AUSTIN (AP) — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott promised safer classrooms Tuesday without mentioning the Uvalde school shooting as he began a record-tying third term in office that puts the Republican in line to remain a rising national figure.
His inaugural address outside the Texas Capitol did not include specific policy prescriptions in the aftermath of a gunman with an AR-15-style rifle killing 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School. The May tragedy was compounded by a hesitant law enforcement response that remains under investigation and has led to the resignation of several officers.
Abbott touched on mental health and made assurances of swift — albeit still undetermined — action as he began a ninth year in office. He pushed back on calls for tougher gun restrictions during his reelection campaign and it is doubtful the GOP-controlled Legislature would raise the minimum age to purchase AR-15-style rifles from 18 to 21 years old, which has become one of the biggest demands of the most vocal families in Uvalde.
