The head of the Tarrant County Republican Party targeted a state House member with anti-Muslim remarks this week \u2014 only a month after Republicans called for his resignation over similar online behavior.<\/p>\n
On X, Tarrant County GOP Chairman Bo French targeted Democratic state House Rep. Salman Bhojani, who represents parts of Arlington, Euless and Bedford.<\/p>\n
In a series of posts over the last two days, French called Bhojani an \u201canti-American democrat\u201d, said he was trying to \u201cfurther jihad,\u201d and called on federal officials to denaturalize and deport the lawmaker, who is originally from Pakistan.<\/p>\n
Bhojani, who was among the first Muslim Americans elected to the Texas Legislature when he won a seat in 2022, said in a phone call with KERA News Tuesday that these comments on his religion and ethnicity are not new to him. He said he received similar messages when he ran for Euless city council in 2018.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really unfortunate that people are targeting me for my faith and my ethnicity, for the country that I was born in, for their own political gain,\u201d Bhojani said. <\/p>\n
French also published addresses that purportedly belong to Bhojani, who said his family is receiving threats amid the online backlash.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey did not sign up to be targeted in this way,\u201d he said. \u201cI have a thick skin, so I can understand that there are people from all walks of life that have different opinions.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Democrat Salman Bhojani is among the first Muslim Americans to be elected to the Texas House of Representatives.<\/p>\n
KERA News reached out to French for comment. This story will be updated with any response.<\/p>\n
French first called Bhojani out on X after the latter released a statement Aug. 3<\/a> announcing he was traveling to Pakistan for a family emergency.<\/p>\n French accused Bhojani of lying about his trip to Pakistan \u2014 which French referred to as \u201cthe same place Osama Bin Laden hid\u201d \u2014 and alleged without evidence Bhojani was seen in Southlake. He also accused him of \u201clying to further jihad.\u201d<\/p>\n Bhojani has since shared photos with The Texas Tribune<\/a> of his passport stamps and plane tickets to Pakistan, with the dates matching his initial post. He also said on Twitter he\u2019ll now join his other House colleagues in breaking quorum<\/a>.<\/p>\n Several Democrats fled the state last week to block passage of a new congressional map<\/a> designed to give the GOP five additional seats in the U.S. House next year.<\/p>\n The GOP chairman\u2019s posts continued<\/a>, asking his followers if the law should be changed to \u201cforbid foreign born people from holding any elected office.\u201d<\/p>\n French also reposted tweets from Amy Mek, founder of the conservative outlet Rise Align Ignite Reclaim foundation, which has posted anti-Muslim content in the past<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mek\u2019s previous posts on the North Texas Muslim development EPIC City sparked backlash against the development, including from Gov. Greg Abbott. Mek accused the development of promoting Sharia law and spread other negative rhetoric about Islam. Soon after, Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton announced investigations into the project.<\/p>\n As of Tuesday evening, French was still posting and sharing anti-Muslim tweets.<\/p>\n As party chair, French has been open about his goal to \u201cmake Tarrant County inhospitable for Democrats\u201d by pulling the county GOP further to the right. In July 2024, French joined other Republican leaders onstage at a conference<\/a> in Fort Worth urging attendees to resist a Democratic campaign to \u201crid the earth of the white race<\/a>\u201d and embrace Christian nationalism.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also not the first time French has made controversial statements online. Republican leaders like Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker called for French\u2019s removal in July after asking his followers in a now deleted post, \u201cWho is a bigger threat to America?\u201d Respondents had two options: \u201cJews\u201d or \u201cMuslims.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBo French\u2019s words do not reflect my values nor the values of the Republican Party,\u201d Patrick posted on X<\/a>. \u201cAntisemitism and religious bigotry have no place in Texas.\u201d<\/p>\n French later apologized on X, saying \u201cantisemitism has no place in the Republican Party.\u201d<\/p>\n French\u2019s Republican colleagues also condemned him last year<\/a> over posts using several slurs against political opponents, some of which said French’s behavior is part of a broader normalization of hateful and dehumanizing rhetoric in the party.<\/p>\n \u00a0Penelope Rivera is KERA’s Breaking News Reporter. Got a tip? Email Penelope at\u00a0privera@kera.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n