Gov. Greg Abbott certainly has a penchant for attacking Texas’ public schools. On Monday morning, he shot off a casual accusation claiming that Leander ISD is refusing to distribute donated copies of the U.S. Constitution to its students.
“They said it was against their policies of maintaining neutrality on political or religious issues,” Abbott wrote, apparently basing his complaint on an article from the Epoch Times, a far-right newspaper and mouthpiece for the Falun Gong religious movement, as The New York Times has reported. The newspaper, based in New York City, is known for promoting QANON, the 2020 election fraud conspiracy, and anti-vaxxer hysteria.
After the governor’s tweet, LISD twice attempted to correct the record. “This information is not accurate,” the district wrote on X (fka Twitter). “Our middle school campuses have been accepting this donation since Friday in recognition of Celebrate Freedom Week.” Abbott has not yet reacted to the comments from LISD or taken down his post.
Some commenters asked if it was really true that LISD did not distribute the Constitution. “They do and they passed out the free copies of the constitution,” Leigh Dubose tweeted. “My kiddo got one at his Leander ISD middle school and hung it in his room.”
Others demanded that Leander ISD teach kids about the Constitution. It is unclear how familiar Abbott is with the Constitution. He has signed a number laws later challenged and blocked due to their unconstitutionality (or “likely” unconstitutionality), including most recently the “Death Star” bill and Senate Bill 12, which criminalizes drag shows.
This article appears in September 15 • 2023.
