The Aporia · Despite Nativist Outcry, Texas Shows the Melting Pot Works Incredibly Well

Despite Nativist Outcry, Texas Shows the Melting Pot Works Incredibly Well

Read the original at Reason ↗

Cite

APA MLA Chicago

Gillespie, N. (2026, September 18). Despite Nativist Outcry, Texas Shows the Melting Pot Works Incredibly Well. Reason. https://reason.com/2026/09/18/despite-nativist-outcry-texas-shows-the-melting-pot-works-incredibly-well/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Quick Summary

Texas Republican Bo French posted on X about seeing many South Asian students at a University of Texas at Austin football game, expressing racist views that were widely condemned. The article argues that such nativist attitudes are counterproductive to Texas's economic and cultural growth. Data shows that 80.5% of UT Austin’s student body is from Texas, while international students make up only 9.3%, indicating a strong preference for state residents as per university policy.

Written by AI on 2026-09-19, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

A photo of University of Texas at Austin students celebrating a football game went viral in September 2026 after Bo French, a Republican candidate for Texas Railroad Commissioner, mislabeled it as the university's graduation ceremony and criticized its diversity. The post sparked intense backlash, with many calling his comments racist. Former President George W. Bush’s advisor Karl Rove stated he would vote for Democratic opponent Jon Rosenthal for only the second time in his life. Sen. John Cornyn declared French an embarrassment to the Republican Party and said he wouldn't vote for him, potentially dragging down other GOP candidates. Despite this controversy, UT Austin remains a predominantly Texan institution, with over 80% of its students being Texas residents. The incident highlighted growing concerns about white nationalism within the Republican Party. Karl Rove criticized French’s comments as un-American and out-of-touch with the values that have driven Texas's economic success. Supporters like Federalist CEO Sean Davis defended French’s stance, arguing for a nativist perspective on immigration. This debate underscores the internal conflict within the GOP over inclusivity versus nativism. Texas Governor Greg Abbott distanced himself from French while still supporting anti-immigration policies, reflecting a broader divide in conservative circles. The controversy brought national attention to issues of racial and cultural inclusion in politics, particularly within Texas's influential Republican Party. Despite this, UT Austin continues to demonstrate the benefits of diversity, maintaining its position as a key institution in America’s "new center of gravity." Critics argue that nativist views could harm Texas’s economic growth and cultural vibrancy. This episode illustrates the challenges facing Republicans as they grapple with the changing demographics of the United States. Nick Gillespie argues that embracing diversity is essential for continued prosperity, while others like Sean Davis stress the importance of preserving what they see as traditional American values. The incident also highlights how social media can rapidly escalate political controversies and reshape public perceptions of candidates and parties. Despite French’s inflammatory comments, many Texas Republicans are focused on maintaining a welcoming image to attract both economic investment and diverse populations essential for future growth. The debate over inclusivity and nativism continues to shape the national conversation about immigration and cultural identity within conservative politics.

Written for “Texas Politics Racism Debate” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 9 other(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 7% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

Why the Right Should Celebrate the UT-Austin Football Photo Same event

Reason

⚖️ Leans left Hedges 4 of 53 claims Outlet record 67/100

The GOP’s White Nationalism Problem Goes All the Way to the Top Same event

The Bulwark

⚖️ Leans strongly left further left than this Hedges 7 of 66 claims

Texas Asian American voters could decide battleground races as Bo French scandal erupts: Poll Different event

Washington Examiner

⚖️ Leans left Hedges 9 of 46 claims Outlet record 70/100

“The articles discuss different aspects related to Asian American voters in Texas and an incident involving Bo French's posts, rather than describing the same specific event.”

Nativist nimrods like Texas’ Bo French reject the immigrants we all should welcome Same event

New York Post

⚖️ Leans left Hedges 4 of 35 claims Outlet record 66/100

Tiana Lowe Doescher: Texas Republican’s racist post ‘triggered Republicans’ Same event

Washington Examiner

Hedges 1 of 15 claims Outlet record 70/100

Karl Rove outlines his case against Bo French: ‘GOP’s stables need a cleaning’ Different event

Washington Examiner

Hedges 2 of 22 claims Outlet record 70/100

“The articles discuss different aspects of Bo French's controversial posts and do not describe the same specific incident.”

Barabak: The worst, most vile candidate in Texas isn't who you might think Different event

Los Angeles Times

⚖️ Leans strongly left further left than this Hedges 5 of 61 claims Outlet record 95/100

“While both articles discuss Bo French's racist posts about Asian American students at a University of Texas football game, they focus on different aspects and are not reporting on the exact same specific incident or time.”

