AUSTIN — Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Andrew White on Monday lambasted Gov. Greg Abbott for being afraid of the National Rifle Association.

White said Abbott, the Republican incumbent, needs to call a special session to promote "common sense gun-safety legislation."

Clearly eager to tap into anger generated by this month's massacre at a high school in Parkland, Fla., White also endorsed universal background checks and raising the age to purchase a rifle to 21, from 18.

Abbott's spokesmen did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

White said he enjoys hunting, owns rifles and shotguns and supports the Second Amendment. But he cast Abbott and the GOP-controlled Legislature as too scared of the NRA to take steps he said would promote public safety without unduly curtailing Texans' gun rights.

"I know he has an A-plus rating to protect," White said, referring to Abbott's score from the NRA. "But it wouldn't hurt my feelings if that rating dropped to a B-minus if it meant that our kids were safer and our neighborhoods were safer."

Andrew White spoke to reporters about gun-safety measures in Austin on Monday with Nicole Golden (right) of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, and Diana Earl. In 2016, Earl's son Dedrick, 22, was shot in the neck and killed after an argument at a North Austin apartment complex. (Robert T. Garrett / Staff)

White, a Houston investor and son of the late Gov. Mark White, is locked in a March 6 primary battle with former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez, Dallas businessman Jeffrey Payne and six other Democrats for their party's nomination.

The winner is likely to face Abbott, who is all but sure to trounce two little-known opponents in his primary.

After 17 people were killed in a mass shooting Feb. 14 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida, the Texas governor said the incident and last year's church shootings in Sutherland Springs underscored a need to fix the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

Abbott also said communities need a way to sort out the mentally ill who are on verge of committing violence from the merely mentally ill. He also said he wants to publish the names of Texas school districts that haven't completed state-mandated safety checks.

On Monday, White borrowed a phrase from Emma Gonzalez, a senior at the high school in Parkland who has helped rekindle a national debate of gun control.

"Today, I call BS on Gov. Abbott," he said.

"I call BS because you can support the Second Amendment and also support common-sense gun safety legislation," White said. "I call BS because the governor is in charge of the safety of 5 million school kids in Texas and yet he's too afraid to do anything about it because he's protecting his A-plus NRA rating."

Recently, White updated his campaign website with a more detailed position on guns. As before, he calls for "comprehensive and universal background checks on all gun purchases."

He said Monday that should cover private sales between individuals, as well as those at gun shows.

Andrew White spoke with home-schoolers from South Texas who were attending Teen PACT, a student government assembly at the Texas Capitol in Austin on Monday. (Robert T. Garrett / Staff)

White stopped short of endorsing a prohibition of sale of assault-type rifles. However, he said he supports prohibiting detachable firearm magazines that can hold more than a certain number of rounds of ammunition.

"If you restrict the ability to buy large-capacity magazines, you effectively shut down the assault weapons," he said.

White also said he favors banning rapid-fire "bump stock" devices and would sign a bill to raise the minimum age for buying a rifle to 21, from 18. He said, though, there should be an exception for young people in the military.

"The extremism that's been affecting our [state] government the past few years — where bathroom bills and show-me-your-papers laws take precedence over education, health care and common sense gun safety legislation — has to stop," he said.

Valdez issued a written statement calling for "a comprehensive approach" to gun tragedies, not just after-the-fact reactions by politicians.

"Universal background checks, banning high capacity magazines, and closing the gun show loophole are common sense efforts we must take now," she said.

At a Texas Tribune event in Austin last month, Valdez said she opposes the open carry and campus carry laws passed by the Legislature in 2015. Valdez, a career law enforcement official and military veteran, said she's comfortable with guns. She favors a concealed handgun permit, she said. She spoke vaguely of a need to remove weapons from Texans who've shown a propensity to settle disputes with violence.

Payne, whose businesses include a gay nightclub in Dallas, has called for requiring that all guns sales be recorded with the filing of a bill of sale with the state.

He also has said people with domestic-violence restraining orders against them and repeat alcohol and drug offenders should be barred from buying guns.