A "preacher" armed with a semiautomatic rifle showed up at Beto O'Rourke's townhall in Texas

[IcyPeas]

A “preacher” armed with a semiautomatic rifle showed up at Beto O’Rourke’s townhall in Hemphill, Texas, to challenge O’Rourke’s position on … abortion, calling it murder. A month after 20 people were murdered with an AR-15 in a Texas elementary school. This is America.

...

Here’s a video of the so-called pastor’s question to Beto. While armed to the teeth, he gets laughs for saying he’s not there to talk about guns, but abortion. This is the radical right wing’s ideology: use guns to intimidate and control conversations and curtail women’s rights.

Link to tweet

[liberal N proud]

1. God and Guns

Damn, they are all brainwashed by the gun industry

[TheBlackAdder]

33. For around $5 I can become an ordained minister on a few websites and start the tax-exempt grift.

[moonshinegnomie]

43. in already ordained...

universal life church and the church of the flying spaghetti monster

[LakeArenal]

2. None of your effin business.

Hey Pastor Dick pay taxes on you income.

[Elwood P Dowd]

3. Do you think he would be allowed to show up at a Trump rally armed like that? (nt)

[Nevilledog]

42. Depends on whether it was a coup-adjacent really.

[sanatanadharma]

4. An armed preacher is an oxymoron

An armed preacher is an oxymoron.
The preacher's message seems to be that one can not turn to God for protection.
Straight-up blasphemy.

[Wounded Bear]

20. Onward Christian Soldiers...

It used to be metaphorical.

[malaise]

5. What an effin asshole

He wasn’t entering my town hall - no way - sorry.
My answer would have been none of your fucking business. You are not the boss of me.

[SunImp]

6. Beto handled the situation well

Link to tweet

[IcyPeas]

7. thank you for that entire video. his answer was respectful.

the audience applauded when he said there should be a separation of church and state too.

[enough]

8. Yes, very impressive.

Thanks for posting that.

[dalton99a]

14. +1

[GoodRaisin]

31. Thanks for the video. Beto treated the christofascist

gun humper with respect and dignity while defending the constitution. Nice job.

[Maraya1969]

40. Beto handled that very well. I'm so glad he brought other religions into the matter since that

pastor spoke like it was only his religion that counted. Too many people do not take into account that there are many different beliefs and that theirs should not just automatically be made into a damn law!

[ShazzieB]

46. People like this nimrod think all those other beliefs are just hogwash.

They don't see their own beliefs as "beliefs," but as facts, and they think those who believe differently from themselves are going to hell and influenced/deluded by Satan if not outright possessed by demons. And the going to hell part = not worthy of their respect either way.

No, not all Christians or even all Evangelicals think that way, but it's clear he does by the way he worded his question. Beto's no dummy, and I'm sure he knew what he was dealing with. But when you're running for office, you tend to want to avoid antagonizing people if at all possible.

I would give anything know what Beto said to that guy. I don't understand why the person who made the video cut it off just when it was getting interesting. Dadgummit!

P.S. i finally got the second video to work, so now I know what Beto said, lol. And I swear, I don't know how he does it. This is a great example of why I am not a politician. I just don't have the patience to stand there and answer idiotic questions from idiots with a fraction of the patience, respect, and grace Beto displayed in this video. I. Could. Not. Do. It. Go, Beto!

[Hermit-The-Prog]

9. Radicalized vanilla ISIS.

[kentuck]

10. Outlaw them?

And make it a 5-year automatic sentence to carry one in public? For the safety of the people?

Is that the direction we are going?

[DetroitLegalBeagle]

17. We're going in the opposite direction

Laws on carrying guns in public have been trending towards less restrictions over the past 2 decades. With the recent SCOTUS ruling, that isn't likely to reverse or slow down. If anything, it will accelerate.

[raccoon]

11. This asshole shows up at armed like that And people are expected to act like it's

And people are expected to act like it’s OK, And they’re supposed to just take it on faith that he’s not gonna go apeshit cuckoo and start shooting everybody up?

God, this country is fucked up.

[demtenjeep]

15. I would walk out of a church with a nutbag preacher like that

hands down

[kentuck]

12. I think Beto may have gotten better coverage if he had just walked off the stage ...

...and asked the security to walk him to his car or a more secure location. He could have sent the message that there can be no "free speech" when people are threatening the audience with automatic weapons. Turn the tables on the fear mongers.

