Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo ripped Republican Sens. Mitch McConnell, Ted Cruz, and John Cornyn for opposing gun control policies after a sergeant was killed on duty.
Sgt. Christopher Brewster, 32, was shot multiple times while responding to a domestic assault call on Saturday. Following Brewster’s death, Acevedo hit the senate Republicans for delaying the Violence Against Women Act that could limit access to guns for domestic abusers.
“I don’t want to see their little smug faces about how much they care about law enforcement when I’m burying a sergeant because they don’t want to piss off the [National Rifle Association],” Acevedo said in a press conference on Monday.
He added, “We’ve got to get the Violence Against Women Act acted upon. We’ve got to get in a room. I don’t want to hear about how much they support law enforcement, how much they care about lives and the sanctity of lives.”
Acevedo claimed Republicans in the Senate haven’t passed the Violence Against Women Act for the sole reason that the NRA opposes the legislation, calling it too broad because it includes barring access to guns for nonviolent actions like cyber harassment. The House passed the changes to the Violence Against Women Act in April which closes the so-called boyfriend loophole.
“And yet we all know in law enforcement that this is one of the biggest reasons that the Senate and Mitch McConnell, and John Cornyn and Ted Cruz and others are not getting into a room and having a conference committee with the House, and getting the Violence Against Women Act, is because the NRA doesn’t like the fact that we want to take firearms out of the hands of boyfriends that abuse their girlfriends,” Acevedo noted.
He continued, “And who killed our sergeant? A boyfriend abusing his girlfriend. So you’re either here for women and children and our daughters and our sisters and our aunts, or you’re here for the NRA.”
Acevedo criticized Cornyn, who claimed the reason the Violence Against Women Act hadn’t passed was because of the House’s impeachment effort against President Trump. The police chief noted that McConnell has bragged about confirming judges while impeachment continues in the House, showing there was time to get something done.
“And don’t tell me, senator, with all due respect, it’s about the impeachment. Because you brag every day, you and Mitch McConnell, about getting judges confirmed. You brag about every piece of legislation you care about,” he said. “Start caring about cops, children, and women, and everyday gun violence. And that will be the last thing I say this week, because the rest of this week is going to be about Christopher Brewster and his sacrifice.”
Acevedo has been Houston police chief since 2016.
