(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Texas Senate candidate and Rep. Jasmine Crockett may have falsely claimed that her team did not have armed guards remove a “white girl” from an event Monday.
The controversy began when The Atlantic staff writer Elaine Godfrey reported Thursday that a woman wearing a badge at Crockett’s event asked security to remove her because she was a “top-notch hater.”
Godfrey suggested the removal stemmed from Democratic lawmakers’ frustration with her reporting, especially after she interviewed several of Crockett’s colleagues for a profile in The Atlantic.
In a piece for The Atlantic, Godfrey wrote that the woman said: “‘Elaine from Atlantic, white girl with a hat and notepad. She’s interviewing people in the crowd. She’s a top-notch hater and will spin. She needs to leave.’”
Godfrey added that security then escorted her out and made her wait outside while she ordered a cab.
In response, Crockett told CBS News that there was “no evidence” the journalist had been removed from the event. She also pointed to a “specific journalist” with a “history of being less than truthful,” alleging the reporter had previously faced a defamation suit.
Godfrey pushed back, saying she had never been accused of defamation. She also revealed she had an audio recording of the badged woman asking her to leave.
Silly season indeed!
Read my story on the Texas Senate primary (and what really happened in Lubbock) here, for free: https://t.co/0vpn8OaS7C https://t.co/qIpxWxNUMd
— Elaine Godfrey (@elainejgodfrey) February 27, 2026
As published by The Atlantic, the transcript reads as follows:
Woman: Are you Elaine?
Elaine Godfrey: Yeah.
Woman: Okay, her team has asked you to leave.
Godfrey: Me to leave?
Woman: Can you get your stuff? (Speaking to someone else.) Her team wants her to leave, and they’re asking her to leave.
Godfrey: Why are you asking me to leave?
Woman: They just said, ‘Elaine from Atlantic, white girl with a hat and notepad. She’s interviewing people in the crowd. She’s a top-notch hater and will spin. She needs to leave.’ (Speaking to someone else.) I just told her to get her bag and go [unintelligible] that’s from her team.
Security guard 1 (to Godfrey): Can we get up and leave now?
Godfrey: Sure. That’s crazy. What are they afraid of?
The episode unfolded as Crockett campaigns for a promotion to the U.S. Senate. She is seeking the Democratic nomination in Texas and would square off against the Republican nominee in the general election.
