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On Friday, Jonathan Stickland, the influential leader of a conservative organization that has made substantial financial contributions to prominent Texas politicians, welcomed the presence of well-known white supremacist Nick Fuentes and other right-wing activists for an extended period of time.
Acting on a tip, a Texas Tribune reporter and photographer observed Fuentes and others — including Kyle Rittenhouse, who was acquitted of homicide after killing two Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020 — enter a one-story office building in a remote business park just west of Fort Worth, Tarrant County. The building is the headquarters for Pale Horse Strategies, a consulting firm for right-wing candidates that is owned by Stickland. Fuentes arrived around 11 a.m. and left just after 5:30 p.m.
Matt Rinaldi, the chair of the Republican Party of Texas and a supporter of Stickland, was observed entering the building at the same time Fuentes was present. When contacted via phone on Sunday, Rinaldi refuted having any prior knowledge of Fuentes’ presence and furnished screenshots of text messages from Friday morning that displayed a rescheduled meeting at 1:45 p.m. at the Pale Horse office with Texas GOP Executive Director Jen Hall.
Rinaldi, who arrived at the office shortly before 1:45 p.m. and departed 45 minutes later, clarified, “We were simply utilizing a conference room for a brief period.”
He expressed his strong disapproval of Fuentes, stating, “I unequivocally denounce that individual and all the values he represents. Under no circumstances would I ever consider meeting with him, not even in a million years.”
When asked about his stance on Stickland or Pale Horse for hosting Fuentes, Rinaldi stated that he will “disapprove of Nick Fuentes but I won’t jump to conclusions” solely based on the Tribune’s reporting.
On Sunday afternoon, Stickland remained unresponsive to both calls and text messages.
Stickland and Rinaldi are major players in an ongoing civil war with the more moderate, but still deeply conservative, flank of the Texas GOP. Both are former state representatives who have attacked members of their own party, like U.S. Sen. John Cornyn and Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan, as insufficiently conservative.
And both have been bankrolled by a trio of West Texas oil billionaires — Tim Dunn and brothers Farris and Dan Wilks — who have given more than $100 million to a network of campaigns, nonprofits, dark money groups and media companies to push their ultraconservative religious and anti-LGBTQ+ views and oust fellow Republicans from power.
Stickland is also the president of Defend Texas Liberty, a political action committee funded by Dunn and Farris Wilks that is a major donor to Attorney General Ken Paxton as well as Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who received $3 million in loans and donations from Defend Texas Liberty before presiding over Paxton’s impeachment trial in the Texas Senate.
On Sunday afternoon, Patrick and Paxton were unavailable for immediate comment.
Former President Donald Trump faced criticism from leaders within his own party in November when he dined at Mar-A-Lago with Fuentes and Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West. At the time, Kanye West was embroiled in controversy over antisemitic remarks he had made earlier that autumn. Various Republican figures, such as former Vice President Mike Pence, then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, condemned Fuentes for his actions.
Fuentes’ visit to Texas comes as the far-right flank of the state GOP continues to elevate extreme figures, rhetoric and conspiracy theories, and as the party’s internecine conflict continues in the wake of Paxton’s impeachment by the Texas House and eventual acquittal by the Texas Senate. Few figures have been more central to the escalating tension than Stickland and Rinaldi, who have sought to incrementally pull the Texas GOP further to the right by labeling fellow conservatives as Republicans in name only — RINOs — and backing boisterous, far-right primary candidates against those who break with their hardline stances.
It’s a strategy that Fuentes knows well. Since rising to prominence on YouTube in the wake of 2017’s deadly neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, Fuentes and his followers — nicknamed “groypers” — have sought to normalize their racist, antisemitic and misogynistic views by constantly attacking other conservatives, including Charlie Kirk’s Turning Point USA, from the far right.
Fuentes, 25, has spoken often about that approach. He has questioned whether the Holocaust happened and said Hitler was “really fucking cool.” He has called for a “holy war” against Jews, “Catholic Taliban rule,” and “killing the globalists.” A “proud incel,” Fuentes has openly fantasized about marrying a 16-year-old because that’s “right when the milk is good.” He has celebrated a growing wave of hatred and violence that he hopes will get “uglier and a lot worse” for Jews and others he deems inferior.
“All I want is revenge against my enemies and a total Aryan victory,” Fuentes said last year.
