Press release: DPS footage debunks Speaker Bonnen’s lies about TXGR Director Chris McNutt

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 23, 2019

CONTACT: pressdept@nagrhq.org

DPS footage debunks Speaker Bonnen’s lies about TXGR Director Chris McNutt

TXGR demands apology and retraction from House Speaker Dennis Bonnen

Austin, TX — Chris McNutt, Executive Director for Texas Gun Rights, and National Association for Gun Rights are demanding an apology from Texas House Speaker Dennis Bonnen.

Speaker Bonnen recently embarked on a media campaign aimed at diverting attention away from his own schemes to quietly kill HB 357, the Constitutional Carry Bill. In doing so, Bonnen has clearly and deliberately made false statements against Mr. McNutt, including:

Lie #1:   That Mr. McNutt threatened the Speaker’s family while canvassing the Speaker’s neighborhood, when in fact he never saw nor spoke to any family member. Recently released Department of Public Safety body cam footage and statements confirm McNutt’s account and that video can be seen here.

According to a written report of the encounter, DPS Trooper James Johnson stated, “McNutt did not make any threatening statements towards Representative Bonnen’s people…I did not observe McNutt wearing any type of firearm…After a brief conversation, McNutt drove out of the neighborhood without incident.”

Lie #2:   That Mr. McNutt “brandished” a firearm in the presence of legislative staff when in fact McNutt was unarmed. He did not even travel with a firearm, as those who interacted with Mr. McNutt can confirm.

Lie #3:   That Mr. McNutt “set up” a confrontation at a recent Texas Republican Party fundraiser. According to Darlene Pendery, a top donor to the Republican Party of Texas, and one of many witnesses to the encounter, Speaker Bonnen was the instigator and his abrasive conduct towards McNutt made the event a horrible evening.

“The smear and intimidation tactics used by Speaker Dennis Bonnen are alarmingly similar to the unethical, cutthroat methods we saw used by the Left to vilify Brett Kavanaugh during the tortuous circus of hearings,” Pendery said following the event.

“Taken as a whole, these are slanderous actions and no politician is immune from the rules of good conduct and integrity,” said Dudley Brown, President of the National Association for Gun Rights.

“We are currently investigating whether Bonnen’s intimidation tactics involved the misappropriation of state resources,” stated NAGR Attorney Jesse Binnall.

“If the Speaker of the Texas House — the third most powerful politician in the state — intentionally abused public resources to perpetuate falsehoods against a political opponent, that would be an affront to the free-speech rights of all Texans, and is conduct unbecoming of a legislator. We’re looking into all options available to hold Speaker Bonnen accountable for his actions. At the very least, he should apologize.”

Texas Gun Rights is the largest state-based firearms lobbying organization in the Lone Star State.

###