A text message campaign referencing material aimed at LGBTQ+ youth that sparked intense backlash across Texas was sent on behalf of a National Republican Caucus fund, according to the messaging company that sent the texts.
THE “Republican Women’s Caucus Fund“ and an individual named John Braun were the senders of the texts, according to a deposition from messaging company Infobip that a Travis County judge ordered made non-confidential. No information about Braun was provided in the deposition beyond his name.
A spokesperson for the Republican Women’s Caucus Fund said in a statement that the group had “absolutely no involvement” in sending texts or similar mailings to Texas homes.
“We did not authorize, finance, direct, coordinate or participate in these activities in any capacity,” the spokesperson said. “We categorically reject these false allegations and are pursuing all available legal remedies to protect our organization and hold those responsible to account.” »
The deposition was shared with the Texas Tribune by the Transgender Education Network of Texas, also known as TENT, which asked the judge to require Infobip to reveal its client’s identity.
Texts sent across Texas by Infobip on behalf of the caucus fund linked to resources on the TENT website and advertised guides on “bathrooms and beyond for trans kids in school” and answers to questions about gender-affirming care in Texas. TENT received immediate backlash over the texts, the group said, including threats of violence.
A few days after the texts were sent, letters from the Texas Transgender Student Union began arriving in mailboxes across the state, addressed to “students” in the homes where they were sent. Similar to the texts, the senders repeatedly reference TENT despite the group having no affiliation with the sender.
The student union group that sent the mailer was registered in Wyoming in early September, according to business records.
TENT filed a motion in Travis County Court asking District Judge Jan Soifer to order depositions for this week that would reveal the identities of who sent the texts and who sent them. TENT said it believed the texts and mailers sent just before early voting in the midterm elections were designed to agitate voters and damage their organization’s reputation.
Soifer’s order came Tuesday evening, despite opposition from the Wyoming class attorney, Chris Hilton. Hilton is a former attorney in Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office and was part of Paxton’s defense team during his 2023 impeachment trial.
It is currently unclear whether the Caucus Fund and Braun were also involved in sending the letters. Infobip’s deposition said it had no knowledge of having a business relationship with the Wyoming group that sent them.
TENT is not the only one researching the origin of mailers and texts. State Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Plano, asked Paxton’s office to investigate who sent the documents in two separate letters after the texts and mailers were received across Texas.
Western Texas District Attorney Sarah Stogner last week opened a criminal investigation into the mailers for potential forgery and said she was concerned they were sent to influence the ongoing election.
Disclosure: Jan Soifer and Patrick O’Connell have financially supported the Texas Tribune for the past five years. The Texas Tribune is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that is funded in part by donations from its members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial support plays no role in our journalism. Find a full list of them and more information about our financial and disclosure policies here.
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