Actor Chuck Norris on Sunday accused the media of twisting his words to say that he believed the federal government was trying to stage a military takeover of Texas.
The “Walker, Texas Ranger” star added his name earlier this month to the list of politicians and public figures who expressed concern about an upcoming U.S. military training exercise, dubbed “Jade Helm 15,” that’s expected to take place in Texas and six other states.
“The U.S. government says, ‘It’s just a training exercise.’ But I’m not
sure the term ‘just’ has any reference to reality when the government
uses it,” Norris wrote in a column on the conspiracy theory website WND.
Writing for the same website on Sunday, Norris accused the media—and ABC News in particular—of misquoting his previous column. He insisted he “never ever said that that seven-state U.S. military operation intended to take over Texas.”
“However, I did in fact mention that Jade Helm 15 is likely more than a military exercise,” Norris wrote. “I do believe, in addition to the largest domestic military training, it is also a display of power (near the southern border) intended for deterrence of enemies like ISIS and other terrorists, who the FBI have already said are present in all 50 states.”
Norris still faulted the federal government for the spread of conspiracy theories about the exercise, arguing that communication with the governors of the states where the training is expected to take place could’ve precluded the rumors of a military takeover in the Lone Star State.
“I will reiterate again that the White House and the Pentagon could have easily avoided any controversy about Jade Helm 15 if its primary Washington leaders would have called for a confidential informative meeting with the respected governors of the seven states in which it is being held this summer,” he wrote. “They also would have been very wise not to place on Jade Helm’s official operation map that Texas and Utah were ‘hostile states.’ When will they learn? Don’t mess with Texas!”
