Republican congressional nominee Eric Flores of Texas was exposed Thursday for a “text-based scam” that was widely condemned as a “deceiving” promise to squeeze campaign cash out of voters.
Texas voters received text messages last week that The American Prospect connected to Flores’ campaign. In the messages, Flores, a multimillionaire, informed voters about a check written in their name, and encouraged recipients to follow a link to “submit approval.”
“(1) Attachment: $5,000 Check for Mr./Mrs. [redacted],” the text reads. “Pres. Trump just authorized it. Access portal & submit approval ASAP.”
As noted by the Prospect, the link “does not follow through as advertised,” and instead “goes to a donation website for Flores.”
“In all seriousness, how is this not fraud,” asked author and journalist James Surowiecki, who wrote The New Yorker’s “Financial Page” column from 2000 to 2017. “It's actively deceiving the recipient in pursuit of monetary gain. That the monetary gain is in the form of election contributions does not change that fact.”
The text solicitation is a clear reference to President Donald Trump’s promise last week to award Americans with $5,000 checks if Republicans maintain their congressional majority after the midterms. In a stunning development, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found that an overwhelming number of Americans were opposed to Trump’s $5,000 checks, including a plurality of Republicans.
“Endless grift,” wrote former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan in response to the Prospect’s report on Flores.
Jessiah Eberlin, a political podcaster and commentator, argued that Trump was “sinking to new lows every god---- day” in having his $5,000 check promise be used deceptively to solicit campaign contributions, which the Prospect reported will “primarily help retire his campaign debt.” Flores loaned himself more than $500,000 according to FEC records in his bid to win the GOP primary and defeat incumbent Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX).