With little over a week to go before the Nov. 3 midterm election, the political culture wars in Comal County heated up again today.
Saturday, the owners of a New Braunfels barbecue restaurant took to social media to blame a “rogue employee” for scheduling an unauthorized Ken Paxton campaign rally for the U.S. Senate that included an appearance by Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. Their comments sparked outrage on social media, especially from Republicans who vowed to take their business elsewhere.
Today Rep. Carrie Isaac, running against Democrat Merrie Fox for a third term in Texas House District 73, reignited passions on both sides of the aisle with a statement vowing to protect New Braunfels from “Sharia.”
Hours later, the Comal County Republican Party posted a social-media image of Democrat James Talarico dressed as Peter Pan, stealing Paxton yard signs.
Isaac defended New Braunfels firefighter Lt. John Weige, who was placed on administrative leave in mid-October by New Braunfels City Manager Robert Camareno for his derogatory social-media posts about former U.S. Army major and psychiatrist Nidal Malik Hasan, a Muslim who is scheduled to be executed by a military firing squad Dec. 3 at Fort Hood.
Hasan shot and killed 13 people and wounded 33 others Nov. 5, 2009.
Isaac, who supports conservative Christian values and policies associated with the Christian right, acknowledged Weige’s views do not represent the City of New Braunfels but defended them as constitutionally protected free speech.
She accused Camareno of dragging New Braunfels into an “international fight” that serves the purposes of Sharia law, a system of Islamic religious and ethical principles.
“I won’t stay quiet about this,” she said. “The city manager needs to face the larger problems. This response paints a false picture of a Texas city that I represent and will keep defending against the spread of Sharia. In the next legislative session, I intend to push for stronger protections for the Constitution and the republican form of government guaranteed (by the U.S. Constitution).
In his Facebook posts, Weige used the derogatory phrase “Muslim pig” and called for an execution watch party that included barbecuing pork, frying up bacon, drinking alcohol and “everything the scumbag Muslims hate.”
Meanwhile, the Republican Party today on Facebook doubled down on claims that someone is stealing Ken Paxton campaign signs.
“When Captain Hook has to give you a lesson in right and wrong, you’ve officially lost the plot,” the post says. “Bad form, Dem. Bad form.”
“Republicans don’t steal signs.”
The party also warned that anyone who steals a sign could be fined up to $2,000 and spend 80 days in jail.
In a separate video, Republican Party Chair Anita Valdez said her office is now out of Paxton campaign signs and is being inundated with calls from people reporting their yard signs were stolen.
“It’s unconstitutional,” she said, adding that law enforcement has been notified of the alleged theft.
But Democratic Party Chair Vicky Locke said she has received no calls about stolen campaign signs and hasn’t noticed a shortage of Ken Paxton signs at polling locations either.
On Facebook Merrie Fox, Isaac’s opponent, limited her comments to urging Democrats to vote and promising to serve while Isaac prayed at an Oct. 22-24 religious tent revival with Steve Ceh, the founder of both Solomon’s Porch ministries and the New Braunfels Trump Train who believes the 2020 election was stolen.
The former educator spoke at the New Braunfels City Council meeting tonight, condemning Isaac’s comments while speaking about free speech rights and the professional responsibilities of public servants:
“Teachers and staff—including myself—retained our First Amendment rights as private citizens. But we also understood that our words could affect the trust that families placed in us. Imagine a teacher posting on their social media page that Muslim children are evil. Or Protestant children are scum. Or Mexican children are stupid.
“There would be outrage—and rightfully so – because every parent should be assured that when their child enters a classroom, they will be treated with dignity and fairness regardless of anything.
“Last year, Canyon Lake paramedic Danielle Meyers was fired after posting about the assassination of Charlie Kirk: ‘Good riddance. Thoughts and prayers to the other guy.’ Our community was outraged.
“Today, we’re grappling with social-media posts by Lieutenant Weige referring to Muslims as “pigs” and “scumbags” and saying, “get them all out.”
“So what is the standard of our community? Because we cannot have one standard when offensive speech targets conservatives and another when it targets Muslims.
“And Representative Carrie Isaac’s effort to turn this local personnel matter into a conversation about Sharia Law does not answer that question.”