{
  "id": 7382618,
  "title": "Texas nominees' racist, vulgar remarks receive mixed GOP reaction",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/14/texas-nominees-racist-vulgar-remarks-receive-mixed-gop-reaction",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-14T19:13:57.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Axios",
    "slug": "axios",
    "url": "https://www.axios.com/2026/09/14/gop-controversy-brandon-herrera-bo-french"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Two Texas Republican candidates with controversial online histories are facing mixed reactions from the GOP after receiving backlash for their remarks.\n\nHouse Speaker Mike Johnson condemned YouTube candidate Brandon Herrera's vulgar language, calling it \"detestable\" while praising Herrera's campaign. Herrera, who is running for a key Texas congressional seat, had made offensive comments in a 2023 video, including calling a Nazi submachine gun the \"original ghetto blaster.\" Johnson noted that Herrera's current persona is serious and thoughtful.\n\nMeanwhile, Bo French, the Republican nominee for the Railroad Commission, sparked outrage after sharing a photo of students of color celebrating at a Texas Longhorns game. French wrote that he was \"unbelievably shocked\" by the photo, suggesting that social media exposes the displacement of Americans by foreigners. Republican senators John Cornyn and Dan Crenshaw both criticized French's post, with Cornyn specifically calling out the intolerance and racism in the comments.\n\nTexas Democrats, including Senate nominee James Talarico, praised Cornyn's condemnation of French's comments and urged other Republican candidates to follow suit. Texas Governor Greg Abbott, however, stopped short of condemning French's post, stating that it was not his message and instead emphasized his support for freezing H-1B visas at universities.\n\nThe incident highlights the growing scrutiny on candidates' online activities and how it can become an unerasable part of their political record. In the case of Herrera and French, some Republican officials have not backed down from their controversial comments, despite criticism from fellow party members.",
  "summary": "Republicans have condemned, sidestepped or continued to support two Texas GOP nominees after one's racist post this weekend about students of color and another's years of vulgar comments about women sparked backlash. The big picture: In a fiercely heated midterm election, some candidates' racist, sexist and crude material online hasn't always been enough to cost them their party's support.…",
  "key_points": [
    "House Speaker Mike Johnson condemns Brandon Herrera's vulgar language as \"detestable\"",
    "Republican senators John Cornyn and Dan Crenshaw criticize Bo French's post about students of color",
    "Texas Governor Greg Abbott does not condemn Bo French's post, maintains support for H-1B visa freeze"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}