Last updated on February 25th, 2024 at 04:44 pm
Its primary season in Texas, and Congressman Roger Williams has tapped into the war chest of a familiar donor to stave off opposition. Apollo Global Management (AGM) has been Williams’ largest campaign contributor in the last two election cycles, including his unopposed 2022 re-election bid in the newly redrawn 25th Congressional District, which is anchored in Arlington, Texas. The firm has contributed over $41,000 to Williams’ campaign since 2012, according to FEC report aggregator OpenSecrets. This election cycle alone, AGM contributed $22,200 ahead of the Republican primaries in the Lone Star State.
AGM has been in hot water for the last several years for its close ties to child sex trafficking. The private equity company’s CEO, Leon Black, was close friends with Jeffrey Epstein for over 20 years. Black had recruited Epstein to serve on the board of directors for the Black Family Foundation in 2001, and hired him for financial services in 2012. AGM reportedly paid $158 million to Epstein for money management over a five-year period, and it should be noted that Epstein made his money through the trafficking and rape of young children. Black was also frequent visitor to Epstein’s home in Manhattan and faces charges of raping a teenage girl with down syndrome there.
According to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, AGM and its employees began to contribute to Roger Williams’ congressional campaign as early as 2012, and continued to pour thousands of dollars into his re-election bids each cycle.
News of Williams’ connection to Jeffrey Epstein’s firm was first published in an article by the Burleson Buzz, an online newspaper focused on reporting local news in Burleson, Texas, which is within the Congressman’s district. The article states that it is “unclear […] why Apollo Global (sic) would donate $22,200 to his campaign other than shadiness and corruption.”
Last year, over 34,800 children were reported missing in the state of Texas, and approximately 79,000 kids are currently victims of sex trafficking. Tarrant County, where the 25th district is anchored, is a hotbed for human trafficking.
Child trafficking has been a hot topic in conservative circles, with the Sound of Freedom movie grossing over $200 million at the box-office this summer. Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn recently demanded a subpoena for the release of Epstein’s flight logs. Several congressional candidates from across the country have signed onto the Congressional Pledge to Fight Human Trafficking, which includes a commitment not to accept “political donations from companies or individuals that are known to have done business with human traffickers” and “publicly push
for the release of the Epstein client list.” At least four Texans are signers of the pledge. According to sources familiar with the campaign, Roger Williams refused to sign the pledge before accepting $22,200 in additional contributions from AGM this election cycle.
Williams will face entrepreneur Matthew Lucci in the Republican primary on March 5th. This is the first time that Williams will face a challenger since redistricting.
