There’s a special kind of political self-destruction that happens when a candidate mistakes cruelty for courage. Bo French, the Republican nominee for Texas Railroad Commissioner, just gave us a masterclass in it.

French looked at a photograph of University of Texas students celebrating their football team’s victory over Ohio State and saw something sinister. These weren’t just Longhorns reveling in a stunning win. To French, they were evidence of a problem worse than anyone imagined. What was the smoking gun? The students appeared to be of South Asian descent.

Let that sink in. American students, attending an American university, celebrating an American football victory, became targets of a racist screed from a man seeking statewide office. This isn’t dog whistling anymore. It’s just howling into the void.

Senator John Cornyn, who’s leaving Congress after losing his primary to Ken Paxton, didn’t mince words. He called it exactly what it was and challenged his fellow Republicans to do the same. “This is how great political parties self-destruct,” Cornyn wrote. He’s right, though the irony of him delivering that message after his own electoral defeat isn’t lost on anyone paying attention.

French’s response? He called Cornyn a RINO and doubled down, claiming Texas institutions were overrun by illegal aliens and foreign nationals. Never mind that the students in question were likely American citizens exercising their God-given right to enjoy college football. Details apparently don’t matter when you’re busy being outraged.

Here’s where this gets complicated for conservatives who actually believe in something beyond performative anger. The Texas Railroad Commission matters. It’s not some ceremonial post where incompetence can be safely quarantined. This three-member panel regulates the lifeblood of Texas’s economy: oil and gas production, pipelines, natural gas utilities. It’s serious business requiring serious people.

French defeated the Abbott-endorsed incumbent Jim Wright in the primary. Think about that. Republican voters chose this man over the sitting governor’s preferred candidate. That should worry anyone who cares about the party’s future.

Governor Abbott tried threading an impossible needle Sunday. He didn’t condemn French’s post directly but said the photo was selective and actually showed how Texans unite. Then he pivoted to immigration policy and H-1B visas, as if that justified French’s racial animus. It was political gymnastics that would’ve scored poorly with any honest judge.

You can oppose illegal immigration without being a bigot. You can support tougher border security without sneering at American students based on their ethnicity. These aren’t contradictory positions. They’re basic requirements for anyone claiming to care about American values.

Dan Crenshaw condemned French too. So did Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows, who pointed out the obvious: you can oppose immigration policy without demeaning people because of their race or ethnicity. It’s not rocket science. It’s kindergarten-level civility.

French has history here. He’s used slurs against LGBTQ people. He’s made antisemitic and Islamophobic remarks. When asked in July if he regretted these comments, he said no. His reasoning? “Truth sounds like hate to those who hate the truth.” That’s not wisdom. That’s the refuge of someone who’s confused being offensive with being honest.

The Republican Party stands for something, or at least it’s supposed to. Individual liberty means nothing if it doesn’t apply equally. Limited government rings hollow when candidates want to regulate who gets to celebrate a football game. Free markets depend on merit, not ethnic purity. Traditional values include basic human decency.

French’s Democratic opponent, Jon Rosenthal, said French couldn’t tell a Longhorn from a foreigner. That’s charitable. French seems unable to distinguish between policy debates and racial resentment.

What’s maddening is that there are legitimate conversations to be had about immigration policy, about visa programs, about ensuring American workers get fair opportunities. But French isn’t interested in those conversations. He’s interested in scoring cheap points with people whose approval isn’t worth having.

The question now is whether Texas Republicans will hold the line. Cornyn and Crenshaw and Burrows spoke up. That matters. But a party is defined by who it elevates, not just who it occasionally criticizes. French won his primary. He’s on the ballot. Republican voters will have to decide whether they’re comfortable putting someone like this in charge of regulating Texas’s most vital industry.

Political parties do self-destruct, just like Cornyn said. Usually not all at once, but slowly, through a thousand small compromises with the worst instincts of their base. Every time you excuse the inexcusable, every time you look away from bigotry because it’s politically convenient, you lose a piece of what made you worth supporting in the first place.

Texas deserves better than Bo French. Republicans deserve better. And those UT students celebrating their team’s victory? They deserved to enjoy their moment without becoming props in some candidate’s racist fever dream.

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