Florida Democrat House member Anna Eskamani was quick to politicize the mass shooting that took place Tuesday at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where reports indicate that 19 students and two teachers were killed.
Eskamani tweeted out at 4:34 p.m. on Tuesday, “All these ‘pro-life’ politicians don’t seem to give a damn about our kids being shot in their own schools.”
All these “pro-life” politicians don’t seem to give a damn about our kids being shot in their own schools.
— Rep. Anna V. Eskamani 🔨 (@AnnaForFlorida) May 24, 2022
Eskamani was not done.
At 5:38 she tweeted, “Governor DeSantis has spent more time banning books & erasing LGBTQ+ kids than keeping our kids safe from gun violence, AND he plans to allow for permitless carry too. This DANGEROUS policy agenda uses kids as pawns & distracts us from solving real problems, like gun violence.”
The spokesperson for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Christina Pushaw, responded to Eskamani’s tweet, “Never let a crisis go to waste when you can use it to push your political talking points, right? So empathetic of you.”
In addition, Ryan Petty, whose 14-year-old daughter Alaina Petty was murdered in the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting on February 14, 2018, responded.
Petty responded to Eskamani’s tweet with, “If anyone would know how much time the Governor has put into keeping our students and schools safe, I am that person. He hasn’t stopped working to keep kids safe. Nothing you say will change that. You distract us from solving real problems. Delete your account.”
Petty is credited with helping to pass the “Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act” Florida Senate Bill 7026 just three weeks after his daughter Alaina was murdered. In addition, then-Governor-elect of Florida Ron DeSantis included Petty on his Transition Advisory Committee on Public Safety. In January of 2020, Petty was appointed by DeSantis to the Florida State Board of Education.
Eskamani has a history of extreme responses to positions or legislation she opposes. During the debate over the Parental Rights in Education bill – which limited the discussion of gender ideology in elementary school grades – Eskamani referred to supporters as homophobic.
Eskamani stated in a tweet, “I joined @cnn today to express opposition to HB1557 also known as the ‘Don’t Say Gay Bill’ — it’s always appropriate to acknowledge that LGBTQ+ people & families exist, and any effort to erase them is rooted in homophobia and transphobia.
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Steve Stewart is a senior contributor at The Florida Capital Star. Email tips to [email protected].
Background Photo “Robb Elementary School” by UCISD.
