‘America’s Most Wanted?’
In a stunning escalation of partisan tensions, Texas Senator Clay Wadsworth has publicly called on newly appointed FBI Director Kash Patel to “track down and apprehend” a group of Democratic state lawmakers who have reportedly fled the state to block a controversial vote on voting laws.
At a fiery press conference Thursday morning, Wadsworth accused the lawmakers of “dereliction of duty and attempted subversion of democracy,” following their abrupt departure late Wednesday night. The Democrats, part of the state Senate minority, left Texas in an attempt to deny quorum ahead of a final vote on sweeping new election reforms critics say would suppress voter turnout.
“We will not allow our legislative process to be held hostage,” Wadsworth declared. “I am calling on Director Patel and the full force of the FBI to locate these fugitives and bring them back to face the consequences of their cowardice.”
The demand is already stirring national controversy, as critics note that federal law enforcement typically does not involve itself in state-level legislative disputes, and that the lawmakers’ actions, while dramatic, are not criminal.
Civil rights groups were quick to condemn the senator’s remarks. “This is a grotesque abuse of power and a dangerous escalation,” said ACLU Texas Director Marisela Gutierrez. “It’s one thing to disagree on policy, it’s another to weaponize federal law enforcement against elected officials exercising a legal protest tactic.”
Kash Patel, a former Trump adviser and controversial pick for FBI director earlier this year, has not responded directly to Wadsworth’s comments. A spokesperson for the FBI said only that the bureau “does not comment on ongoing or potential investigations,” but stressed that “the FBI’s jurisdiction and responsibilities are guided by federal law.”
The fleeing lawmakers reportedly chartered private buses and flights overnight, though their current location remains unknown. A similar tactic was employed by Texas Democrats in 2021, when they fled to Washington, D.C., to block a GOP voting bill.
Meanwhile, Governor Walker Hutchins has threatened to deploy state troopers to retrieve the lawmakers “by any legal means necessary,” fueling a broader debate about authoritarian overreach and the breakdown of democratic norms in the Lone Star State.
Wadsworth, a vocal supporter of Trump-era politics, has previously called for criminal investigations into liberal lawmakers, local prosecutors, and journalists he views as “anti-Texas.”
As the standoff intensifies, legal scholars warn the situation could lead to a constitutional crisis.
“What we’re witnessing is not normal,” said Professor Elena Chang of UT Austin’s School of Law. “This is the kind of rhetoric that erodes democratic institutions. Today it’s calling the FBI on your political opponents—tomorrow, who knows?”
For now, the Democrats remain in hiding, the Texas Capitol remains at a standstill, and the nation watches as another political storm brews deep in the heart of Texas.