Despite his well-publicized extremism — and corresponding, ongoing jumps in antisemitic and racist violence in Texas and nationally — Fuentes has not been completely cast out of right-wing circles. Hard-right Republicans, including U.S. Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Paul Gosar of Arizona, have spoken at Fuentes’ annual conference alongside avowed white supremacists. Fuentes’ acolytes have also been employed in top echelons of the national GOP: In July, the presidential campaign of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis fired a staffer after it was revealed that he created and then shared a pro-DeSantis video that featured a Nazi sonnenrad.
Earlier this year, Ella Maulding relocated from Mississippi to Fort Worth, Texas to assume the role of a social media coordinator at Pale Horse Strategies, joining other Fuentes supporters who have made Texas their home. Maulding has publicly expressed her admiration for Fuentes, regarding him as “the most influential civil rights leader in history.” However, it is worth noting that her social media presence extensively features references to “white genocide,” a belief that forms the basis of neo-Nazi and other extremist movements known for their violent tendencies.
During the Friday meeting with Fuentes, Maulding’s activities were closely monitored for several hours. Additionally, she took some time outside to create a video for Texans For Strong Borders, urging Texas lawmakers to take strict actions against immigration during the upcoming special legislative session commencing on Monday.
Chris Russo, the founder of Texans for Strong Borders, was spotted chauffeuring Fuentes to the Friday gathering at Pale Horse Strategies. Their aim is to address and curb both legal and illegal immigration.
On Sunday, there were no responses from Russo and Maulding regarding requests for comment.
Fuentes’ meeting comes as Stickland and other right-wing actors attempt to make inroads with young conservatives. In August, the Tribune reported on a new company, Influenceable, that pays Gen Z influencers for undisclosed marketing and political messaging, including pro-Paxton social media posts ahead of his Senate impeachment trial. The company has a partnership with former Trump campaign chair Brad Parscale, who moved to Midland this year to work with Dunn, according to Texas Monthly. In June, Parscale, Dunn, Maulding and leaders of the company were photographed at a meeting in downtown Fort Worth.
In August, the Tribune reported that Rittenhouse had formed a new nonprofit, the Rittenhouse Foundation, as he continues to ramp up his engagement in Texas politics. The foundation’s board includes the treasurer for Stickland’s Defend Texas Liberty. And its registered agent is Tony McDonald, a longtime attorney for Empower Texans and other Dunn-financed groups who was recorded in 2020 mocking Gov. Greg Abbott’s use of a wheelchair.
After the Tribune reported on Rittenhouse’s new foundation, Stickland made clear he was proud of their affiliation, posting a photo of himself with Rittenhouse on social media with the caption “let me end the speculation.“
Rittenhouse, pictured donning a hat and shirt representing Pale Horse Strategies, enthusiastically exclaimed, “The most conservative boss you’ll ever encounter!”
The name Pale Horse seems to reference the Book of Revelation in the Bible. According to this book, Death, one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse, will ride a pale horse while executing God’s judgment in the End Times.
In 2022, Defend Texas Liberty generously contributed over $828,000 to Pale Horse Strategies for their invaluable consulting and contractor services, as reflected in campaign finance records. Simultaneously, the PAC made substantial donations totaling over $5 million to aspiring challengers of incumbent Republicans who leaned towards moderation. The majority of these funds were allocated to Don Huffines, an accomplished real estate developer and former state senator who, despite his efforts, could not succeed in his endeavor to unseat Gov. Greg Abbott during the Republican primary.
Defend Texas Liberty has also bankrolled some of the most conservative members of the Legislature, including Reps. Tony Tinderholt of Arlington and Bryan Slaton of Royse City. Slaton was ousted from the Texas House in May after House investigators found that he gave alcohol to a 19-year-old aide and then had sex with her.
The PAC’s significant influence in Texas politics remains unyielding. Following Paxton’s impeachment by the House in May, Stickland pledged to initiate primary challenges against individuals who backed the removal of the attorney general.
Throughout his political journey, Paxton has accumulated almost double the amount of donations from Dunn and the Wilks brothers compared to his second-largest contributor, Texans for Lawsuit Reform. Additionally, Paxton has received a greater sum of money from this wealthy trio than any other state politician, until Patrick surpassed him during the summer.
