Reitz Goes Ballistic on Muslims in Scamble
to Keep Up with Heavily-Armed Foes for AG

Statewide Fundraising

Capitol Inside
January 21, 2026

Texas attorney general contender Aaron Reitz knew he had to make something happen as a Republican who entered the month running a distant third in the campaign fundraising sweepstakes in a highly-competitive field of four for the primary election that's less than six weeks away. Reitz made a splash heard round the world on Wednesday when he released an ad that seeks to stoke fears on a Muslim invasion in the Lone Star State.

The former Department of Justice official eschews the temptation to attack three well-known primary foes in the new commercial - focusing his wrath on an Islamic world that he wants to prevent Texas from becoming.

"Islam is not compatible with Western Civilization," Reitz said on X in a post that rehashes the claims that he airs in the 30-second spot. "I first learned this as a Marine in Afghanistan. But politicians have imported millions of Muslims. More terrorism. More crime. More Sharia Law. ALL IN TEXAS. As AG, I will stop the invasion and defend our Christian values."

Reitz is competing in the March 3 primary election for a slot in a spring runoff amid the challenge of keeping pace with two first-round rivals who've had more money for their bids for the statewide position that Attorney General Ken Paxton is giving up in favor of a U.S. Senate race.

Middleton raised nearly $2 million for the state lawyer battle in 2025 - according to campaign funding reports that were due at the Texas Ethics Commission late last week. But Middleton's donations were gravy for all practical purposes after launching his bid for higher office on the wings of a $10 million loan to his campaign. Middleton repaid the funds he borrowed from himself on December 31 and recorded the transaction as a non-monetary contribution for loan forgiveness. That made the Galveston senator's contributions total on the new report look twice as large as it would have been if he'd simply left the loan on the books.

Roy appears to be a lock for a ticket to overtime after rounding up $5.5 million for the AG competition in the final three months of 2025 with an added boost from a $1 million loan courtesy of a group that Amarillo's Alex Fairly has bankrolled.

Roy and Middleton ended 2025 with $5.1 million and $4.2 million respectively in cash on hand when Reitz reported almost $3 million in the campaign bank. Republican State Senator Joan Huffman raised almost $1.3 million for her campaign for attorney general last year. Huffman had more than $2.7 million in cash reserves on December 30.

State Senator Nathan Johnson raised $716,000 for the AG's race in 2025 when primary rivals Joe Jaworski and Tony Box rounded up 404,000 and 138,000 respectively in the fight for the Democratic nomination in the Paxton replacement derby.

Pennsylvania's Jeff Yass contributed $250,000 to Reitz as the leading TikTok investor who's given millions of dollars to Texas Governor Greg Abbott in the past two years. Yass, who built a fortune on gambling winnings, has been a major advocate for school vouchers in Texas and other places. Reitz reported a donation of $350,000 from former McAllen mayoral contender Othal Brand - and he received $250,000 from Jonathan Knutz, the chief executive at Legacy Medical Consultants in Houston.

But Roy is the most well-known Republican in the Texas AG race this year - and he still appears to be the candidate in the contest to beat despite Middleton's cash advantage. Roy accepted $250,000 from former Houston Astros owner Drayton McLane of Temple along with donations of $250,000 from Robert Seale of Dripping Springs and Midland investor Douglas Scharbauer.

Roy's seven-digit loan came from the Texas Republican Leadership Fund - a political committee that Fairly conceived in December 2024 after his daughter Alex Fairly's election to the state House the month before. The Fairly PAC gave Abbott $1 million last month while donating $250,000 to Roy in addition to the loan.

Reitz, who served as chief of staff for U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, entered the AG's race with high expectations based in significant part on an endorsement from Paxton at the outset of the bid. Reitz gave up a job as an assistant attorney general at the Department of Justice during the summer so he could concentrate on the campaign in his home state. While a fourth-place is a real possibility as the GOP candidate with the least amount of name identification at the start of the race, Reitz hopes the Muslim attack ad will create a surge.

But the media in India may be showing more interest in Reitz than the major newspapers and television stations in Texas. "Collin, Dallas, & Harris Counties may soon be renamed Calcutta, Delhi, & Hyderabad Counties given how bad the invasion of unassimilated & unassimilable Indians has become," Reitz said in a story that was published on Wednesday in the Times of India.

Islam is not compatible with Western Civilization.

I first learned this as a Marine in Afghanistan.

But politicians have imported millions of Muslims. More terrorism. More crime. More Sharia Law. ALL IN TEXAS.

As AG, I will stop the invasion and defend our Christian values. pic.twitter.com/73rhK7G1um

— Aaron Reitz (@aaron_reitz) January 21, 2026