- A network of organizations associated with Midland businessman Tim Dunn appears to be working in concert to defeat several Republican lawmakers who have earned the endorsement of President Trump
- These organizations include Texans for Strong Borders, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, and Texas Family Project
- Two of these organizations have previously allied with special interests that worked to “Stop MAGA Republicans” in the 2024 election
Several Texas Republican legislators who have been endorsed for re-election by President Trump have found themselves targeted for defeat by a shadowy network of organizations that includes groups that teamed with anti-MAGA megadonors to kill Republican priority bills.
While the organizations claim to champion various conservative issues, the legislators they are seeking to defeat all established strong voting records on those issues. In some cases, the challengers that the organizations have endorsed have taken public positions contrary to the conservative issues they purport to advance.
The Trump-endorsed State Representatives that have been targeted by these efforts include Cecil Bell, Jr, Stan Kitzman, Angelia Orr, Candy Noble, Will Metcalf, Stan Gerdes, and Jeff Leach.
The organizations, including Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, Texas for Strong Borders, and the Texas Family Project, are part of a political network tied to Midland oilman Tim Dunn. The network’s operations were described in detail in late 2023, when a group of conservative activists and donors in Colorado held a conference call to discuss plans to replicate a version of Dunn’s Texas political network in Colorado.
Part of those plans included forming a group of issue advocacy organizations that, on their face, appeared independent but were part of a greater coordinated effort.
Texans for Strong Borders
Led by Chris Russo – an activist whose ties to anti-Semitic internet personality Nick Fuentes have been documented in various media reports – Texans for Strong Borders has endorsed challengers to several Trump-endorsed incumbents, including Bell, Kitzman, Orr, Noble, Gerdes, and Leach.
During the 2025 legislative session, Texas lawmakers approved $3.35 billion in border security funding and passed legislation, including Senate Bill 8 and Senate Bill 36, to enhance the state’s border security efforts. The Trump-endorsed lawmakers opposed by Texans for Strong Borders all supported these measures.
As previously reported by The Texas Voice, Texans for Strong Borders allied with the Texas Trial Lawyers Association to oppose key legislation to curtail abusive litigation practices that was prioritized by Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and supported by every Republican State Senator.
Leaders of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association and major donors to their Political Action Committee include liberal megadonors who joined forces with George Soros to bankroll a multimillion-dollar effort to “Stop MAGA Republicans” during the 2024 General Election.
Texans for Fiscal Responsibility
The longtime publishers of a legislative scorecard that some grassroots conservative leaders have criticized for its methodology, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, is opposing multiple Trump-endorsed legislators, including Bell, Kitzman, Metcalf, Noble, Gerdes, and Leach.
The 2025 legislative session saw the passage of a significant property tax relief package that was praised by conservative leaders.
“Never before has the Texas Legislature allocated more funds to provide property tax relief than they did this session,” said Governor Greg Abbott. “I thank Lieutenant Governor Patrick, Speaker Burrows, and the members of the Texas House and Senate for providing Texans with badly-needed property tax reductions. I will sign these bills into law to deliver lasting relief for Texans and their families, and I urge Texans to approve the new increases in the homestead and business property tax exemptions this November.”
Despite claiming to represent “pro-taxpayer” views, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has endorsed two candidates who supported property tax rate increases as local government officials against Trump-endorsed incumbents who supported the property tax relief package applauded by Governor Abbott and other conservatives.
Jeff Forrester, a former Wylie City Councilman who is challenging State Representative Candy Noble, voted to raise property tax rates three times while on the council. The votes, which occurred in 2016, 2023, and 2024, are highlighted on a website published by Noble’s campaign. Forrester also made the motion to increase the city’s property tax rate in 2023 and 2024.
On his campaign website, Forrester claims to have “passed a ‘no new revenue’ tax rate year after year.” However, public tax rate hearing notices contradict this claim.
In both 2023 and 2024, the City of Wylie was required to publish a “Notice of Public Hearing on Tax Increase” because the “proposed tax rate is greater than the no-new-revenue rate,” meaning that the “City of Wylie is proposing to increase property taxes” for the tax year. The notices published by the City of Wylie reflected Forrester’s support of the proposed tax rates.
Dennis Geesaman, who is challenging Trump-endorsed State Representative Stan Kitzman, also voted to raise taxes during his time as a member of the Flatonia City Council. Citing Geesaman’s votes on tax rates for the 2014, 2018, and 2021 fiscal years, Kitzman described Geesaman as having “governed like a tax-and-spend Democrat.”
Despite supporting property tax increases, Forrester and Geesaman earned endorsements from Texas for Fiscal Responsibility against Trump-endorsed incumbents who voted for property tax relief.
Texas Family Project
Like Texans for Strong Borders, the Texas Family Project also allied with anti-MAGA megadonors to oppose Republican priority bills during the 2025 legislative session.
While it claims to be “on the front lines for Texas families,” the Texas Family Project is opposing Trump-endorsed lawmakers who supported landmark social conservative victories in the Texas House. Those opposed by the Texas Family Project include State Representatives Cecil Bell, Jr., Will Metcalf, Angelia Orr, and Jay Dean.
Orr, in particular, established herself as a leader on social conservative issues in the Texas House. As the lead author of Senate Bill 8 – known as the Texas Women’s Privacy Act – during the second special session last year, Orr led the charge to ban men from entering women’s private spaces.
The Trump-backed State Representatives opposed by the Texas Family Project have all supported legislation to ban transgender procedures on minors, display the Ten Commandments in public schools, advance pro-life efforts in Texas, and other bills backed by social conservative advocates.
Other candidates backed by this network of organizations have also taken policy positions opposing conservatives.
Kristen Plaisance, who has been endorsed by Texas Family Project, Texans for Strong Borders, and Texans for Fiscal Responsibility against Bell, joined with Soros-funded social justice groups to oppose a public safety measure on the November 2025 ballot to deny bail to dangerous criminals. That measure, known as Proposition 3, was supported by Governor Abbott, Lt. Governor Patrick, every Republican state lawmaker, and a host of public safety advocates. Plaisance’s husband, who is actively involved in her campaign, has peddled anti-Semitic conspiracies on social media.
