Travis County, Texas Judge Sarah Eckhardt made a joke about the accident that left Gov. Greg Abbott’s paralyzed from the waist down during #TribFest19, an annual political gathering put on by the Texas Tribune in Austin every year:
At #TribFest19 panel on progressive activism, @JudgeEckhardt, talking about #txlege overriding local ordinances like Austin’s tree ordinance, says Gov. Abbott “hates trees because one fell on him.” The crowd laughs.
— John Daniel Davidson (@johnddavidson) September 27, 2019
She has since apologized, calling her comment “disagreeable”:
Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt apologized late Friday for saying Gov. Greg Abbott “hates trees because one fell on him," during a panel discussion at The Texas Tribune Festival. https://t.co/jC1ziF4fXM
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) September 28, 2019
That was a hell of a lot worse than just being “disagreeable.” From the Texas Tribune:
“In my panel today at the Texas Tribune Festival on ‘Public Enragement’ I spoke about the importance of being able to disagree without being disagreeable. Then I said something disagreeable,” Eckhardt said in statement late Friday. “I want to apologize to Governor Abbott. I made a flippant comment that was inappropriate. The comment did nothing to further the debate I was participating in, much less further the political discourse in our community, state, and nation. While the Governor and I disagree on a number of issues, that is no excuse to be disagreeable.”
It will be interesting to see if she can survive this, because it was way out of line:
This is an unbelievably distasteful comment from @JudgeEckhardt. She should immediately apologize to Governor @GregAbbott_TX and the @texasdemocrats should condemn her statement. https://t.co/YBdsGGubO0
— Texas GOP (@TexasGOP) September 28, 2019
Absolutely classless comment! @GovAbbott is a shining example to all Texans of someone who overcame adversity with a smile, a LOT of hard work, and a positive attitude. https://t.co/WFGfLFPfH1
— Kelly Hancock (@KHancock4TX) September 27, 2019
What an unbelievably stupid thing to say about @GovAbbott or anyone. Taking steps to lessen the negative consequences of Austin’s nutball policy-making is hardly a basis to attack the Governor for a tragic injury which he has demonstrated steadfast determination to overcome. https://t.co/ha1tn82ILs
— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) September 27, 2019
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Related:
Gov. Greg Abbott would like a word with Twitter about why a Blue Angels flyover is ‘sensitive content’ https://t.co/MAg37Q39Pq
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) July 13, 2019
Critics of Gov. Greg Abbott’s ‘controversial’ ‘Save Chick-fil-A’ bill say it’s discrimination ‘cloaked in religion’ https://t.co/GwGxg0kb4i
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) May 23, 2019
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