Fox’s Tucker Carlson falsely claimed that Texas’ 2011 voter ID law, SB 14, “has nothing to do with race.” When pressed by his guest, attorney Monique Pressley, Carlson dismissed the notion that the law was found to have “not just discriminatory effect, but discriminatory intent,” saying, “If you break down the numbers, it’s a lie.”
According to the Brennan Center for Justice, several courts found that the law not only discriminated against minority voters but also was created with the “intent to discriminate against minority voters.” In 2016, a federal appeals court explained that under the law, “Blacks were 1.78 times more likely than Whites, and Latinos 2.42 times more likely, to lack” the proper ID necessary to vote. Experts suggested the law could disenfranchise nearly 600,000 Texans who “lacked an acceptable ID under the law.” Additionally, studies found that Texas inadequately educated voters about the ID requirements ahead of the 2016 election, and many voters in Texas did not go to the polls because they did not understand the law.
Carlson is not the first right-wing media figure to lie in order to defend the law, many of whom rely on the myth of widespread voter fraud, which research has repeatedly debunked. From the May 10 edition of Fox News’ Tucker Carlson Tonight: