MILWAUKEE, Wis. (KXAN) — Gov. Greg Abbott spent the week in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at the Republican National Convention, where he delivered a speech Wednesday in front of a crowd of thousands.
Abbott reiterated his support for former president Donald Trump and spent much of his speech talking about immigration and border security.
In an interview with Nexstar at the RNC, the governor addressed Houston energy company CenterPoint’s failures during Hurricane Beryl and the current state of Texas’ electric grid, political unity preceding and following the assassination attempt on Trump last Saturday, and Elon Musk’s plan to move the headquarters of two of his companies to Texas.
Below is a breakdown of the interview with the time periods of when Abbott discussed each topic.
Interview begins – Hurricane Beryl, Texas power grid, weather preparedness
Gov. Abbott was firm that Hurricane Beryl was a test of local power provider CenterPoint rather than the statewide grid operated by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, and that he “came down hard” on CenterPoint because they were not prepared for the storm, and at one point, nearly 3 million people were without power due to the storm.
Abbott said in the aftermath of the 2021 winter storm, Texas has added “substantially more power” and now “produces more power than California and New York combined.” He added that through new incentives, the state will increase its current power capability by 50%.
Abbott also talked about the orders he issued to CenterPoint to have a detailed plan on what it will do in advance of the next hurricane. The company must have its response back to the governor by July 31.
Starts at 02:06 – Trump’s call for mass deportation and how it would impact Texas, plus how the state currently deals with illegal immigration
Former President Trump and the Republican Party as a whole have called for mass deportation efforts if Trump secures the presidency again. Abbott was asked about how that would impact the logistics of Texas’ approach to the border. He said there wouldn’t be much change, and if there was, Texas’ efforts would run in tandem with the federal government.
“So in Texas, we already have the infrastructure in place that would collaborate with the federal government to the extent that they want to identify, locate and arrest people who are here illegally. I believe that what President Trump truly wants to focus on first and foremost, is to go after all of the criminal, illegal immigrants that are in our country right now,” Abbott said.
Abbott also iterated Operation Lonestar‘s effect on immigration and said President Biden isn’t utilizing all the laws he could be to prevent migrants’ illegal entry into the country.
“We don’t need any new laws. Congress has in place three laws that Biden could be using. One is to deny illegal entry. Two is to detain anybody who does enter illegally. Three is to build border barriers, those laws already exist. Biden is choosing not to use them, Trump will use them. And when we have a president using those laws, that means that Texas as a state will not need to do what we’re doing right now,” Abbott said.
Starts at 05:43 – How the assassination attempt against Trump could lead to political unity and decrease violent rhetoric
Following an assassination attempt against Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania last weekend, Gov. Abbott said the incident could bring about healthier conversations and help lead to more unity.
“You can disagree without being disagreeable, and that is what must be achieved,” Abbott said.
Starts at 07:25 – Elon Musk moving two companies’ headquarters to Texas, what it means for the state
Gov. Abbott talked about Elon Musk’s bid to move two of his companies’ headquarters to Texas and gave some background on his relationship with the Tesla CEO, saying it started in 2020 when Musk approached him about opening a gigafactory in the state. He said after Musk saw how fast that process moved, he started working to relocate all his businesses to Texas.
“We have a motto in Texas: ‘We move at the speed of business,'” Abbott said.
Abbott also touched on Texas’ economy, saying it’s been number one for economic development each year he’s been in office, and that it has the eighth-largest economy in the world.
“We are a state that’s been economically leading this country, but when you add all of the Musk enterprises to it, it just puts us on booster mode now with regard to what’s going on, but maybe even more importantly, we’re always trying to focus on the future,” Abbott said.
“The future is in space, the future is in semiconductors, and Texas is leading in both those categories.”
Starts at 09:59 – Abbott’s response to the possibility of being offered a position in a Trump administration if he’s elected
Abbott also addressed the possibility of being selected as part of a Trump administration if the former president were to be elected in November, hinting that he’d graciously reject the offer and remain in Texas.
“So for one, I would be honored. For another, I want to see the president succeed. He needs the best people working for him. But I’ll tell you this, the most important political job in America is President of the United States. The second most important political job in America is Governor of Texas. And I’ve already announced I’m running for re-election as governor in 2026, to make sure we keep Texas red, and Texas continues to do its part to keep America going in the right direction,” Abbott said.
Starts at 10:33 – The current state of the Republican Party
Gov. Abbott said he can’t remember a time the Republican Party as a whole was more unified than it currently is. He said that was the state of the party before the attempted assassination against Trump and even more so now.
“I cannot recall a time when I’ve seen the party this unified, and that was before what happened last Saturday. And the aftermath of what happened last Saturday is more than just the Republican Party that’s unified. It’s also Americans as a body, they’re unified. No one wants to see anybody assassinated and to know that this happened in our country, that’s a rallying cry, that we need to come together, rise above our current situation, and as one nation move forward,” Abbott said.