Guess who is fanning the flames of Islamophobia
Key takeaways
- With border security receding as an issue, warnings about radical Islam and the supposed Islamification of America serve as a new means to mobilize conservative voters.
- Greg Abbott (R) signed legislation prohibiting Sharia compounds — insisting, with unintended irony, that religious freedom was at stake.
- Once-fringe rhetoric is increasingly finding a home in national Republican politics.
Why this matters: political developments that affect policy direction and public trust.
Altschuler, opinion contributors - 05/24/26 8:00 AM ET Comments: Link copied by David Wippman and Glenn C. Altschuler, opinion contributors - 05/24/26 8:00 AM ET Comments: Link copied Getty Images In recent years, anti-Muslim rhetoric from Republican officeholders, candidates and media personalities that once would have been politically disqualifying is increasingly being met with silence, rationalization or reward from many conservatives. Nowhere is this trend clearer than in Texas, even though Muslims make up only 2 percent of the population there.
With border security receding as an issue, warnings about radical Islam and the supposed Islamification of America serve as a new means to mobilize conservative voters.
Last year, after investors affiliated with the East Plano Islamic Center sought to build a small Muslim-friendly residential community outside Dallas, Republican political candidates denounced the project as evidence of the Islamification of Texas, and state officials launched five investigations into it. Gov. Greg Abbott (R) signed legislation prohibiting Sharia compounds — insisting, with unintended irony, that religious freedom was at stake. And Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) filed three lawsuits seeking to halt the development on allegations of securities fraud and zoning violations.