Greg Abbott speaks during a ribbon cutting ceremony for the grand opening of Texas Instruments' new semiconductor wafer plant. Greg Abbott stood his ground Thursday in support of Texans’ constitutional right to carry guns to protests, countering fellow Republicans who say demonstrators can’t — or at least shouldn’t — have weapons at those events. The remarks by Abbott, who is running for reelection, come amid a national debate over public safety and constitutional liberties at protests, stemming from the fatal shooting of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis. He said he did not think people should bring guns to demonstrations and called the Pretti shooting unfortunate, while stressing the need to protect law enforcement. Abbott didn’t directly address the death of Pretti or Rachel Goode, another protester killed by federal agents earlier this month in Minneapolis while driving her car.