Beto O'Rourke tells Texas governor 'this is on you' as chaos erupts at school shooting press conference

A press conference by the Texas governor following America's latest devastating mass shooting descended into chaos as it was interrupted by Beto O'Rourke.

While Greg Abbott, the Republican governor, was giving an update Mr O'Rourke, who is running for the governorship in November, approached the stage in an extraordinary intervention.

Jabbing his finger at Mr Abbott, he said: "Governor Abbott, I have to say something. The time to stop the next shooting is right now and you are doing nothing. This is totally predictable."

Ted Cruz, the Republican Texas senator, standing behind Mr Abbott, shook his head and told Mr O'Rourke: "Sit down, don't play this stuff."

The state's lieutenant governor Dan Patrick said: "Excuse me. You're out of line and an embarrassment."

As Mr O'Rourke continued to berate officials gathered on the stage, one of them began yelling at him.

The official said: "Get his a-- out of here. I can't believe you're a sick son of a b---- that would come to a deal like this to make it a political issue."

The official on the stage who denounced Mr O'Rourke as a "sick son of a b----" was Don McLaughlin, the Mayor of Uvalde, where the school shooting took place.

During his intervention Mr O'Rourke said: "Someone needs to stand up for the children of this state or they will continue to be killed just like they were killed in Uvalde yesterday."

Mr O'Rourke, surrounded by photographers, then voluntarily left the auditorium.

The former congressman was defeated by Mr Cruz in a Senate race in Texas in 2019 that became a lightning rod for Democrats and Republicans across the country.

He then ran unsuccessfully for the Democrat presidential nomination in 2020, but has remained a vocal proponent of gun control.

Joe Biden vowed to take on America's gun lobby and demanded an end to the "carnage" after 19 primary school children were murdered in their classroom in one of America's worst ever mass shootings.

Biden calls on Congress to show 'backbone'

The US President said he was "sick and tired" of the random slaughter, called on Congress to show "backbone," and added: "We have to act".

However, Republican opponents accused Mr Biden of "politicising" the issue and, instead of gun control, suggested more security at schools, including arming teachers.

The massacre at Robb elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, was carried out by Salvador Ramos, who legally purchased two assault rifles shortly after his 18th birthday.

Mr Biden said: "The idea that an 18-year-old can walk into a store and buy assault weapons is just wrong. What in God’s name do you need an assault weapon for except to kill someone?"

In an angry and emotional address to the nation, from the Roosevelt Room at the White House, Mr Biden said: "I had hoped, when I became president, I would not have to do this again.

"When in God's name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? Why are we willing to live with this carnage? Why do we keep letting this happen? To lose a child is like having a piece of your soul ripped away,"

The tragedy happened a decade after 20 young children and six others were killed in a similar attack on Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.

An attempt to pass gun violence laws in the wake of that shooting collapsed, and Congress has not taken substantial measure since.

In 2020 guns overtook car accidents as a cause of death for US children.

Last year, a Pew Research poll showed 53 per cent of Americans want stricter gun laws.

Chuck Schumer, the Democrat leader in the US Senate, said he would pursue two bills that would tighten background checks for gun purchases.

But he admitted they would probably fail to pass due to a lack of Republican support, and the influence of the National Rifle Association, America's biggest pro-gun group.

The bills would require a supermajority of 60 votes in the 100-seat Senate, which is currently split 50-50 between Democrats and Republicans.

Addressing Republican senators, Mr Schumer said: "Please, please, please, damn it, put yourselves in the shoes of these parents just for once. If the slaughter of schoolchildren can't convince Republicans to buck the NRA, what can we do?"

Chris Murphy, a Democrat senator representing Connecticut, where the Sandy Hook massacre took place, made an emotional plea on the Senate floor.

He said: "I'm here on this floor to beg, to literally get down on my hands and knees, to beg my colleagues. Find a path forward here. Work with us to find a way to pass laws that make this less likely."

After his speech, Mr Murphy added: "There's no evidence that there are more mentally ill people here than in Europe.

"The difference is when people have homicidal thoughts in the United States, they can walk down the street to a Walmart and get an assault weapon easier than they can buy a cat or a dog.

"There's more red tape involved in pet ownership in this country than there is in assault weapons ownership."

Ted Cruz, the Republican senator from Texas, said it was a  "dark day" and he was "sickened and heartbroken".

But he suggested the latest shooting would be used to undermine the right of Americans to own guns under the Second Amendment.

That would "not be effective in stopping these sort of crimes," he said.

Mr Cruz added: "When there's a crime of this kind it almost immediately gets politicised."

Guns, including assault rifles and semi-automatic handguns, are now more widely available than ever across the US.

Manufacturers have produced 139 million guns for commercial sale since 2000, and another 71 million have been imported.

Over 30 per cent of American adults own at least one gun, and assault rifles can be bought for as little as $500.

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said a 35 per cent rise in gun deaths in 2020 was "historic".

So far this year, more than 17,000 people, including 650 children, have been shot and killed.

This weekend the NRA is set to hold its annual convention in Houston, Texas.

Among those expected to speak are former US President Donald Trump, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, and Mr Cruz.

Last year, Mr Abbott signed a law allowing anyone in Texas aged over 21 to openly carry a handgun without a licence or training.

Eric Swalwell, a Democrat congressman, said: "Acted alone? Hardly. The killer was armed by Greg Abbott’s loose gun policies. The killer acted with the help of his governor."

Shannon Watts, founder of activist group Moms Demand, said: "If more guns and fewer laws made Texas safer, it would be the safest state with declining rates of gun violence,

"But it has high rates of gun suicide and homicide, and is home to four of the 10 deadliest mass shootings."

Messages of sympathy poured in from around the world after the latest mass shooting.

Pope Francis said he was "heartbroken," adding: "It is time to say enough to indiscriminate arms trafficking."

Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian President, said: "This is terrible to have victims of shooters in peaceful times."

Matthew McConaughey, the Oscar-winning actor, who was born and went to primary school in Uvalde, said: "Whichever side of the aisle we may stand on, we all know we can do better."