Greg Abbott weighs in on Tucker Carlson

Gov. Greg Abbott (R-Texas) picked up yesterday on reports that Dominion Voting Services demanded the dismissal of Tucker Carlson. He said if Dominion ever wants to do business in Texas, they must answer as to whether they made such a demand – or not.

Greg Abbott sounds off

Greg Abbott posted his remarks to his Twitter account, in a long-form tweet.

In it he linked to this article from Axios about Tucker Carlson possibly suing Fox News for breach of contract. That article came out on the same day Tucker Carlson announced he would bring his show to Twitter.

In his tweet, Abbott said “Dominion does not operate in Texas.” He also said that if Dominion played any role in the Tucker Carlson muzzling, they would not do business in Texas moving forward. (Abbott also referred to “other factors,” suggesting that, for Dominion, clean hands would be necessary but not sufficient.)

Newsweek picked up on the story and described the tweet. They also reported that Dominion spokespeople denied flatly playing any such role. In report after report, Dominion has consistently denied ever demanding that Fox dismiss or muzzle Tucker Carlson in any way. Yet allegations keep surfacing, including one that a member of Fox’ board told Carlson that his dismissal was part of the settlement with Dominion. Had that come merely from Bryan Freedman, Carlson’s lawyer, that could be a typical lawyer’s gambit. But two “sources briefed on the conversation” told Axios that story directly.

Reaction

Greg Abbott’s tweet started more than a few arguments. One argument began with a statement that Dominion Voting Services shouldn’t operate anywhere. But it rapidly turned to the validity of “liberal talking points.”

But another centered on what, exactly, Gov. Abbott could do about the migrant surge at the Texas-Mexican border after the Title 42 expiration. A thread on that subject led to a link to an opinion piece in The Hill by one Raul Reyes. Whereas conservatives have accused Greg Abbott of running a dog-and-pony show on immigration to score political points, Reyes accuses him of actually “put[ting] Latinos and immigrants at risk” with talk, which Reyes insists is loose, of declaring an invasion of Texas from and by Mexico, in the person of these migrant hordes. According to Reyes, only conventional mass armies may mount, or be said to mount, an invasion. He also cited Supreme Court precedent and existing law that says that governors may not unilaterally transport people back across any border.

Actually, what Reyes did not consider – as few have – is what role the “Texit Movement” could play. The Texas Nationalist Movement – which wants Texas to secede from the Union – has several grievances with the federal government. A perception of lack of restrictions on immigration is one.

Besides, Mr. Reyes, who happens to be an immigration attorney, has a history of one-sided commentary on such issues. He also has plumped for live cameras at U.S. Supreme Court oral argument sessions.