Updated Aug 3, 2019

Beto O'Rourke halts campaign to return home to El Paso after shooting

 Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke at the National Forum on Wages and Working People: Creating an Economy That Works for All at Enclave on April 27, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada

Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke. Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke became emotional as he told a news conference he's paused campaigning to return to his hometown of El Paso, Texas, following a shooting there, which killed at least 20 Walmart shoppers.

Details: "I’m incredibly saddened and it is very hard to think about this," the former Texas congressman said during a campaign stop in Nevada. "I’m going back there right now to be with my family and to be with my hometown." He later said there'd been a rise in hate crimes during President Trump's administration. He noted Trump has called Mexicans rapists and criminals.

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This article has been updated with O'Rourke's comments on Trump.

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