Forced birth is the law of the land -- but we're fighting back

AUSTIN, Texas -- Today, Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa released the following statement on a Trump-appointed federal judge in Fort Worth ruling last night that Texas’s common-sense ban on the public carry of handguns for 18-to-20-year-olds is unconstitutional: 

“For months, we have been crying out to Greg Abbott and Texas Republicans – for the sake of our children returning to classrooms across the state as we speak – to hold a special legislative session and put meaningful, widely-supported gun safety laws on the books, so we can ensure nothing like what happened in Uvalde ever happens again.

“They, of course, bowed to their NRA donors and didn’t pass one iota of real gun violence prevention legislation. And now, as we agonize and worry over when and where the next mass shooting in Texas will be – this Trump-appointed judge makes the senseless ruling that teenagers should be able to carry handguns in public.

“The vast majority of Texans agree with enacting common-sense gun safety measures – yesterday’s ruling not only defies logic but also cuts against what the people of Texas want and need right now. 

“Texas Democrats strongly disagree with this baffling decision and, in frustration but not in defeat, we yet again call on Republicans to protect our children and codify real gun violence prevention measures before it’s too late. If Republicans continue blocking action to stop gun violence, it’s a matter of when – not if – the next horrifying tragedy in Texas occurs.”