Democrat Rep. Vicente Gonzalez continues to launch scathing attacks on his Republican opponent, Congresswoman Mayra Flores, with Gonzalez recently saying the freshman representative cannot “speak” or “think for himself.”
Flores, 36, won a special election earlier this year and is the first Mexican-born woman elected to the House of Representatives. Gonzalez, who has served in Congress since 2017, faces Flores in Texas’s newly drawn 34th district over a realignment.
In a video shared by Flores from a Gonzalez rally in Harlingen, Texas earlier this week, the Democrat essentially accuses his opponent of being unable to do anything for himself.
Gonzalez, 55, said: “We’re going to cut down on these outside sources that come here and pick a candidate, a carefully chosen candidate who can’t think for himself, can’t speak for himself, can’t act for himself, can’t vote for himself. ‘
He focused specifically on Flores’ vote no to the bipartisan Keep Communities Safe Act, which included extensive background checks on people under 21 who bought guns, further criminalized gun trafficking, and partially closed the boyfriends loophole. It passed by a vote of 234-193 after an amended Senate bill passed 65-33.
Republican Congresswoman Mayra Flores continues to face attacks from her Democratic opponent, with Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (pictured) saying freshman rep can’t “speak” or “think for herself”
Flores, 36, won a special election earlier this year and is the first Mexican-born woman to be elected to the House of Representatives
Gonzalez, who has served in Congress since 2017, faces Flores in Texas’ newly drawn 34th district over realignment
In a video shared by Flores from a Gonzalez rally in Harlingen, Texas earlier this week, the Democrat essentially accuses his opponent of being unable to do anything for himself.
Flores told the New York Post in a statement: “True liberals like Vicente Gonzalez simply refuse to accept that not all Hispanics believe the way they want us to.”
She added: “So instead of telling voters what they stand for and letting the best ideas prevail, Gonzalez and his friends are resorting to these disgusting personal attacks. The people of South Texas deserve better. We are people of strong faith, strong family values and a strong work ethic.”
GOP Chair Ronna McDaniel called Gonzalez “disgusting” and said he has launched “one racist and sexist attack after another against” Flores.
McDaniel added, “But Mayra won’t back down or be intimidated!”
Gonzalez subjected Flores to several attacks. Most recently, a campaign ad earlier this week featured an edited photo with an ominous greenish filter and appears to have been edited to give Flores’ eyebrows a tilted, more aggressive look.
Flores said in a statement: ‘Competent liberals like Vicente Gonzalez simply refuse to accept that not all Hispanics believe the way they want us to’
The ad, which focused on school safety and gun control, was posted on Gonzalez’s Twitter on Monday. It targeted Flores for her first congressional vote against the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act in the weeks following the massacre at a school in Uvalde, Texas.
Flores, along with all but 15 House Republicans, voted against the so-called “Bipartisan Safer Communities Act,” largely because of the red flag laws the bill implements, allowing state officials to determine whether a person is fit for gun ownership.
The ad uses an edited photo of Flores originally posted to her Instagram in early 2022.
The edited photo contains an ominous greenish filter and appears to have been edited to give Flores’ eyebrows a tilted, more aggressive look.
The edited photo of Rep. Mayra Flores (R). The color filter in the photo has been changed and Flores’ eyebrows appear to have been dragged down to make them look more sinister and aggressive
The ad, which focused on school safety and gun control, was posted on Gonzalez’s Twitter on Monday
The original photo of Gonzalez’s ad is from the candidate’s Instagram
As the unflattering image flashed across the screen, the ad’s female narrator declared, “Republican Mayra Flores’ first vote in Congress was against the Bipartisan Safe Communities Act.”
“She voted against keeping our children safe in schools, against the removal of weapons from Mexican cartels, and against the removal of weapons from criminals with a history of domestic violence,” it continues.
On his campaign’s Twitter account, he wrote: ‘After the tragic shooting in Uvalde, Mayra Flores’ first vote in Congress was AGAINST a bipartisan school safety bill.
“We need a representative who is committed to protecting our children and families; not one to endanger them.”
Gonzalez has not disclosed that the photo he used was manipulated.
Gonzalez’s campaign previously paid a Texas political blogger to attack Flores online. The blogger used a number of racist nicknames against Flores, including “Miss Enchiladas”
The ad specifically focuses on Flores’ record-breaking vote against the so-called ‘Bipartisan Safer Communities Act’ in the wake of the tragic shooting at a school in Uvalde
A Texas political blogger paid for advertising services by the Gonzalez campaign threw racist attacks on Flores in June, including calling her “Miss Frijoles” and “Miss Enchiladas.”
Jerry McHale accused Flores, the first woman born in Mexico to be elected to Congress, of “playing the race card” and called her a “cotton pickers” liar for her claim that she worked in cotton fields with her immigrant parents as a child.
In September, Flores introduced the Reduce Gun Violence Act, which her campaign touted as a “comprehensive package of more than $11 billion dollars of funding to schools across the country to increase physical safety and access mental health care.”
Flores was elected to her post in a special election held in June this year to serve the unexpired term of former Rep. Filemon Vela (D), who left the House in March to work for the lobbying firm Akin Group.