Senator Cornyn Challenges Republicans to Condemn Candidate Over Racist Posts
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) called a social media post by Bo French — the Republican nominee for Texas Railroad Commissioner — an example of "intolerance and racism" and dared GOP colleagues to condemn it.
- French posted a photo of South Asian students cheering at the Texas-Ohio State game.
- French captioned the image: the scene shows "how many Americans have been displaced by foreigners."
- 3 Texas House Republicans — Speaker Dustin Burrows, Jeff Leach, and Lacey Hull — called on French to delete the post.
- French called Cornyn a Republican in name only and said he cheered "foreign nationals over American citizens."
Why it matters: French is the GOP's official statewide nominee, meaning Republicans cannot easily distance themselves from him on the ballot.
- French has a prior controversy: Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called on him to resign as Tarrant County GOP chair after a post asking whether Jews or Muslims posed a bigger threat to America.
How 15 sources split on this story
Where they split: The core dispute is whether French's post was a racist attack on students of color or a legitimate statement about immigration policy.
Center coverage, 5 sources: The center frames the story as part of a pattern of Cornyn distancing himself from his party after losing his primary, treating this as a moment of intra-GOP tension.
USA Today8hGOP senator criticizes 'racism' from fellow Texas RepublicanYNYahoo News8hGOP senator criticizes 'racism' from fellow Texas RepublicanLeft coverage, 8 sources: The left frames the story as a test of whether the Texas GOP will tolerate explicit racial targeting of students of color by its own nominee.
Mediaite5hTexas GOP Candidate Condemned By Fellow Republicans for ‘Racist’ Post About Non-White Students: ‘Makes Me Sick’HCHouston Chronicle5hJohn Cornyn slams Bo French for tweet disparaging non-white UT students
NBC News3hTexas Republicans call out railroad commissioner candidate over racist social media post
Political Wire4hTexas Republicans Denounce GOP Statewide Candidate
Politico6hTexas Republicans denounce GOP statewide candidate over xenophobic post
Raw Story8h'Will you condemn this?' Republican's post sparks national debate about GOP racism
The New York Times31mTexas Republican’s Racist Social Media Post Draws Condemnation
What’s next: Cornyn's office has not said whether he will back French's Democratic opponent, Jon Rosenthal.
- Cornyn has also publicly declined to support Ken Paxton, the GOP nominee he lost to in May.
- Will other statewide Texas Republicans follow Cornyn's lead and formally condemn French, or remain silent?
- Does Cornyn's open break with his party's nominees signal a broader shift in his posture as his Senate term ends?