‘You are the racists’: Tarrant GOP chair when asked about his ‘chimp out’ post

Tarrant County GOP Chair Bo French is facing backlash after referring to Nov. 1 — the day federal food assistance benefits are set to lapse — as “National Chimp Out Day” in a social media post.

The post has been called racist in responses on social media, as “chimp” has been used as a slur to refer to Black people. French, in a text and other social media posts, said it was not racist.

French has a history of incendiary social media posts. He wrote in a Tuesday post on X: “November 1, 2025 is National Chimp Out Day. It’s going to be lit.” He responded to the post with a comment reading “(N)o SNAP!”

The post comes after the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits wouldn’t go out starting on Nov. 1, as the federal government shutdown drags on.

Later that day, French posted that someone had said his post is racist. It’s not, he said.

“It just means freaking out,” French said.

Earlier in the week on Monday, he posted that: “November 1 the EBT payments shut off. 40 million people will not get free food anymore. Remember what happened when they rioted over a dishonest narrative following George Floyd? Imagine what 40 million will do. Plan accordingly.”

French responded to a San Antonio Current article about the posts on Thursday, defending his social media remarks.

“This leftist sees racism where there clearly isn’t,” he said. “Most rioters of recent have been white ANTIFA types.”

French declined a Star-Telegram interview request, saying in a text that he didn’t want to help with the writing of a “dishonest hit piece” where “you project your own racism onto my posts where I clearly said nothing about race.”

“I talk about EBT and SNAP and y’all immediately think I am talking about black people,” French said in the text. “I talk about social unrest and riots and y’all immediately think I am talking about black people. You are the racists.”

Tarrant County Commissioner Alisa Simmons, a Democrat from Arlington, said in a statement that she wasn’t surprised by French’s comments.

“His words expose the discriminatory and divisive mindset that has taken hold within our county’s MAGA leadership,” she said. “The children, mothers, and fathers who will be affected when federal SNAP assistance changes take effect on November 1st are real people — not political talking points. They deserve dignity, decency, and respect, especially from those elected and paid to represent them.”

Simmons said French’s post shows he has no respect for the people of color who live in Tarrant County.

“His post wasn’t a ‘mistake.’ It was intentionally designed to provoke, to offend, and to remind us that bigotry is still alive and well in certain corners of local leadership.

“Let’s be clear: in 2025, there is no excuse — none — for any public figure to liken African Americans or any people of color to animals. That’s not political speech. That’s racism, plain and simple.”

Simmons’ Precinct 2 boundaries were redrawn by the Republican-led Commissioners Court last summer, likely flipping her seat to the GOP.

“It’s astonishing that Bo French remains their chosen mouthpiece,” she said. “But if flaunting racism is the goal, then yes, he’s their man.”

Tarrant County Democratic Party Chair Allison Campolo said French is “yet again showing his true feelings which are deeply seated in racism, violence and outright cruelty,” in a Thursday text to the Star-Telegram.

“At this point, Bo is a known quantity,” Campolo said. “He has repeatedly demonstrated, even before he was elected Party Chair, that he says things which are racist, xenophobic, ableist, and misogynistic. This is not new. He cultivates this persona intentionally to garner more extremist Twitter followers and bots.”

Campolo said French is in “marching step with fascist propaganda while at the same time trying to underhandedly incite violence by asking his followers to ‘plan accordingly.’”

U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey, a Fort Worth Democrat, also weighed in on French’s recent online remarks.

“No surprise!” he said. “This dude lives to make anyone he sees as ‘different’ the foil in most of his posts. “The Leftist”😂….even David Duke would ‘Like’ this post….what in the world happened to the Tarrant County Republican Party in Fort Worth🤷🏾‍♂️😢?”

Duke was grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1970s and a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1989 to 1992.

Asked about the posts, Chaplain Rich Stoglin, president of the Frederick Douglass Republicans of Tarrant County, said he believes the phrase means to “freak out” be “irrational” or “melt down” and comes from a war between chimpanzees that was studied by primatologist Jane Goodall.

He said the ongoing government shutdown its caused by Democrats and raised concerns about military families not receiving SNAP benefits.

“That’s the bigger picture than a phrase that somebody is using, and it’s suddenly an issue,” Stoglin said.

This isn’t the first time French has been at the receiving end of criticism over his social media posts.

In June, scrutiny came from members of his own party after French posted a later deleted poll asking his followers who posed a “bigger threat to America”: Jews or Muslims. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and other Republican elected officials called on French to resign as chair of the Tarrant County Republican Party.

“Bo French’s words do not reflect my values nor the values of the Republican Party,” Patrick said on X, at the time. “Antisemitism and religious bigotry have no place in Texas. I am calling for the immediate resignation and replacement of @BoFrenchTX as @tarrantgop Chairman.”

French said he was “misunderstood” and regretted the post.

Dan Patrick and other Republican officials contacted by the Star-Telegram on Thursday did not immediately comment on French’s latest posts.

This story was originally published October 30, 2025 at 3:39 PM.