Judge Orders Abbott to Let Hinojosa Review the Unredacted Musk Records; the Governor Appeals
A Travis County judge ruled Monday that Gov. Greg Abbott must let state Rep. Gina Hinojosa inspect more than a thousand pages of unredacted communications with Elon Musk — and Abbott's side appealed the same day.
A Travis County judge ruled Monday that Gov. Greg Abbott must let his Democratic opponent in the November election, state Rep. Gina Hinojosa, review more than a thousand pages of unredacted communications he has had with billionaire Elon Musk, Bloomberg Law reported. Judge Catherine Mauzy said Hinojosa is entitled to see the communications, which have otherwise been kept from public disclosure, because she might be able to use them for legislative reasons.
The records trace back to a release of 1,374 pages to The Texas Newsroom, of which all but about 200 were redacted or completely blacked out, according to Hinojosa's lawsuit. She filed a public information request on Sept. 29 for inspection of all documents exchanged between Abbott's office and Musk and his companies, and sued after the governor's office responded last week but refused to release the unredacted versions. "Quite simply, Governor Abbott has failed and refused to comply with the law by allowing Representative Hinojosa access to the Abbott-Musk communications," the lawsuit reads.
Hinojosa's attorney, Cris Feldman, said the governor's office "has continued to obstruct her ability to review these intimate and embarrassing emails, despite clear statutory language." In an affidavit, Hinojosa said she seeks the records for legislative purposes, and at a news conference she put it plainly: "The people have a right to know, and I, as their representative, have a right to see them."
Abbott's lawyers have called Hinojosa's records request a political stunt, and his campaign previously called the lawsuit "baseless and an act of desperation by a failing candidate." On Monday his spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris wrote on X that Abbott has appealed the ruling — a step that delays any review while the ruling is contested. Early voting runs through Friday, Oct. 30, and Election Day is Nov. 3, so whether Hinojosa sees the pages before Texans finish voting now rests with the appeal.
