Democratic Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs’ press secretary resigned after she posted inflammatory tweets suggesting transphobes should be shot.
According to The Daily Wire, Josselyn Berry, who served as Hobbs’ press secretary, posted a GIF from the 1980 film “Gloria.” Berry captioned the GIF, which showed actress Gena Rowlands holding two guns, “Us when we see transphobes.”
Hobbs’ office confirmed Berry’s resignation on Wednesday in a statement noting that the governor does not condone violence in any form.
#Breaking: @GovernorHobbs office has confirmed that press secretary @joss_berry has resigned this morning after posting this image on Twitter . Expect a full statement shortly. #azfamily pic.twitter.com/JOimLiWXj0
— Dennis Welch (@dennis_welch) March 29, 2023
“The Governor does not condone violence in any form,” the statement read. “This administration holds mutual respect at the forefront of how we engage with one another. The post by the Press Secretary is not reflective of the values of the administration. The governor has received and accepted the resignation of the Press Secretary.”
The resignation comes amid growing pressure from people close to the governor and state lawmakers.
Berry’s controversial tweet, which comes just hours after a transgender person carried out a mass shooting at an elementary school in Tennessee, received wild criticism from the Conservative branch of the Arizona legislature.
Less than 12 hours after the tragic shooting in Nashville by a deranged transgender activist @katiehobbs’ Press Secretary calls for shooting people Democrats disagree with.
Calling for violence like this is un-American & never acceptable.@joss_berry should be fired immediately pic.twitter.com/wYHHkmsNNE
— Arizona Freedom Caucus (@AZFreedomCaucus) March 29, 2023
The Arizona Freedom Caucus, a conservative group, described Berry’s tweet as “un-American & never acceptable..”
“Less than 12 hours after the tragic shooting in Nashville by a deranged transgender activist
@katiehobbs’ Press Secretary calls for shooting people Democrats disagree with,” the group said in a tweet. “… @Joss_berry ( Josselyn Berry) should be fired immediately.”
Berry posted the controversial tweet hours after a woman who identifies as a transgender man shot and killed seven people, including three children, inside a private Christian elementary school in Nashville on Monday.
According to the New York Post, the shooter, identified as Audrey Hale, planned to attack another school, but aborted the plan because the school had too much security. Police executed a search of Hale’s house and found a manifesto and found detailed maps of the school and a manifesto. The FBI has indicated it will release Hale’s manifesto after it completes its review.
