February 1, 2016 4:23 PM

Rep. Cook calls on Thomas McNutt to implement E-Verify at Collin Street Bakery

Cook says his opponent is running a “sanctuary business”; McNutt’s campaign counters he cannot be held responsible for things that happened at his company back when he was in middle school

Following a report that undocumented immigrants have worked at the Collin Street Bakery in Corsicana, Texas House State Affairs Committee Chairman Byron Cook on Monday ratcheted up the heat on his GOP primary challenger Thomas McNutt by challenging him to implement the E-Verify system at the company where he is a vice president.

Dallas Morning News reporter Brittney Martin filed the story in which she detailed the fact that the bakery – known around the world for its fruitcakes – has had undocumented immigrants on its payroll. The McNutt campaign has disputed the facts in that report and has said the bakery follows the letter of the law in its hiring practices.

“My opponent is a hypocrite,” Cook said. “McNutt says he’s opposed to sanctuary cities, but is running a ‘sanctuary business’ himself because illegal aliens know the Collin Street Bakery and Navarro Pecan Company do not participate in the E-Verify program.”

In a blistering news release, Cook’s campaign on Monday also pointed to the 2005 death of an immigrant worker at Navarro Pecan Company, where the McNutt family owns 49 percent of the firm.

By Scott Braddock