George P. Bush Denounced 'White Terrorists' in the Aftermath of the El Paso Attack
On Saturday, a gunman murdered 20 people at an El Paso, Texas Walmart, moments after allegedly posting online a racist manifesto declaring his crimes "a response to the Hispanic invasion of Texas."
While the majority of domestic terrorism arrests today are linked to white supremacists, institutions from Twitter to the Justice Department have failed to treat the threat as seriously as other forms of ideological violence. But in a frank denunciation of white extremism posted to social media, Bush family scion George Prescott Bush called for white terrorists to be treated like any others.
"I proudly served in Afghanistan as a Naval officer where our mission was to fight and kill terrorists," wrote Bush, who currently serves as Texas Lands Commissioner. "I believe fighting terrorism remains a national priority. And that should include standing firm against white terrorism here in the US. There have now been multiple attacks from self-declared white terrorists here in the US in the last several months. This is a real and present threat that we must all denounce and defeat."
"I am asking that Americans stand firm against all forms of terrorism," he added.
The lands commissioner is the son of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, grandson of the late ex-president George H.W. Bush, and nephew of former president George W. Bush. He identifies as Latino—his mother, Columba Bush, was born in Mexico—and cofounded the Hispanic Republicans of Texas Political Action Committee in 2010.
#ElPasoStrong pic.twitter.com/6CV6AvBHTW
— George P. Bush (@georgepbush) August 4, 2019
In 2016, he broke with his clan by being the only Bush family member to endorse Donald Trump’s presidential candidacy. This probably had something to do with his political ambitions, as he’s reportedly considering a run for Texas governor. Bush's loyalty to the man who stokes the same racial hatred he now decries seems to be paying off—the two appeared together at an event in April, where Trump praised the commissioner.
"This is the only Bush that likes me!" said the president. "This is the Bush that got it right! I like him."
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