Abbott asks Treasury Secy. Bessent to suspend tax-exempt status of CAIR and to launch probe into group
By Brooke MalloryTexas GOP Governor Greg Abbott has escalated his campaign against the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), formally asking U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to suspend the Muslim civil-rights organization’s federal tax-exempt status and launch an immediate investigation into its activities.
In a letter sent on Monday, Abbott accused CAIR of functioning as a direct subsidiary of the Muslim Brotherhood and a front group for Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist group responsible for the atrocities committed in Israel on October 7, 2023.
CAIR’s X account is routed through the Turkish App Store.
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) November 24, 2025
This sure seems like an international operations link between CAIR and a country tied to the Muslim Brotherhood.
I designated CAIR a terrorist and transnational criminal organization because of ties like this to that… pic.twitter.com/CpiIBtI2Tr
“The Meadow” will remain just that - an empty meadow.
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) December 3, 2025
EPIC can change its name, but can't change the legality of the flawed structure they seek to impose.
They delete social media posts & rewrite contracts. But it’s just a disguise to impose sharia on a community they create.…
The request marks the latest step in Abbott’s month-long offensive against the nation’s largest Muslim advocacy group.
In November, the GOP Governor signed an executive order designating CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations under Texas law — a move believed to be the first of its kind by any U.S. state. The designation triggered a state criminal probe, banned CAIR from purchasing property in Texas, and even prompted the organization to sue Abbott in federal court.
Critics of CAIR have pointed to its designation as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 2007–2008 Holy Land Foundation trial, the largest terrorism-financing case in U.S. history. Five defendants in that case were convicted of funneling more than $12 million to Hamas. Federal court filings described CAIR as part of a broader Muslim Brotherhood network in the United States.
Several former CAIR officials have also faced terrorism-related convictions over the years, including charges of material support, money laundering, and visa fraud.
Abbott’s letter highlights these connections and recent actions by CAIR’s Texas chapter, including public praise for a Dallas-area imam facing deportation over alleged Hamas ties and routing the chapter’s X (formerly Twitter) account through the Turkish App Store — a country the governor claims harbors Muslim Brotherhood affiliates.
Meanwhile, CAIR has since called the move “Islamophobic retaliation,” swiftly condemning Abbott’s actions as being politically motivated.
The organization’s federal lawsuit, filed last month with the Muslim Legal Fund of America, argues that Texas’ terrorist designation violates the First Amendment, Fourteenth Amendment due process protections, and federal supremacy over foreign affairs.
Revoking 501(c)(3) status typically requires evidence that an organization has violated tax laws, such as engaging in substantial lobbying, partisan political activity, or providing material support to sanctioned entities.
Soon after the announcement, conservative activists and pro-Israel groups praised Abbott’s move. Posts celebrating the letter racked up tens of thousands of engagements on X, with many calling on other Republican governors to follow Texas’ lead.
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