In a 90-page call to action,”Restoring the Rule of Law With States Leading the Way,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Uncle Sam had usurped states’ authority to regulate fishing – down to a tenth of an inch of the fish themselves.
Is that a fact? Gardner Selby of the Politifact Texas fact-checking team has the answer.
Abbott’s January 2016 declaration added up to a sweeping denunciation of federal overreach in which he urged Americans to hold a constitutional convention to limit the authority of the Supreme Court and federal oversight of the states.
“Over the last two centuries, the federal Congress has steadily expanded its reach into every nook and cranny of every Americans’ life — and kicked the states to the curb in the process,” Abbott said. Among examples, Abbott elaborated: “While states used to have regulatory power over fishing, federal law now regulates down to the tenth of the inch the minimum size of fish that anglers can keep.”
Hear how Abbott’s claim scored in the player above.