Speakers pull out of prominent activist group’s pro-Christian nationalist conference

On Wednesday, the Tribune reported that the conference lineup features figures with ties to antisemites and extremists, including Paul Gottfried, a far-right author who mentored neo-Nazi Richard Spencer. Since then, at least three of the 12 listed speakers have said they will no longer partake in the event, two of whom said they were unaware of the themes and lineup when they agreed to participate.

“I was unaware of the racialist themes of the conference and language of the other sessions related to it until the past couple of days,” Todd Bensman, a fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies, told the Tribune on Thursday. “I categorically reject white replacement theory and never write or speak about it. I’m not interested in any of that stuff.”

Prominent GOP donor and former state Sen. Don Huffines, who was listed as a speaker, condemned the conference Wednesday, saying it is a “dumb and inaccurate way to promote the Republican agenda” and that he “was never given a lineup of speakers or topics.”

The Texas Public Policy Foundation confirmed Thursday that Ammon Blair, a senior fellow who focuses on immigration, had also pulled out of the event.