1. United States
2. Texas
3. Letter

Governor Abbott’s comparison of the flooding to a football game was disgraceful, embarrassing, and downright shameful. It showed a total, utter lack of respect for the people who died and the ones who suffered. It was also disrespectful to Texas in general. And it made us all look foolish—like we don’t care, like we don’t know any better. But the truth is, he doesn’t know better. He doesn’t even seem to understand football, and he definitely doesn’t understand leadership. He keeps refusing to take any responsibility. And no, I don’t think he bears all the responsibility. I don’t think Kerr County does. I don’t think the state of Texas does. I don’t even think the federal government does. But there’s plenty of responsibility to go around—and some of it is his. Some of it absolutely could’ve been handled better, sooner. This was a catastrophic disaster, yes. But it didn’t have to be this devastating. Real leadership means taking responsibility—not for what’s out of your control, but for what was in your control. And it means taking it early, not hiding behind press conferences or weak metaphors. It means owning what could’ve been done differently, before the damage gets worse. But Abbott doesn’t seem to believe in any of that. It’s like he thinks if he jokes about it, he won’t have to answer for it. That’s not leadership. That’s deflection. It was shameful the way he talked about this. It was humiliating to listen to. Texans deserve better than that. So do the people who lost everything. So do the people still trying to recover. And honestly, the whole world is watching him act like leadership doesn’t matter. Leadership isn’t about who you blame. It’s about what you take responsibility for—and when you take it. If the Governor of Texas won’t do that, then maybe someone else in state government finally should. Texans are watching. And so is the rest of the world.