In a since-deleted tweet, a state rep from Texas appeared to threaten presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke following O'Rourke's promise to "take" assault-style rifles if he were elected president.
When asked about his plan for a mandatory gun-buyback program for assault rifles during Thursday's presidential debate, O'Rourke responded by saying "hell, yes, we're going to take your AR-15." O'Rourke tweeted the phrase following the debate.
Texas State Rep. Briscoe Cain (R-Deer Park), responded to O'Rourke's tweet by saying "My AR is ready for you Robert Francis." Cain later deleted the tweet.
O'Rourke responded to Cain's tweet by calling it a "death threat." The Washington Post reports that O'Rourke's staffers notified the FBI about the tweet.
This is a death threat, Representative. Clearly, you shouldn't own an AR-15—and neither should anyone else. pic.twitter.com/jsiZmwjMDs
— Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) September 13, 2019
Following O'Rourke's claim of a death threat, Cain responded by calling the candidate a "child."
CNN later reported that it was Twitter who removed Cain's tweet. A spokesperson for the website told CNN the tweet was taken down because it violated the company's policy against violence and wishing harm against others.
O'Rourke's comments come about a month after a man used an assault-style weapon to kill 22 people in O'Rourke's hometown of El Paso, Texas. According to a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, 74 percent of Democrats support a mandatory buyback program. 31 percent of Republicans support the policy.
