Comments made by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton regarding the 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde are resurfacing as he campaigns for the U.S. Senate against Democratic challenger James Talarico.
The controversy stems from a May 2022 podcast interview, just days after the tragedy that claimed the lives of 19 children and two teachers, in which Paxton was asked what he would say to console the grieving families.
Recently, the remarks drew fresh outrage on social media. Shannon Watts, founder of the gun control advocacy group Moms Demand Action, posted on X on Sept. 23, calling the statements “vile” and sharing a short clip of Paxton stating, “Look, there’s always a plan. I believe God always has a plan. Life is short no matter what it is.”
Talarico’s political campaign had similarly highlighted the remarks in August and September posts, characterizing Paxton’s words as describing the massacre as part of a divine plan. While critics labeled the audio as “newly uncovered,” the comments actually received widespread media attention and heavy criticism shortly after the tragedy occurred more than two years ago.
During the original interview with pastor and radio host Trey Graham, Paxton also acknowledged that the shooting was “senseless” and “seemingly has no purpose,” adding that it is impossible to rationalize a young child losing their life. However, he urged listeners to maintain their faith despite the tragedy.
The complete transcript of the exchange provides the full context of his response:
Graham: “We want to give you the chance to speak a word of, of comfort or something of encouragement to the families and those who have lost, tragically, children in this situation. As a follower of Jesus, as an elected official, what might you be able to say that might give a little comfort?”
Paxton: “Look, I, I think it’s, it’s difficult to give comfort. If I lost one of my children, I’d be pretty devastated. Especially in a, you know, way that is so senseless and, you know, seemingly has no purpose. I think I would say, I would just have to — if I had the opportunity to talk to people I’d have to say look, there’s always a plan. I believe God always has a plan. Life is short no matter what it is and certainly we’re not gonna make sense of, you know, a young child being shot and killed way before their life expectancy. And so even though we can’t make sense of it, I would just have to encourage them to hold on to their faith and to hold on to their belief that there really is purpose in, in what God does and we may not know it now, but someday we will.”
Elsewhere in the same interview, Paxton voiced support for placing police officers on school campuses and providing defensive training for teachers and administrators.
When questioned about their characterization of Paxton’s remarks, representatives for Talarico pointed to the original podcast recording alongside numerous editorials and news reports from 2022 that scrutinized the Attorney General’s initial response. Paxton’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment.