLE WEEKS AND
HIS ALLEGED RACIST TWEETS AND
OTHER RHETORIC?
OTHER RHETORIC? >> YES.
>> YES. WE’VE HAD A RISE IN HATE CRIMES
EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE LAST
THREE YEARS DURING AN
ADMINISTRATION WHERE YOU HAVE A
PRESIDENT WHO’S CALLED MEXICAN
RAPISTS AND CRIMINALS.
MEXICANS COMMIT CRIMES AT FAR
LOWER RATE THAN THOSE BORN IN
THIS COUNTRY.
THIS COUNTRY. HE IS ATTEMPT TO GO BAN ALL
MUSLIMS FROM THIS ONE THE DAY HE
SIGNED THE EXECUTIVE ORDER, THE
MOSQUE WAS BURNED TO THE GROUND.
THE CHANTS, SEND HER BACK,
TALKING ABOUT OUR FELLOW
AMERICAN CITIZENS, DULILY
ELECTED, TO HAPPEN TO BE WOMEN
OF COLOR, HE IS A RACIST AND HE
STOKES RACISM IN THIS COUNTRY.
AND IT DOES NOT JUST OFFEND OUR
SENSIBILITIES, IT FUNDAMENTALLY
CHANGES THE CHARACTER OF THIS
COUNTRY AND IT LEADS TO
VIOLENCE.
VIOLENCE. AGAIN, THERE ARE STILL DETAILS
THAT WE ARE WAITING ON, BUT I’M
JUST FOLLOWING THE LEAD THAT
I’VE HEARD FROM THE EL PASO
POLICE DEPARTMENT WHERE THEY SAY
THERE ARE STRONG INDICATIONS
THAT THIS SHOOTER WROTE THAT
MANIFESTO AND THIS WAS INSPIRED
BY HIS HATRED OF PEOPLE HERE IN
THIS COMMUNITY.
THIS COMMUNITY. >> WHEN YOU WERE WITH THE
PATIENTS, WHAT DID YOU TELL THEM
AND WHAT DID THEY TELL YOU?
>> I TOLD THEM I AM SO AMAZED AT
HOW STRONG THEY ARE.
WE MET A WOMAN WHO WAS SHOT IN
THE CHEST.
THE CHEST. THE BULLET PASSED THROUGH HER
LUNGS.
LUNGS. SHE’S HAVING HER LUNGS DRAINED
OF FLUID RIGHT NOW.
SHE HAS LEARNED THAT HER MOTHER
WHO WAS WITH HER WAS SHOT, THAT
HER AUNT WAS SHOT AS WELL.
THREE FAMILY MEMBERS, ALL WHOM
ARE SHOT AND ALL OF WHOM ARE
PULLING THROUGH TONIGHT, ALL OF
WHOM ARE SURROUNDED BY FAMILY
AND THESE EXTRAORDINARY NURSES
AND DOCTORS AND FRONT LINE STAFF
HERE AT UNIVERSITY MEDICAL
CENTER.
CENTER. WE’RE HEARING SIMILAR THINGS
ABOUT THE STAFF AT DEL SOL.
THOSE WAITING ROOMS ARE FULL OF
PEOPLE.
PEOPLE. I MET A WOMAN JUST NOW WHO SAID
SHE HASN’T BEEN ABLE TO HEAR
ANYTHING ABOUT HER HUSBAND FOR
THE LAST HOUR.
HE WAS ALSO SHOT IN THE CHEST.
HAS NOT BEEN AS RESPONSIVE, BUT
THE DOCTORS TELL HER THAT HE
SEEMS TO BE DOING BETTER MINUTE
BY MINUTE.
BY MINUTE. BUT I CAN ONLY IMAGINE WHAT SHE
IS FEELING RIGHT NOW.
SHE TOLD ME AND AMY, SHE SAID
THIS HAS GOT TO CHANGE.
SHE SAID THIS KEEPS HAPPENING IN
THIS COUNTRY.
THIS COUNTRY. WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?
WHY DO WE ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN?
THIS HAS TO CHANGE.
HER HUSBAND AND OTHER MEMBERS OF
THE FAMILY AND THEIR LITTLE
CHILDREN WERE ALL AT A TABLE
SELLING MERCHANDISE TO RAISE
FUNDS FOR THE SOCCER TEAM THAT
HE COACHES.
HE COACHES. DOING SOMETHING GREAT FOR THEIR
COMMUNITY, NEVER EXPECTING
SOMETHING LIKE THIS TO HAPPEN.
AND NOW PULLING FOR HER HUSBAND
TO MAKE IT THROUGH RIGHT NOW.
HER KIDS WITNESSED THE ENTIRE
THING.
THING. SO MANY FAMILIES, SO MANY
EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE, SO MUCH
HOPE IN THAT WAITING ROOM RIGHT
NOW.
NOW. SO MUCH STRENGTH IN THE
INDIVIDUAL ICU ROOMS WE GOT TO
BE IN.
BE IN. AGAIN, IT MAKES ME JUST
INCREDIBLY PROUD OF EL PASO AND
OF THESE PEOPLE, THESE
SURVIVORS.
SURVIVORS. BUT THEY’RE ALSO ASKING US TO DO
SOMETHING ABOUT THIS.
AND YES, IT’S THE GUN LAWS, YES,
IT’S THE UNIVERSAL BACKGROUND
CHECKS, AND YES, WE SHOULD STOP
SELLING WEAPONS OF WAR INTO OUR
COMMUNITIES.
COMMUNITIES. BUT I THINK WE ALSO HAVE TO
CONFRONT THIS HATRED THAT I HAVE
NEVER SEEN IN MY LIFETIME.
AND WE CERTAINLY HAVE NOT SEEN
IN EL PASO.
SOME YEARS IN A CITY OF ALMOST
700,000, WE HAD FIVE MURDERS THE
ENTIRE YEAR.
ENTIRE YEAR. OUR AVERAGE OVER THE LAST TEN
YEARS IS 18.
WE COMPETED THAT AVERAGE JUST ON
ONE DAY.
ONE DAY. THIS IS NOT NORMAL.
IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE.