Abbott rejects French’s reading of the image
Greg AbbottGovernor of Texas responding to a request for comment from CBS News Texas.
Abbott rejected French’s interpretation of the image and said it showed Texans uniting around the Longhorns. He separately reaffirmed support for restrictive state immigration laws and freezing H-1B visas at universities.
Responding to
The appearance of the fans in the image showed that Americans had been displaced by foreigners.
“That is not my message. A selective picture of Longhorn fans celebrating our biggest home victory-ever-actually shows a way that Texans unite. We all support our college football teams. The way we win the state is the same way we win football games. We unite under the brand of Texas. That doesn't mean that Texas cannot also lead in having the toughest immigration laws of any state in America and freezing H1B visas at our universities.”
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Was Bo French’s UT Austin post racist?
After the University of Texas football team’s September 12, 2026 comeback win over Ohio State, Republican Railroad Commission nominee Bo French posted a still image of apparent South Asian fans and called what it showed a “problem.” He later said social media was exposing Americans being displaced by foreigners and accused UT of prioritizing foreigners over Texans. French and several supporters framed the posts as a legitimate criticism of immigration and admissions policy. Republican and Democratic officials, along with other commentators, condemned the use of the fans’ appearance as racist or xenophobic. Governor Greg Abbott rejected French’s interpretation of the image while reaffirming support for restrictive immigration policies.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
Original local reporting that verified the still came from an official Texas Athletics video and published Abbott’s direct response.
Before the quotation
CBS News Texas asked Abbott to respond to French’s use of the crowd image.
After the quotation
Abbott’s response separated a unifying interpretation of the football crowd from his immigration and university visa policies.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Abbott challenges French’s characterization of the pictured fans but does not expressly condemn the act of posting the image; he preserves an adjacent restrictive immigration-policy position.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- Bo French
More from this case
Read the full caseRosenthal calls donations a rejection of French
“The people are rejecting this bold, racist campaign of his.”Read statement
Krishnamoorthi calls French’s UT fan post a xenophobic attack
“The Department of Education seems to be playing dog whistles to Bo French’s tune just days after his xenophobic attack on South Asian students for cheering for their own college football team. South Asian Americans are as American as anyone.”Read statement
French says his UT fan posts were about culture, not race
“It’s fair to say that Texas doesn’t look and feel like it did when I was a kid, and that’s not racist.”Read statement
Share or embed this statement
The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Abbott rejects French’s reading of the image
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/584-abbott-rejected-french-s-interpretation-of-the-image
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Abbott rejects French’s reading of the image". First published: 2026-09-15. Last updated: 2026-09-15. https://disputeindex.com/events/584-abbott-rejected-french-s-interpretation-of-the-image