NEW YEAR SALE: 3 Months for 25¢Get a strong start with digital access. Act Now Sale Ends Jan. 19 |
As Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas Republicans get more aggressive in going after Muslims, they may be risking their relationship with a bloc of conservative voters that once thought they had a home in the GOP.
Nafees Asghar, a Republican voter in Richmond, said his Muslim faith is the source of his conservative values.
“Muslims don't believe in same-sex marriage,” Asghar said about his own beliefs. “We don't believe in gender modification. We do not believe in mid-term or long-term abortions. We don't believe in that, and the Republicans don't believe in that. So, if what we believe is Sharia law, then that makes me think that these Republicans also believe in Sharia law.”
Asghar says he is a “staunch conservative, like most of the Muslims are, or should be.” He has almost always voted for Republicans. But he will vote for “anyone but Abbott” in the primary in March, and thinks Muslims should prove to be a reliable voting bloc by doing the same.
Asghar isn’t alone. Reporters Haajrah Gilani and Benjamin Wermund talk to more Muslim Republicans who are now left questioning their commitment to the party and what that means going forward.
Who's Up, Who's Down
A daily stock market-style report on key players in Texas politics.
Up: Donald Trump.
He’s getting the Nobel Peace Prize medal. Sorta. Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said she presented her medal to Trump during a meeting with him at the White House on Thursday, saluting his “unique commitment with our freedom” despite his repeatedly questioning her credibility to take over her country after the U.S. ousted then-President Nicolás Maduro. While Machado may be offering it as a goodwill gesture to win Trump’s support, Trump and White House officials didn’t sound like they were ready to back her to be the next leader of Venezuela.
Down: Brooke Rollins.
The U.S. Secretary of Agriculture was trying to talk about healthy options at the grocery store that are cheaper choices for families, but critics were quick to turn it into a "Let them eat cake" jab. Rollins, a Texan, said that Americans can eat healthily for $3 a meal by consuming "a piece of chicken, a piece of broccoli, corn tortilla and one other thing." Rollins is getting hammered online with people posting images of a sad plate of food based off her comments. Democrats say it's another example of the White House being out of touch with real Americans who are still struggling with high grocery bills.
What do you think? Hit reply and let me know.
What else is going on in Texas
 Photo by: Alex Brandon, AP |
At a Senate hearing in Washington Thursday, Cruz worried that long sessions of looking at phones and tablets were leading to increased rates of anxiety, social withdrawal and suicide among teenagers. Read More |
|
 Photo by: Sam Owens, San Antonio Express-News |
Castro introduced the bill after Trump told Fox News on Jan. 8 that the U.S. would begin “hitting land” in its fight against cartels in Mexico. Read More |
|
 Photo by: RONALDO SCHEMIDT, AFP Via Getty Images |
Investigators say records from GoFundMe and Spotfund revealed Maitlin White created the pages just days after the deadly flooding. Read More |
|
 Photo by: Ricardo B. Brazziell/American-Statesman |
The ruling was the second one of this election cycle in which a candidate was rejected for failing to submit the required number of petition signatures. Read More |
|
Pick of the day
Photo by: Houston Chronicle
Whitmire was explaining why he’s not being more confrontational with the White House and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, like other Democratic mayors around the country, following the shooting in Minnesota. “We’ve been very smart by keeping the rhetoric very low,” the mayor told FOX26 reporter Greg Groogan.
What else I'm reading
More Texans have signed up for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace compared to last year, despite the expiration of federal subsidies to lower the costs of premiums. The Texas Tribune reports that as of Jan. 3, more than 4 million Texans had selected a plan through the ACA marketplace. That is up from just over 3.9 million in 2025.
Events at the Chronicle
 Photo by: Houston Chronicle Staff |
Join politics reporters Jeremy Wallace, Raj Mankad, John Lomax and Nicole Hensley for a virtual roundtable on a very competitive 2026 primary election. |
|
Recommended Reading
Discover something new with the Texas Elections 2026 newsletter
Get weekly updates on the candidates and races shaping Texas’ midterm elections
|
|
NEW YEAR SALE:
3 Months for 25¢Get a strong start with digital access. |
| Act Now Sale Ends Jan. 19
Cancel Anytime |
|
