Days after facing a social media firestorm for vetoing a bipartisan bill barring Texans from using heavy chains to tether their dogs outside, Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted a Fourth of July greeting from his golden retriever, Pancake.
You can guess how well that went over.
Twitter users excoriated the Republican governor shortly after he posted a pic of Pancake in a red, white and blue cowboy hat "ready to celebrate" Independence Day. You could call the response a dog pile.
In addition to the expected slams over ERCOT and his fantastical border wall, many called out Abbott for wanting to parade his precious pooch after vetoing a bill that would have expanded and clarified Texas' animal cruelty laws.
"Pancake is lucky that the worst he has to endure is being associated with you, the one who VETOED an animal cruelty bill that passed both the house and senate," user @EmKay_Texas tweeted. "You are horrible."
Pancake is lucky that the worst he has to endure is being associated with you, the one who VETOED an animal cruelty bill that passed both the house and senate. You are horrible.. #AbbottHatesDogs
— Melinda Kirk (@EmKay_Texas) July 5, 2021
@EmKay_Texas included the hashtag #AbbottHatesDogs, which trended at the time of the veto. The proposal the governor rejected had the support of animal control personnel, animal welfare groups and law enforcement agencies. It also passed both GOP-controlled houses with strong majorities.
"Texas is no place for this kind of micro-managing and over-criminalization," Abbott said at the time.
Judging from the flood of angry responses over the holiday weekend, that explanation doesn't exactly hold water with a number of Texas animal lovers.
We so hope, Gov. Abbott, that your dog is not at the end of a chain, suffering from the heat and the stressful fireworks in TX! Please remove your veto of the recent bill passed in the House and Senate in TX! A shameful veto against our animal friends!!
— Dave and Rita Cross (@DaveandRitaCros) July 4, 2021
Still won't work. We know you don't like dogs. Just another demagogic photo-op for your political P.R.machine. Oh, and despite what you think / hope, you will never become president of the USA.
— Sfostertx (@Sfostertx1) July 4, 2021
All dogs matter. Not just yours or Republican dogs. You vetoed a dog safety bill that was passed by a large bipartisan vote.
— Trust Science - Trust Facts (@Cheryl1572) July 4, 2021
Pancake wishes he had a new owner who won who wasn’t a racist incompetent bigoted demagogue.
— Grumpy Demo (@Grumpy_Demo) July 4, 2021
Blink once if you think your owner is batsh*t crazy.
— Ryan Viner (@RSViner14) July 4, 2021
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