Gov. Greg Abbott is pressing Attorney General Ken Paxton to take direct action against the Council on American-Islamic Relations, arguing the organization should lose its nonprofit status under Texas law.
In a letter sent to Paxton, Abbott said “voluminous documents detail the dangers posed to Texans by the Muslim Brotherhood, CAIR, and their affiliates,” and urged the attorney general to use his statutory authority to investigate CAIR’s records and, if warranted, seek forfeiture of its corporate charter.
“Regardless of the façade CAIR attempts to portray in press releases, CAIR cannot be allowed to use its ‘nonprofit’ status as a shield for sponsoring terror, advancing radical Islamism in Texas, or fronting for the Muslim Brotherhood,” Abbott wrote.
He stated that Texas law vests the attorney general with exclusive authority to regulate nonprofits that may be violating the law.
Abbott’s letter comes as his administration continues to defend its November designation of CAIR as both a foreign terrorist organization and a transnational criminal organization under Texas law—an action now being challenged in federal court by CAIR’s Texas chapters.
Notably, Paxton is currently defending Abbott in that lawsuit.
Paxton’s office did not respond to a request for comment on Abbott’s letter as of publication.
However, shortly after Abbott’s letter became public, Paxton’s office issued a press release announcing that it is demanding records from Cypress-Fairbanks ISD and Grapevine-Colleyville ISD as part of an investigation into the Islamic Games of North America.
The investigation centers on planned events which were advertised as sponsored by the New Jersey chapter of CAIR. The Islamic Games had previously announced plans to host events at Bridgeland High School in October and Colleyville Heritage High School this spring, though both districts have now said nothing is planned.
“The spread of radical Islam in Texas must be stopped, and if school districts are continuing to promote or partner with organizations tied to an FTO, that ends now,” Paxton said in the statement.
Paxton’s office said it has demanded communications, contracts, and related documents between the school districts, the Islamic Games, and CAIR or its affiliated chapters as part of the ongoing probe.
Abbott, meanwhile, says the investigation should extend beyond school districts to CAIR itself, citing provisions of Texas law that allow the attorney general to inspect nonprofit records, issue civil investigative demands, and even issue liens against property for violations tied to terrorism or organized criminal activity.
CAIR has denied sponsoring the events and has accused Abbott of targeting Muslim families. The organization’s lawsuit against Abbott and Paxton remains pending.
