Joe.My.God. LGBT News
The Texas Tribune reports:
Months after a scandal over his ties to white supremacists, far-right political operative and former state lawmaker Jonathan Stickland has created a new group — with help from outgoing Texas GOP Chair Matt Rinaldi.
On March 5, Stickland registered “RaTmasTeR Holdings LLC” with the Texas secretary of state, and Rinaldi is listed as the new group’s organizer. A week later, the chief operating officer of Pale Horse Strategies — a far-right consulting firm Stickland owns — separately registered another group, “Patriot Service Alliance LLC.”
“RaTmasTeR” is a reference to the alias that Stickland has used for decades in online gaming forums, where he was an infamous troll. Stickland parlayed the skills he honed during his early life as an internet antagonist to help lift him from a job in pest control to the Texas House and, eventually, one of the most powerful political positions in the state.
Read the full article. Stickland’s former group, Defend Texas Liberty, was bankrolled by a pair of Christian nationalist pastors/fracking billionaires who have donated millions to Texas Republicans. One of those billionaires appeared here recently for his declaration that only Christians should hold public office.
Last year Stickland held a day-long meeting with self-avowed Nazi Nick Fuentes at his Texas office. Texas GOP chair Matt Rinaldi was spotted there that day, but denied knowing of Fuentes’ presence.
During his time in the Texas House, Stickland appeared here several times for his bizarre pronouncements such as 2020’s “if aliens exist, they need Jesus” and his 2019 rant that all vaccines are created by “communist sorcery.”
Regarding Stickland’s history as a “Ratmaster” internet troll, the Texas Tribune‘s deep dive into that is grimly fascinating.
Jonathan Stickland, a far-right activist, has launched a new group, “RaTmasTeR Holdings,” alongside Texas GOP Chair Matt Rinaldi. This comes in the wake of a white supremacist scandal that embroiled Stickland. https://t.co/M6bXHXX8et
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) April 12, 2024