Monica De La Cruz says the photo shows kids celebrating a Longhorns win
United States representative giving a statement to a news outlet
“All I see in that photograph is a group of kids celebrating a Longhorns win. What can be more Texan than that?”
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
Politico report timestamped 5:00 AM ET on September 15, 2026. It states that no Republican explicitly called for French to drop out, that Dan Patrick did not respond to a request for comment, and that two students in the photo told the Dallas Morning News they are US citizens.
Before the quotation
De La Cruz faces a difficult reelection in a Hispanic-majority district. Politico reported Texas Republicans were worried about the effect of French's rhetoric on races down the ballot.
After the quotation
She went on to criticise her Democratic opponent, Bobby Pulido, over his past racial comments.
How this statement is classified
Case context: Was Bo French’s UT Austin post racist?
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
The conduct under scrutiny is French's use of the image as evidence of a problem. De La Cruz rejects that reading and, in the same statement, says she will condemn racism whatever its source.
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Was Bo French’s UT Austin post racist?
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
More from this case
Read the full case“We all make mistakes but what does he do? No takedown of offensive post, no apology. Just doubles down and raises $ using it. The Republican Party is better than this. We should all condemn this bigotry directed at our fellow Texans or we will soon find ourselves a minority party.”Read statement
“Look, it was an idiotic tweet that he sent. I wish he hadn't sent it. And I got to say, I am celebrating every student at UT, and I was proud to be there in Austin, and it was a hell of a win. Hook 'em horns.”Read statement
“I don’t really know the guy. I heard he said some not so pleasant things. … I am concerned about the number of people living in this country, and we don’t even know who they really are. Shut the border down for 10 years, and then let’s try to figure out who we got in this country because we don’t even know.”Read statement