by Sharelle B. McNair
June 11, 2025
O’Hare kicked residents out of the listening to for causes together with clapping and accusing leaders of being racist.
Tarrant County Choose Tim O’Hare is getting the side-eye from Texas residents, county commissioners, and social media customers for a video the place he aggressively eliminated constituents for making open feedback and tried to place a fellow chief in her place.
The video exhibits O’Hare, who’s white, attempting to push his energy in opposition to Democratic Commissioner Alisa Simmons, who’s Black, throughout a listening to that will probably approve a controversial redistricting map of latest commissioners’ precincts. When he requested if anybody wished to talk on the matter, Simmons mentioned sure, however was lower off by O’Hare.
“Cling on, I’ll acknowledge who the audio system are. So, you could go,” he mentioned as Simmons, who giggled.
Earlier than involved residents got here to the rostrum to talk, the decide pushed his chest out slightly extra and mentioned any outburst, referring to Simmons’s remark, would end result within the chamber being cleared—and he meant what he mentioned with “no extra warnings.”
One Black man began to talk, seemingly going recalling slavery historical past; O’Hare interrupted, telling safety to have him eliminated instantly, claiming the person known as the leaders racist and he was following the “decorum coverage.” That’s when Simmons stepped in to inquire if “racist” was within the so-called coverage. The decide responded, telling her to learn it and “determine it out.”
Residents and onlookers have been particularly identified and kicked out left and proper for quite a lot of causes, together with clapping. One lady who simply requested for the leaders to hearken to their issues over the map was interrupted mid-thought and eliminated.
Proper earlier than O’Hare known as for the vote, Simmons let him know that she had an extra remark. Just like the others, he tried to cease her, claiming her “time is completed.” However she didn’t again down, pushing the decide to try a newly revised model of Robert’s Guidelines of Order.
And it labored. Simmons delayed the vote by demanding redistricting advisers from the Public Curiosity Authorized Basis reply questions in entrance of the commissioners’ courtroom, in accordance with the Fort Value Star-Telegram.
O’Hare claimed Simmons didn’t have “subpoena energy” to make them come into the room, however since her precinct can be affected by the proposed maps, flipping to Republican, Simmons mentioned residents deserve actual solutions. “They’ve to reply to the taxpayers who’re paying this invoice, and they will reply to me out right here in public,” she mentioned.
The decide isn’t shy about admitting to his need for a Republican takeover to extend conservative management in Tarrant County and reduce the variety of Democrats within the commissioners’ courtroom. The map has obtained extreme criticism for being anti-Black because the county’s 367,000 Black residents characterize 18.4% of the inhabitants.
“I don’t take a look at it by way of race; I take a look at it by way of coverage. I take a look at it by way of outcomes,” O’Hare instructed Fox 4 Information. “The mission is to get three Republican commissioners on the commissioners courtroom.”
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