George P. Bush says GOP can’t let ‘racist’ episodes slide

Republican George P. Bush, the only member of the Bush dynasty still in public office, on Thursday condemned recurring episodes of what he described as racist or hateful rhetoric within the Texas GOP and ripped what he called false accusations fanned by his Latino heritage

Bush, Texas’ land commissioner, first denounced a white GOP state legislator who suggested “Asian” challengers on the ballot in 2020 were motivated by race. He then joined others Saturday in calling for the resignation of a Republican county chairwoman near Houston who used a racial slur in a textmessage about a black party organizer.

But his latest rebuke was personal: In a tweet Wednesday, Bush questioned whether critics had falsely accused him of plotting to erect a statue of Santa Anna — the Mexican general whose troops killed Texas independence fighters at the Alamo in San Antonio in 1836 — because his mother, Columba Bush, was born in Mexico. He called the accusation “flatout racist.”

Bush is the grandson of former President George H.W. Bush, who died last year, and the son of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who was a presidential candidate in 2016.

“I don’t want to elevate the status or the identity of those that are on the extremes in this discussion that have called out people’s backgrounds, called out my ethnicity, my mom’s heritage,” Bush told The Associated Press. “But for those that aren’t adding value by injecting hatred and racism, (they) should have no place in civil discourse.”

He didn’t mention names, but appeared to be referring to a recent post on a Facebook group called “Save the Alamo.” Bush’s office is overseeing a dramatic overhaul of the area surrounding Texas’ mostvisited landmark. The project has riled some conservatives who worry the Battle of the Alamo will be sanitized by excessive political correctness.