Abbott Taps Texas Education Chief
for Criminal Probe into School Porn

Capitol Inside
November 10, 2021

Governor Greg Abbott effectively deputized the top Texas education bureaucrat official on Wednesday when he ordered a criminal investigation into the infiltration of pornography in public schools in Texas on his watch as the state's chief executive.

Abbott took a page from the playbook that Republicans employed in the passage of the nation's most restrictive voting law this summer - offering no evidence to support the shocking and sensational claims in a letter to Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath.

"The presence of pornography in schools is not only inappropriate, but it is also against the law. In Texas, it is illegal to provide pornography to anyone under the age of 18 according to Section 43.24 of the Texas Penal Code," Abbott explained. "The fact that pornographic material that serves no educational purpose has been made available to students in Texas public schools is a clear violation of the law."

Abbott told the TEA chief that he'd been prompted to target Texas schools for a criminal probe when the Texas Association of School Boards "refused to assist" its members in his newfound war on porn in public education that didn't have such a problem until now.

"That is why I am directing the Texas Education Agency to investigate any criminal activity in our public schools involving the availability of pornography," the governor added in the communique to Morath. "During this investigation, I ask the agency to refer any instance of pornography being provided to minors under the age of 18 for prosecution to the fullest extent of the law."

Abbott sought initially to have TASB lead the charge to cleanse school libraries and classrooms of the smut that he apparently envisions and believes to be real. But the school board group doesn't have the regulatory authority to take the kind of actions that the governor had requested last week. The letter to Morath could be an indication that Abbott realized he'd been off base with the call for TASB to spearhead a quest for pornography and obscene materials at the schoolhouse.

"We have a responsibility to ensure that no Texas child is exposed to pornography or obscene content while in a Texas public school, and your investigation will help accomplish this mission," Abbott told Morath.

The governor could discover that TEA isn't qualified to conduct criminal investigations based on the way it's been structured by the Legislature. Abbott didn't reveal how much the probe could end up costing Texas taxpayers in addition to the amounts they pay now to fund the public schools here.

more to come ...