Updated Aug 4, 2019

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

Rebecca Falconer

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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Rebecca Falconer

Beto O'Rourke criticizes media for questions on Trump after El Paso shooting

Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke criticized the media's treatment of President Trump after a CNN reporter asked if there's anything Trump can do to make things better following 2 mass shootings over the weekend.

"What do you think? You know the s--- he’s been saying. He’s been calling Mexican immigrants rapists and criminals. I don’t know, like, members of the press, what the f---? ... I mean, connect the dots about what he's been doing in this country."
Go deeperArrowAug 5, 2019
Rebecca Falconer

After El Paso mass shooting, gun control advocates march on Capitol

Several hundred gun control advocates marched on the White House and the Capitol Saturday night in a demonstration at least partly inspired by the deadly shooting in El Paso, Texas, AP reports.

The big picture: Moms Demand Action volunteers were among those to mobilize. They were already in Washington, D.C., for a conference, USA Today reports. "[W]e wanted to turn our grief into action," Moms Demand Action volunteer Elva Mendoza told USA Today.

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Keep ReadingArrowAug 4, 2019
Rebecca Falconer

Trump taunts Beto O'Rourke ahead of El Paso visit

Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke near the scene of last weekend's mass shooting in El Paso, Texas. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

President Trump mocked Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke's Hispanic nickname in a late-night tweet ahead of his visit to the former congressman's hometown of El Paso Wednesday to honor victims of the city's mass shooting.

Why it matters: ABC News notes that Trump's Twitter attack is in direct opposition to the conciliatory tone he struck when he condemned racism following Saturday's massacre, saying "Now is the time to set destructive partisanship aside." O'Rourke has said Trump is a "white nationalist" who encourages racism and violence in the U.S.

Go deeperArrowAug 7, 2019