Abbott’s response seen as ‘minimalist’
Political climate, backlash to Santa Fe plan may have led to limited action, experts say
AUSTIN — In the weeks since a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at a Uvalde elementary school, Gov. Greg Abbott has declined to use the power of his office to call a special session, form commissions or issue executive orders to address school safety or gun violence.
Instead, the governor has issued at least eight directives imploring other Texas officials to take action, from conducting school safety assessments to promoting technology to report suspicious behavior. It’s a strategy that political experts say is substantive — but does not nearly represent the extent of the governor’s authority or influence.
“As governor, he is the chief administrative officer of the state,” said Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University. “For the governor to be instructing various agencies to take a part in the response to gun violence and the Uvalde shooting is perfectly reasonable. But on another level, it is — as always in Texas — a minimalist response.”
Abbott has embraced his gubernatorial powers in the past, however, utilizing disaster declarations to enact policies related to the COVID-19 pandemic and border security concerns. And he has taken a front-and-center role in the state’s response to previous mass shootings, hosting roundtable discussions and issuing a 43-page plan detailing potential legislative solutions after the 2018 massacre at Santa Fe High School.
This time, Abbott has passed off much of the public response to the Legislature, Texas Education Agency and Department of Public Safety, among other entities. His most direct action as of mid June was the issuance of a disaster declaration in Uvalde County, which accelerates the state’s ability to direct funding and resources to the region.
It’s likely a sign of the tense political climate and the governor’s unwillingness to upset fellow Republicans, said Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston. Abbott’s strong response to the Santa Fe shooting backfired when members of the Legislature rejected several of his policy proposals, including a so-called
“red flag” law that allows courts to temporarily remove firearms from people deemed a danger to themselves or others, he said.
“He got snakebit on that process,” Rottinghaus said. “Politically, it hurt him, and I think he was frustrated that the Legislature wouldn’t follow his lead. And those two things certainly pushed him in the direction of using his own unilateral tools to get something done.”
Like other Republicans, Abbott has heavily focused on school safety and mental health, rather than firearm restrictions.
Abbott spokeswoman Renae Eze said the governor has taken “immediate action to address all aspects” of the Uvalde shooting, and “more announcements are expected in the coming days and weeks as the Legislature deliberates proposed solutions.”
Abbott is seeking a third term in Texas’ top post, and will face Democrat Beto O’Rourke, the former U.S. congressman from El Paso, this November. A misstep in the Uvalde shooting response on either side of the aisle could hurt his re-election chances, political observers say.
A Quinnipiac poll released last week and conducted since the shooting showed the governor leading O’Rourke by just 5 percentage points, down from 15 in December.
“The governor needs to demonstrate that he’s concerned and is doing things, but he does not want to take the lead on this,” said James Henson, the director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin. “When you take the lead, you have to answer questions about your choices.”
In strictly political terms, “there’s really no upside” for Abbott to take charge, Henson said.
Over the past month, Abbott has asked TEA to create a new post for a chief of school safety and security, as well as “instruct school districts to identify actions” that can be taken to secure campuses before the start of the next academic year. He has directed the Health and Human Services Commission to ensure mental health resources are available to all Uvalde children.
He pushed Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dade Phelan to create legislative committees that can debate remedies before the Legislature reconvenes in January, and they agreed in the days following.
Abbott has directed DPS and other agencies to promote the iWatch Texas system, which allows Texans to report suspicious activity to authorities. He’s also engaged state partners, requesting that two organizations at Texas State University — the Texas School Safety Center and the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) Center — help review school safety plans and provide active shooter training to law enforcement officials.
And last week, Abbott urged officials to advertise a recently enacted state law making it a felony to lie on a firearm background check.
“Politics is all about perception,” said Jon Taylor, a political science professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Abbott is trying to appease both Texas’ deep-red base that has growing influence and the moderate voters he needs in the general election, Taylor said.
The early days of the Uvalde shooting were chaotic, and there were times when Abbott looked “incompetent,” Taylor said. He initially told reporters the massacre “could have been worse” if not for law enforcement, but later walked back those comments after it was revealed that police did not confront the shooter for more than an hour.
Members of the Texas Senate Democratic Caucus on Monday urged Gov. Greg Abbott to call a special legislative session to address gun violence. The senators support common-sense gun regulations, said Sen. Carol Alvarado.
“We are 56 days away from the school year starting,” she said. “We must take action to ensure that another group of parents are not planning funerals instead of planning summer vacations or summer camp.”
Sen. Roland Gutierrez, whose district encompasses Uvalde, said he felt powerless when he showed up to the town’s civic center the night of the shooting and heard people wailing. He became emotional as he recounted his experience in the mourning community and urged the governor to call a special session.
“We need to do something here,” he said. “Simply doing nothing is about as evil as it comes, right?”