‘Make college football great again’: US Education dept post sparks outrage amid Bo French controversy Different event

Times of India

Hedges 0 of 13 claims Outlet record 59/100

“Article A discusses Bo French's racist posts about South Asian students, while Article B focuses on criticism of a US Department of Education post that is perceived as connected to the controversy but is not describing the same specific incident.”

Megan Basham vs Pooja Sethi on viral photo of Texas university students: People are angry because this was not organic Different event

Times of India

Hedges 0 of 23 claims Outlet record 59/100

“While both articles discuss Bo French's posts about South Asian students at UT Austin, they describe different aspects and implications of the incident.”

How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted

sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

2 of 29 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

Leans left

of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate

Publisher signals

67/100

Reason's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Politics

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Analyzed 2026-09-19 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Reason · 1050 article(s) · 4 correction(s) detected

Running correction rate · 4 correction(s)

2026-10-02

Would a Firing Squad Have Been More 'Humane' for Christa Pike?

2026-09-26

"I Will Not Stand for Being Jerked Around … by Any Lawyer Who Practices Before Me"

2026-09-18

New Article: Landor v. Louisiana Department of Corrections: Bringing Clarity To The Necessary and Proper Clause

2026-09-05

Lawyers' Responsibility for Hallucinations in Briefs That They Sign

Who wrote this

Nick Gillespie

8 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction

🔮 This was for the October 2004 issue, which would run a bit before John Kerry squared off against George Bush in the presidential election.

2026-10-31 · assertive framing · For Libertarians, Election Day Is the Cruelest Day of the Year

🔮 With little more than two weeks to go until the midterm elections, it seems increasingly possible that the Democrats, already a big favorite to win control of the House of Representatives, will also take charge of the planet's most elite nursing home, the United States Senate, where the median age is 64 years old.

2026-10-19 · assertive framing · Be Prepared for Elizabeth Warren's Reign of Economic Error

🔮 His research showing that intensive, early interventions can help low-income children close achievement gaps has been, he says, willfully misinterpreted as support for expensive and unworkable universal preschool programs that he calls "political ploys."

2026-10-07 · assertive framing · Are Economists Measuring the Wrong Things?

🔮 Later in the piece, Najya, now 16 years old and attending a competitive public high school of her own choosing, tells her mother, "Sometimes I wish instead of always thinking about other kids, you would have thought about me.

2026-10-01 · assertive framing · Like Nikole Hannah-Jones, My Parents Put Ideology Over Pedagogy in Sending Me to Catholic School

🔮 If Texans are interested in continuing the sort of uninterrupted economic and cultural growth they've experienced over the past 40 years, they will spurn nativism and tribalism and embrace the future-oriented, individualistic, and open-minded attitudes and policies that have made the state America's "new centre of gravity" (according to The Economist).

2026-09-18 · assertive framing · Despite Nativist Outcry, Texas Shows the Melting Pot Works Incredibly Well

🔮 Of outrage at the tin-eared dismissal on September 12 of "the little Eichmanns inhabiting the sterile sanctuary of the twin towers" by an academic who would later be unmasked as a liar about Native American heritage.

2026-09-11 · assertive framing · Americans Have Learned Virtually No Lessons From 9/11

🔮 Any sentient being watching the 2024 Republican National Convention—especially the moment in which Hulk Hogan tore off his own shirt and declared "Let Trumpamania run wild, brother!"—would have to compare that spectacle to Idiocracy.

2026-08-28 · assertive framing · Idiocracy Predicted Our World, But Not in the Way You Think

Also by Nick Gillespie

For Libertarians, Election Day Is the Cruelest Day of the Year

2026-10-31 · Reason

Be Prepared for Elizabeth Warren's Reign of Economic Error

2026-10-19 · Reason

Are Economists Measuring the Wrong Things?

2026-10-07 · Reason

Like Nikole Hannah-Jones, My Parents Put Ideology Over Pedagogy in Sending Me to Catholic School

2026-10-01 · Reason

Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

All 8 articles by Nick Gillespie →

Topics

Americans Republican Texans Texas UT Austin

Subjects

Texas GPE · 10× French NORP · 5× UT Austin ORG · 4× Americans NORP · 3× America GPE · 2× Bo French PERSON · 2× Reason ORG · 2× Republican NORP · 2× Texans ORG · 2× South Asian NORP · 1×

Narrative

Last year, the university, ranked in the top 30 by US News & World Report, announced that it received a record number of freshman applications, but the overwhelming majority of undergrad and graduate students came from Texas: Students who are Texas residents make up 80.5% of all students, while another 10.2% are from outside of Texas, representing 48 other U.S. states and the District of Columbia.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-19

