Trump-backed Texas veteran mocked for disability in rival’s primary campaign ad

FIRST ON FOX: The Texas congressional race, already marred by scandal, faces new controversy after veterans condemned political ads sent ahead of Memorial Day weekend that mocked a veteran supported by President Donald Trump for his military disability.

Days before the end of the contested Republican primary runoff elections between John Lujan and Carlos De La Cruz in Texas’ 35th Congressional District, a mailer sent out this week by Lujan’s political action committee, Protection and Service, blasted De La Cruz for his disability and referred to him as a “‘100% disabled’ kickboxer.”

The ad references De La Cruz, an Air Force veteran who deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, and claims that he “claims to be 100% disabled to avoid paying any property taxes.” “Although the VA defines 100% disability for veterans whose ‘conditions are severe enough to cause total disability,’ De La Cruz is stated to be physically fit enough to train and operate a kickboxing gym and lists himself as a volunteer carpenter,” the ad continues.

“This is the most embarrassing thing I’ve ever pulled out of my mailbox,” Charlotte Neiner, an Air Force veteran and member of the Wounded Warrior Project, told Fox News Digital, a disabled veteran herself.

He emphasized that it was “a shame to do this in the days before Memorial Day.”

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“Career politician John Lujan’s team is doing their dirty work, attacking a fellow veteran’s injuries,” he claimed, adding: “He hasn’t worn the uniform a single day. He has no idea how much these injuries cost, and he never will.”

According to Neiner, “a man of this little honor can have no business near Congress.”

He said that after this episode, Lujan “will not get my vote, not a single veteran I know will get the vote, and I will personally make sure every veteran in this district knows exactly what he did.”

Neiner added, “I’m proudly voting for Carlos De La Cruz and John Lujan should be ashamed of himself.”

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A pedestrian walks through the main gate of Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio on February 5, 2020. (Eric Gay/AP)

The Lujan campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Under Texas law, veterans deemed 100% disabled or individually unemployed by the Department of Veterans Affairs may receive a full exemption from property taxes on their primary residence homestead. More than 164,000 Texas veterans with a 100% disability rating are estimated to benefit from the state’s full homestead property tax exemption, Texas disabled-veteran property tax advocates said, citing 2024 VA data.

De La Cruz owned and operated a kickboxing gym in the San Antonio area.

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Maureen Galindo speaks at the League of Women Voters convention in Texas. (Katina Zentz/Getty Images)

Lujan and De La Cruz will face off again Tuesday after neither candidate reached the 50 percent vote threshold needed to win the GOP nomination. In their first meeting, Lujan had an advantage with about 32 percent of the vote, and De La Cruz came in second with about 27 percent of the vote.

Both candidates received support from high-profile figures, with De La Cruz backed by Trump and Lujan by Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott.

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This comes as the Democratic primary in the same district has been just as controversial. Democrat Maureen Galindo fueled national outrage by promising to imprison and castrate “American Zionists” in a social media post.

Fox News Digital has also reached out to Protect and Serve PAC for comment.