O'Rourke's heated reaction to the El Paso massacre was the right one
The tough talk was effective. We know this because other Democratic candidates followed suit, including former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J. We also know it because Trump responded by doing what Americans expect their president to do in a national crisis: He tweeted.
"Beto (phony name to indicate Hispanic heritage) O'Rourke, who is embarrassed by my last visit to the Great State of Texas, where I trounced him, and is now even more embarrassed by polling at 1% in the Democrat Primary, should respect the victims & law enforcement -- & be quiet!" Trump wrote.
O'Rourke tweeted back: "22 people in my hometown are dead after an act of terror inspired by your racism. El Paso will not be quiet and neither will I."
Good on you, Congressman. We don't need quiet. It was being quiet about white supremacy that brought us to this moral cul-de-sac.
Since the massacre, Mexican Americans have been feeling sorrow, fear and rage. O'Rourke has tapped into No. 3.
Look, no columnist in America has been more critical of O'Rourke than me. I think his presumptuous stab at cultural appropriation has set back the cause of political empowerment for actual Latinos. I think that he doesn't do his homework, benefits from white privilege (as he has admitted), and acts like he's entitled to a smooth ride through life -- which could include a stop at the White House
Something changed when the bullets started flying in his hometown. The smooth ride led to a pileup with multiple fatalities and blood on the highway.
For O'Rourke, it was time to grow up. And grow up, he did. Unfortunately for the country, Trump never will.
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Ruben Navarrette's email address is ruben@rubennavarrette.com.
(c) 2019, The Washington Post Writers Group