[sanatanadharma]

38. Ultimately it will take entire stores empying out when gunners arrive

When the economics of society are severely disrupted by peoples' response to public guns, then things will change.
Imagine a giant super-market filled with shopping carts filled with food abandoned in the aisles.
Imagine empty church pews, deserted amusement parks, empty malls, unsold concert tickets, overfilled graveyards ...

[Emile]

13. How much crazier can the right wing get?

[Liberal In Texas]

16. I worry about Beto going to all these small towns

I know he wants to try and sway the rural voters, but there are just too many crazies in the boonies. The least his people should be doing is posting signs that no firearms are allowed at these townhall events. And have security people at the doors to make sure that happens.

[raccoon]

35. Ita, Remember the 1960s. As you said there are too many crazies out there. Nt

[LudwigPastorius]

19. I must have skimmed over the part of the bible in which...

Jesus went out saving people at the point of a spear.


"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is coming...and so is this sharp stick if you don't!"

[Marcuse]

21. They thrive on hate and fear.

[kentuck]

22. How can you have "free speech" at a rally or at a townhall....?

...If someone walks in with an AR-15 or an AK-47?

How do you know he is not a crazy killer? Just the very fact that someone would carry a gun into a place like that is proof they are not stable.

How do they know he is a "preacher"? How do they know he is a "law-abiding" citizen? How do they know he is not insane?

It is not only a threat to everyone at the townhall, it is a threat to "free speech".

Screw that shit!

[albacore]

23. I have thought about my response to a similar situation.

I'd 911 the cops and say that a man with an assault rifle was menacing a crowd.
If I was in the crowd, I'd feel menaced.
I'm not prepared to gamble my life that a person with that kind of firepower was simply making some fucking point about his goddam "freedom".
Beto did OK, but why wasn't the crowd all over this asshole?
Intimidated is my guess.
I wonder what happens if somebody walks quietly up behind a dipshit like this and hits him in the gourd with a pipe?
This fucking country is nuts.

[ancianita]

24. This kind of thing won't be confined to TX but will probably spread to other battleground states.

Of course, the whole United States was declared officially a "battleground" in the 2001 Patriot Act.

[dlk]

25. Terrorist wannabe...

n/t

[CTyankee]

26. I'm a 3rd generation Texan but I will never set foot in that state again.

I'm so happy to be in Connecticut which has values I share and cherish. I do like Beto but I am sorry that he has to put up with these people.

[DFW]

27. A guy like that is a deadly menace, and should be treated as such

I would have had about eight armed security guys draw on him the second he was visible outside the entrance, give him three seconds to lay down his weapons, and act on their threat if he didn‘t. No one knew his intentions, and his appearance was openly hostile.

There have been far too many shootings of unarmed Americans recently to risk letting armed right wing extremists into gatherings with prominent Texas Democrats present. They are already an endangered species as it is.

[UTUSN]

28. Despicable creep

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

29. What would Jesus carry?

[IcyPeas]

30. Or....

WWJD....

Link to tweet

[Boomerproud]

32. Where was security?

BTW all the gun nuts need to work on their PR.

[ruet]

48. Texas Is an Open Carry State And...

the event was on public property and open to the public. There's not much Security was going to be able to do.

[Emile]

34. What kind of religion encourage pastors to carry assault rifles?

[IcyPeas]

37. This church where you can get your gun blessed.

[BlueIdaho]

39. Trust in God?

No. Trust in Smith and Wesson - right Rev. Nutbag?

[Maraya1969]

41. I really want someone to ask one of the people why they feel the need to arm themselves

like they are going into a war zone if they trust Jesus so much?

[maxsolomon]

44. they have a ready made answer: self-defense.

their right as an amurkin.

remember, it's the LIBERALS that are violent. they burned down SMALL BUSINESSES!

[Maraya1969]

45. But why do they need self defense if Jesus is protecting them? Just playing devil's advocate

That was so many of their excuses for not wearing a mask. Jesus would protect them.

It's all bullshit.

[Act_of_Reparation]

47. What's with the scare quotes and the so-calleds?

Is there some kind of rule somewhere stipulating that one cannot both be a pastor and be a complete asshole? Because, spoiler alert: a significant percentage of clergy are, indeed, total knobs.

[UTUSN]

49. "Pray not like the hypocrites..."