Texas Gov. Greg Abbott took his Twitter feed to some low places over the weekend when he was duped by a satire website into sharing literal fake news about country music icon Garth Brooks.
Abbott linked to a story about Brooks from a satire website called The Dunning-Kruger Times. If the name alone isnโt enough of a giveaway, the site states outright that itโs part of โa network of parody, satire, and tomfoolery,โ and adds: โIf you believe that it is real, you should have your head examined.โ
The story Abbott shared says Brooks was booed off the stage at the 123rd Annual Texas Country Jamboree in Hambriston, Texas.
But the jamboree isnโt a real event, and Hambriston isnโt a real place โ details that apparently raised no red flags with the governor as he tweeted the story.
โGo woke. Go broke,โ Abbott tweeted. โGood job, Texas.โ
Texas, for the record, loves Brooks as much as anywhere. He sold out the 72,000-seat NRG Stadium in Houston and the 80,000-seat AT&T Stadium in Arlington when his tour visited the Lone Star State last year.
Abbott deleted his tweet, but offered no apology to his constituents or Brooks for sharing the fake report. And while the tweet itself is gone, it was preserved online by a number of people, including Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas):
Journalist Christopher Hooks also shared a screenshot of the tweet, and followed up with an excerpt from the story the governor fell for:
The Twitter account for the storyโs โauthor,โ Flagg Eagleton, is having some fun at Abbottโs expense, noting that heโs the highest-level official to fall for one of his stories so far and calling it some of his โfinest work.โ
He also tweeted in response to a Daily Beast report:
Brooks has not been overtly political in his music career, but did offer some words of wisdom in a 2020 interview with the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
โMy message forever is tolerance,โ he told the newspaper. โAnd donโt vote party, vote person.โ
He was a little more explicit earlier this month when discussing his new bar in Nashville. While conservatives are boycotting Bud Light for its partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, Brooks said he would serve โevery brandโ of beer.
โI want it to be a place you feel safe in, I want it to be a place where you feel like there are manners and people like one another,โ Brooks told Billboard. โOur thing is this: If you [are let] into this house, love one another. If youโre an aโhole, there are plenty of other places on lower Broadway.โ
In a livestream on his Facebook page, he added that he embraced diversity and inclusiveness.
โThatโs me,โ he said. โThatโs always been me.โ
Twitter users tore into Abbott for sharing the false report about Brooks: