Gonzales’ and Herrera’s campaign mailers appear to lack context to claims made against each other
01-31-26
By Michael Robinson | Uvalde Hesperian
Picture credit: Tony Gonzales for Congress: Direct mail piece received 01-31-26
If you live in Uvalde County and plan on heading to your mailbox today or tomorrow, you will likely find slick card bulk mailers from either Tony Gonzales for Congress or Brandon Herrera for Congress.
[/caption] In a mailer received by the Uvalde Hesperian from Tony Gonzales for Congress, the headline reads: “Fact Check= Brandon Herrera”
“From North Carolina, NOT Texas”; “Only registered to vote in Texas in late 2024″; NEVER SERVED in the military, just likes to dress up and pretend”; “Jokes about VETERAN’S SUICIDE”; and “Want’s to do away with the VA”
According to research by the Uvalde Hesperian, The Branda Herrera quote referenced by the Tony Gonzales for Congress mailer was from Herrera’s Podcast, the Unsubscribe Podcast.
In a YouTube video response video short, Herrera claims the quote, he claimed to have made the comment while ” at a “table full of veterans.” making a joke about a joke he was making referring to it as “dark humor”.
As far as the photos with Brandon Herrera shown in military uniform with medals, there are no actual pictures or instances found where Herrera dressed up in military uniform with medals but rather sources say those pictures are photoshopped memes.
A political ad campaign mailer from Brandon Herrera for Congress also was received on January 31st, 2026 by the Uvalde Hesperian.
The mailer reads: ” Tony Gonzales brought 85,000 UNVETTED AFGHAN MUSLIMS in the United States…And Americans paid the price.”
The mailer also lists the source material for the claims:
“Tony Gonzales interview, KFOX14/CBS4 San Antonio, August 19th, 2021”
“U.S. House Roll Call Vote 218, on HR3985, July 22, 2021”
The U.S. House Roll Call Votes 219 on HR2985 or Averting Loss of Life and Injury by Expediting SIVs Act of 2021 or the Allies Act of 2021 came just before the U.S. forces withdrawal from Afghanistan:
According to a press release from U.S. Congressman Jason Crow from Colorado it states:
“The Afghan SIV Program was created in 2009 to provide safety for Afghan interpreters, contractors, and security personnel who worked with the U.S. government in Afghanistan. The application process has been plagued by delays since the program was established and faces severe backlogs, with wait times routinely stretching for years. Since the Biden Administration announced its plans to withdraw all US forces from Afghanistan by September 11, 2021, Crow has called on the Administration to expedite this visa process, as Afghan SIV applicants and their families are increasingly under threat by the Taliban.
The ALLIES Act would increase the Afghan SIV cap by an additional 8,000 visas and remove burdensome application requirements that slow down the application process without impacting national security.”
According to a CBS News report it states,” Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, the 20-year-old West Virginia National Guard member who was shot and killed in an ambush-style attack in Washington, D.C., is being remembered by former coworkers as energetic, funny and quick to laugh. “
“Beckstrom was one of two members of the West Virginia National Guard who were shot in an ambush-style attack in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. The second victim, Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, underwent surgery on Wednesday and remains in critical condition. The suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, is believed to have acted alone.”
In a related CBS News report, it states that the suspected shooter, Rahmanullah Lakanwa had worked for the CIA in Afghanistan as a member of a partner force in Kandahar that ended in 2021 following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
