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Texas republican draws backlash over call to deport Indians
The remarks singled out Collin, Dallas and Harris counties and triggered backlash from Indian-American groups.
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Malvika Choudhary - Wed, 21, Jan 2026
- 16:34 EST
- 21
Aaron Reitz / X (Aaron Reitz)
Texas attorney general candidate Aaron Reitz drew backlash after calling for mass deportations of Indian immigrants in a campaign post on social media.
In a post on X, the Republican candidate said Collin, Dallas and Harris counties “may soon be renamed Calcutta, Delhi, & Hyderabad Counties,” claiming this was due to what he described as “the invasion of un-assimilated & un-assimilable Indians.”
Also Read: Outrage erupts over political commentator's anti Indian rhetoric
Collin, Dallas, & Harris Counties may soon be renamed Calcutta, Delhi, & Hyderabad Counties given how bad the invasion of un-assimilated & un-assimilable Indians has become.
— Aaron Reitz (@aaron_reitz) January 19, 2026
Globalist corporations move to Texas to exploit our favorable economic climate.
Having contempt for…
“Globalist corporations move to Texas to exploit our favorable economic climate,” Reitz wrote. “Having contempt for native-born American workers, they then facilitate the H-1B scam for cheap labor. All of it must be rolled back.”
Reitz said that if elected, he would work with the Trump administration to re-examine immigration paperwork and take enforcement action against both immigrants and companies that hire them.
“As AG, I’ll partner with the Trump Admin to re-open the books on all their ‘legal’ paperwork. Deport most. Assimilate the rest,” he wrote. “At the same time, I’ll go after the gutless, treasonous corporations who have no loyalty to our state and who treat our country like a mere economic zone. This is Texas, USA—not India or Pakistan.”
The remarks were made in response to a user on X who asked Reitz: “What will you do about the Indian invasion of Texas? That’s the million dollar question that will determine who people support.”
Reitz is seeking the Republican nomination for attorney general and has framed his campaign message around opposition to the H-1B visa programme, which is widely used by technology and engineering firms.
Texas is home to a large Indian-origin population, particularly in the Dallas–Fort Worth area and parts of North Texas.
The comments drew sharp criticism from Indian-American advocates and legal experts.
Sidharth, founder of the Indian-American Advocacy Council, questioned the political motives behind the remarks.
“If Dallas, Collin, and Harris counties are booming, it’s because talent and capital came legally — not because of some racial conspiracy,” he wrote, adding: “Who is funding this anti-Indian candidate?”
Immigration attorney Steven Brown said Indians make up a small share of the state’s population. “Indians are less than 2 percent of the Texas population,” he wrote. “Yet here you have an AG candidate … with dog whistle rhetoric about an ‘invasion of un-assimilated & un-assimiliable Indians.’”
The remarks also triggered strong reactions from Indian-American residents in Texas.
Vasant Bhatt wrote on X, “To every Indian American in Texas, paying taxes, building businesses, raising American kids—take note. This is the face of the Republican Party right now in your state—someone who sees you, your parents, your kids, as threats to be ‘rolled back’ and ‘deported most.’”
Reitz has argued that corporations are using foreign workers to undercut wages and has pledged legal action against companies that hire them, alongside stepped-up immigration enforcement.
Discover more at New India Abroad.
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