by Brandon Darby and Logan Churchwell
Tea Party Patriots (TPP) President Jenny Beth Martin immediately reached out to Breitbart Texas and denied endorsing Rep. Steve Stockman after the U.S. Senate candidate sent out a last minute claim that Martin and her grassroots organization endorsed his candidacy in the March 4 Primary late Sunday night. The alleged endorsement first appeared in a flash article on Stockman’s website Sunday.
Jenny Beth Martin spoke with Breitbart Texas and stated:
In the contest for the GOP Nomination for US Senate in Texas, Tea Party Patriots Citizens Fund has not endorsed any candidate for office, nor have I done so personally. We compliment Members of Congress when they uphold the Constitution or their record in office indicates that they have voted in a manner that reflects our positions on issues. That is not an official endorsement in any particular race, and should not be misconstrued as such.The context for the claimed endorsement leads readers to believe that WorldNetDaily just reported the news of TPP’s support: “The head of one of the biggest Tea Party groups in America just endorsed me.” An archive search in the conservative news site shows Martin offered accolades for Rep. Stockman’s record shortly after announcing his candidacy--in December 2013.
This episode continues a string of incidents involving questionable political tactics allegedly carried out by the Stockman campaign. Breitbart Texas recently reported that primary rival Dwayne Stovall filed federal complaints against the campaign for allegedly colluding with a 501(c)(4) nonprofit to help fundraise directly for his Senate bid. In addition, an array of Texas tea party groups publicly denounced the Stockman camp and threw support behind Stovall after Breitbart Texas released the report from an investigation into a shadowy group seemingly supporting him.
A screenshot of the claimed endorsement was captured by Breitbart Texas Sunday night.
http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Texas/2014/03/3/Tea-Party-Patriots-We-Did-Not-Endorse-Steve-Stockman
