for a "fiercely conservative agenda." At the time, few of his proposals passed. W. Gardner Selby, editor of the Austin American-Statesman'''s "PolitiFact Texas", listed Patrick as third among the top 10 Republican political influencers in Texas. Patrick is also listed in Texas Monthly as one of the state's most powerful players. During his first month as a legislator, Patrick introduced to make abortion in Texas illegal should the Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade. In May 2012, acrimony between Patrick and fellow Republican state senator John Carona was widely reported throughout Texas. In an email exchange, Patrick accused Carona of spreading false rumors about Patrick's marriage. Carona denied that, and additionally denied having commented on Patrick's sexuality. Carona further said to Patrick: "I've never been shy about sharing my dislike and distrust of you. Put bluntly, I believe you are a snake oil salesman, a narcissist that would say anything to draw attention to himself." News reports suggest that the feud was motivated by positioning to succeed David Dewhurst as lieutenant governor should Dewhurst have won a seat as U.S. senator, in 2012. Committee assignments Committee on Education (Chair) Committee on Criminal Justice Committee on Finance Committee on Health & Human Services Committee on Intergovernmental Relations Committee on Finance Subcommittee on Fiscal Matters Subcommittee on Public Education Funding Subcommittee on Higher Education Funding Lieutenant governor of Texas 2014 campaign On June 26, 2013, Patrick announced he would challenge incumbent David Dewhurst in the Republican primary for lieutenant governor in 2014. This challenge came despite Patrick's enthusiastic endorsement of Dewhurst in his failed 2012 bid for the U.S. Senate. Patrick stated that while he had been planning on retiring from politics after his Senate term ended, he decided to run for lieutenant governor after Dewhurst failed to end fellow State Senator Wendy Davis's filibuster of Texas Senate Bill 5 and after Senator Jane Nelson refused to run herself. In his race for lieutenant governor, Patrick was endorsed in July 2013 by Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas who ran unsuccessfully for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination. In 2012, Huckabee had also endorsed David Dewhurst for the U.S. Senate nomination for the seat vacated by Kay Bailey Hutchison. Victory went, however, to the Republican Ted Cruz. At a candidate forum in College Station in January 2014, Patrick said that he and two other challengers to Dewhurst, Jerry E. Patterson and Todd