Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R), showing on Fox New’s “Hannity” on Tuesday, usually waved off the “Governor Hot Wheels” insult Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) lobbed at him over the weekend that is been seen as mocking his use of a wheelchair.
“It’s another day and another disaster by the Democrats,” Abbott instructed host Sean Hannity. “The reality is, they have no vision, no policy.”
“They have nothing to sell but hate,” he added, with out immediately addressing his wheelchair use or the phrase Crockett used.
Crockett, a second-term member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, referred to Abbott as “Governor Hot Wheels” throughout a speech on the Human Rights Marketing campaign’s Los Angeles dinner Saturday night time.
Abbott grew to become paralyzed from the waist down after a tree limb fell on the then-26-year-old lawyer as he was jogging in Houston in 1984. He has used a wheelchair since then.
After intense backlash, Crockett denied that the insult was in reference to Abbott’s wheelchair use.
“At no point did I mention or allude to his condition,” the Democratic firebrand wrote on social media. “I wasn’t thinking about the governor’s condition.”
In his first nationwide interview in regards to the obvious jab, Abbott as an alternative spent a lot of his response highlighting his state’s progress and enterprise successes, whereas additionally alluding to high-profile campaigns Democrats have unsuccessfully mounted within the Lone Star State in recent times.
“It’s one reason why Texas is going to remain red and why Republicans are going to continue to win elections across the country,” Abbott instructed Hannity. “The bottom line is that Republican states like Texas are leading the way.”
“And with comments like this by Democrats, we will just leave them in the dust in future elections,” he added.
Democrats have struggled to develop their standing in Texas, mounting a number of statewide campaigns that drew nationwide curiosity however had been in the end Republican victories.
Former Congressman and one-time Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke constructed a large marketing campaign conflict chest in his 2022 marketing campaign towards Abbott. The Republican governor, ultimately, handily defeated O’Rourke by double digits, 55 p.c to 44 p.c.
Final yr, former Democratic Rep. Collin Allred misplaced his bid to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in a 53 p.c to 45 p.c vote, regardless of polls suggesting a slim race via the marketing campaign.
