Former Congressman Beto O’Rourke responded to Donald Trump on Wednesday after the president told him to “be quiet” in respect for the victims of the El Paso mass shooting.
“Twenty-two people in my hometown are dead after an act of terror inspired by your racism,” O’Rourke responded to Trump on Twitter. “El Paso will not be quiet and neither will I.”
Trump mocked O’Rourke’s “Beto” nickname as a “phony name” to emphasize Hispanic heritage and said the former congressman “should respect the victims & law enforcement – & be quiet!”:
Since returning to El Paso after the shooting, O’Rourke accused Trump of having “given people permission” for mass murder, sounding like the “Third Reich,” “reveling” in hatred and racism, and being unfit to unite the country.
He also described Trump supporters as “complicit” in mass murder.
The shooter said in a manifesto posted online that his bigotry predated President Trump and that he was inspired by the Christchurch shooting of a mosque in New Zealand.
The president travels to Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso, Texas, on Wednesday to visit the victims and thank law enforcement and first responders.