State Rep. Salman Bhojani is sworn in on floor of the Texas House of Representatives.

‘McCarthyism with a Texas accent’

Texas State Representative Salman Bhojani on the (not so) new rise of politicized Islamophobia.

by Gus Bova, The Texas Observer May 6, 2026May 6, 2026

This article was originally published by the Texas Observer, a nonprofit investigative news outlet and magazine. Sign up for their weekly newsletter, or follow them on Facebook, X and Bluesky. Three years ago, at the outset of the 88th session of the Texas Legislature, Salman Bhojani placed his hand atop a 19th-century Quran in the state House chamber and became […]

San Antonio News

Analysis: Rep. Chip Roy’s latest Islamophobic outburst reeks of desperation

Roy’s tiresome torrent of Islamophobic screeds show just how little he has to offer as a policymaker.

by Sanford Nowlin April 1, 2026April 1, 2026

Former Tarrant County GOP Chair Bo French speaks during a rally at the Tarrant County Republican Party headquarters in Fort Worth on Jan. 6, 2025.

News

Texas Railroad Commissioner candidate Bo French calls for deportation of 100 million people

French, a former Tarrant County GOP chair, also said Republicans should more openly embrace Islamophobia.

by Sanford Nowlin March 27, 2026March 27, 2026

From left: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and state Comptroller Kelly Hancock during Paxton's September 2023 impeachment trial on the Senate floor at the Austin Capitol.

News

Ken Paxton calls acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock ‘loser,’ calls for his removal amid grudge match

In a Tuesday letter, Hancock criticized the attorney general for not using all the tools at his disposal to go after groups he says are affiliated with Muslim terrorist groups.

by Eleanor Klibanoff, The Texas Tribune March 25, 2026

Gov. Greg Abbott at one of his many appearances trying to sell Texans on school vouchers.

Texas News

Texas hit with second federal suit over exclusion of Muslim schools from voucher program

Both suits maintain the state is engaging in religious discrimination by cutting off state voucher money to Islamic private campuses.

by Sanford Nowlin March 12, 2026March 12, 2026

Gov. Greg Abbott has increasingly adopted the combative tone and scorched-earth politics of President Donald Trump.

News Features

Trump isn’t alone in destroying U.S. political discourse. Texas leaders deserve blame too.

Texas Republican officials have increasingly emulated the coarse, divisive rhetoric popularized by Trump — and we’re worse off for it, experts said.

by Sanford Nowlin February 18, 2026February 18, 2026

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office has sued a state board to end three work-study programs, claiming they exclude religious groups.

Texas News

Texas AG Ken Paxton sues Muslim civil rights group to ‘ban terrorist organizations’

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, Paxton’s target, called the suit ‘another frivolous, politically motivated anti-Muslim publicity stunt that wastes more taxpayer dollars.’

by Stephanie Koithan February 5, 2026February 5, 2026

Attorney General Ken Paxton greets attendees at the Texas Youth Summit at the Woodlands Marriott on Sept. 20, 2025.

Texas News

Ken Paxton: Comptroller can exclude schools from voucher program under anti-terror laws

A CAIR official blasted the Texas AG’s opinion, saying the law does not permit the comptroller to scrutinize Muslim schools because of their religious identity.

by Jessica Priest, The Texas Tribune January 26, 2026January 26, 2026

Men offer Eid prayers at the Al-Noor Masjid Islamic Center in Houston on April 21, 2023.

Texas News

Anti-Islam rhetoric takes center stage in Texas Republican primary

As the GOP and its factions debate what constitutes American identity, opposition to Islam has become a key campaign pillar for some Texas Republicans in statewide races and beyond.

by Gabby Birenbaum, The Texas Tribune January 26, 2026January 26, 2026

Then-state Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, in the Senate chamber on May 2, 2023. Now acting state comptroller, Hancock is seeking to bar some Islamic and Chinese-linked schools from Texas' school voucher program.

Texas News

Texas comptroller questions whether some Islamic schools can be excluded from voucher program

Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock suggested schools that hosted events for the Council on American-Islamic Relations or are linked to China could be disqualified from the new program.