2026-09-19 · Reason

Despite Nativist Outcry, Texas Shows the Melting Pot Works Incredibly Well · assertive framing

Claims (29 extracted, 2 hedged)

If Texans are interested in continuing the sort of uninterrupted economic and cultural growth they've experienced over the past 40 years, they will spurn nativism and tribalism and embrace the future-oriented, individualistic, and open-minded attitudes and policies that have made the state America's "new centre of gravity" (according to The Economist). uncertain

state → continue → Economist

In a way that is genuinely rare today, French didn't sugarcoat his disgust at seeing brown students cheering for the Longhorns after a remarkable comeback, writing, "I heard UT graduation this year looked like this. asserted

graduation → sugarcoat → this

I didn't believe it. asserted

I → believe → it

The problem is now obviously far worse than anyone imagined." asserted

anyone → imagine → ?

For French, who stresses his genealogical bona fides in his campaign biography ("Bo grew up in a family that's been in the oil business for over 80 years"), Indian Americans simply cannot be real Americans the same way that people descended from Brits, Swedes, or Germans are. asserted

people → stress → Brits

I heard UT graduation this year looked like this. asserted

graduation → hear → this

I didn't believe it. asserted

I → believe → it

The problem is now obviously far worse than anyone imagined. asserted

anyone → imagine → ?

— Bo French (@bofrench) September 13, 2026 In case anyone missed his point, the Republican candidate for the powerful Texas Railroad Commission (somewhat confusingly, it regulates the state's oil and gas industry) followed his first post with another, averring, "Like body-cams exposed criminals, social media is exposing how many Americans have been displaced by foreigners. asserted

Americans → miss → foreigners

It's everywhere and far worse than any of us could imagine." uncertain

any → imagine → us

In an earlier post about the brutal Labor Day stabbing murder of Texas state employee (and Reason supporter) Andrew Wimsatt, French had gone even further, writing of the alleged killer, "Someone named 'Chinedu Ogbodiegwu' shouldn't even be in our country." asserted

Someone → go → country

As The Atlantic's Conor Friedersdorf has noted, Texas residents are not being displaced at UT Austin, especially at the undergraduate level, even as the school becomes more elite. asserted

school → note → level

"There is no reason to assume that the students in the photograph are foreigners, and Texas does not prioritize foreigners over Texans. asserted

Texas → be → Texans

Ninety percent of slots for first-year students at UT Austin are reserved for Texas residents." asserted

percent → reserve → residents

% → rank → Columbia

International enrollment of 5,140 is down 1.7% from 2024 and comprises 9.3% of all students. asserted

enrollment → comprise → students

As the result of various court decisions and a conservative state legislature, Reason's Robby Soave writes, UT Austin has been a leader in replacing race-conscious admissions with merit-based ones instead. asserted

Austin → write → ones

So when figures such as French complain "the entire system is biased against heritage Americans and for third worlders," they are wrong. asserted

they → complain → worlders

Indeed, it takes a particular sort of racialist myopia to look at an image of students of all sorts of backgrounds cheering in unison at an American football game and turn it into some sort of dystopian nightmare. asserted

students → take → nightmare

If anything, the very picture that sent French spiraling is a tribute to the idea of America as a melting pot. asserted

French → send → pot

That's even more true of Texas writ large, a state whose population has increased by 86 percent, to 31.7 million, since 1990. asserted

population → writ → 1990

Now the second-most populous state in the country after California, Texas is home to about 5.8 million people born outside the United States, meaning that 18.4 percent of its population is foreign-born, well above the national average of 14.8 percent but well below states such as California, New Jersey, New York, and Florida. asserted

percent → bear → California

If current trends hold, Texas will overtake California as the most populous state by 2050. asserted

Texas → hold → 2050

Why are people leaving California to head to Texas? asserted

people → leave → Texas

Demographer Joel Kotkin says for a mix of economic opportunity and something less tangible but equally important: broad-based opportunity. asserted

Kotkin → say → opportunity

Once the epitome of the American dream and home not just to Hollywood but to many high-tech industries along with agriculture and manufacturing, he writes, California has become anti-business, overregulated, and too expensive. asserted

California → write → agriculture

"California needs to refocus not just on elite industries and research, but also on nurturing blue-collar and business service jobs for everyone else. asserted

California → need → everyone

Right now, we don't do that anymore," he says, "Texas, with its crappy weather, unspectacular scenery and sometimes coarse culture, does." asserted

Texas → do → weather

And if his attitudes toward newcomers win the day, Texas will be left only with crappy weather and unspectacular scenery, as domestic and international migrants find a place that is more welcoming. asserted

that → win → place