A candidate to the General Land Office of Texas has claimed to be endorsed by the state’s largest and oldest pro-life advocacy organization. But it’s not true.
Rick Range is running for the GLO primarily on the platform of opposing the “reimagine the Alamo” program implemented by incumbent Land Commissioner George P. Bush. Overseeing the Alamo is just one of the many functions of the agency.
In a recent blast email to an unknown number of subscribers, Range has a long “signature” line to describe himself:
Sincerely,
Rick Range
Candidate for Texas General Land Office Commissioner
Founder of the Save The Alamo Committee
Texas Author and Historian
Member of the Alamo Defenders Descendants Association
Board Member of the Alamo Society
Member of the Alamo Battlefield Association
Member of the San Jacinto Conservancy
Member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans
Member of the Texas Rifle Association/NRA
Member of Gun Owners of America
Endorsed by Texas Right to Life
What constitutes membership in the various activities noted may or may not be legitimate or relevant to voters as he seeks to be Texas’ next Land Commissioner. However, claiming the endorsement of Texas Right to Life is a very specific title.
And according to the organization, Range has not been endorsed.
When confronted by Texas Scorecard about the issue, he responded by writing:
The claim was mis-written. However I have been endorsed by Kathy Adams of Texas Eagle Forum/National Right to Life. I apologize for the unintentional misstatement. Thank you very much for calling this to my attention.
It’s unclear how “Texas Right to Life” could be attributed to a typographical error even clumsy shorthand. Even more so is the implication that “Kathy” Adams is somehow an endorser for National Right to Life.
In fact, former Republican Party of Texas Chairman Cathie Adams once helmed Texas Eagle Forum. However, the Texas board position with National Right to Life has long been held by Elizabeth Graham, the director of Texas Right to Life.
Adams was not immediately available for comment as to whether or not she had endorsed Range.
This is the second time in two months Range has been found to claim endorsements he doesn’t have.
After addressing the informal Conservative Grassroots Coalition in early November, Range claimed to have the entity’s endorsement. That claim was immediately rejected by one of the group’s organizer, JoAnn Fleming of Tyler.
“The Coalition can not endorse candidates. Endorsing candidates is not our purpose. We leave that up to individual groups and organizations,” Fleming wrote to the coalition’s partners. “Not only did this invited guest violate the express terms of his invitation to speak as a historian, he later took to social media to make it look as if he had been invited there to launch his campaign for Land Commissioner.”
UPDATE: Cathie Adams reports that she did endorse Range.
After this article was published, Range sent an email claiming that he has instead been endorsed by “National Right to Life.” However, that organization does not usually endorse in non-federal races and no evidence of an endorsement of Range by the organization can be found.
