Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, called out a member of his own party for "intolerance and racism" in a social media post about University of Texas students.
Bo French, a Republican candidate for Texas railroad commissioner, posted an image on X of a group of apparently non-White University of Texas football fans celebrating during the Longhorns' win against Ohio State on Sept. 12.
"I heard UT graduation this year looked like this. I didn’t believe it. The problem is now obviously far worse than anyone imagined," French wrote in the post.
In his own X post, Cornyn wrote, "This is the Republican nominee for statewide office. Are other Republican elected officials going to condemn the intolerance and racism, or look the other way while it becomes normalized.
This is how great political parties self-destruct. Sad."
Replying to another X user that criticized his post, French wrote that "I cheered the team for the win."
"But I weep for the families in Texas who can't get into UT because they prioritize foreigners over Texans. Shame on you for ignoring that fact."
In the 2025-26 school year, Texas residents accounted for more than 80% of students at the University of Texas at Austin, according to a release from the school. International students made up less than 10% of enrollment.
Cornyn, who was beaten in a May 26 primary by Trump-backed opponent Ken Paxton, the state's attorney general, has openly criticized his own party as his time in the Senate comes to a close. Paxton's Democratic opponent, state Rep. James Talarico, slammed the post as "blatant racism."
"Thank you @JohnCornyn for your leadership. Racism has no place in Texas. @KenPaxtonTX: will you condemn this blatant racism or will you cower to extremists?" Talarico said.
Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows, a Republican, said that "you can oppose immigration policy without demeaning people because of their race and ethnicity," adding that French should delete his post.
French is a businessman, former chairman of the Tarrant County Republican Party and a first-time candidate on a statewide Republican ticket. That ticket includes Paxton in a tight race against Talarico as well as Gov. Greg Abbott who is seeking re-election against state Rep. Gina Hinojosa.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: GOP senator criticizes 'racism' from fellow Texas Republican
