Senator John Cornyn has stated he will not assist Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee for the Texas Senate race, citing Paxton's perceived weaknesses as a campaigner. Cornyn described Paxton, the current Texas Attorney General, as "lazy" and a "poor campaigner" in an interview with the Texas Tribune, explaining his decision not to fundraise for him.
Cornyn, who lost to Paxton in a contentious GOP Senate primary runoff earlier this summer, expressed a desire for Republicans to maintain their Senate majority but argued that Paxton has not presented a strong case to voters. "He’s making this harder than it needs to be," Cornyn said.
Paxton faces Democrat James Talarico in a race that recent polling averages indicate is closely contested, with Talarico holding a slight lead of approximately two percentage points. Talarico, a Democratic state representative, also has a significant fundraising advantage. His campaign committees have raised a total of $72 million, including $31.6 million in the last quarter ending in July. In contrast, Paxton has raised a total of $16.8 million, with $9.3 million in the same quarter.
Many of Cornyn's prominent donors have not contributed to the Senate race following the senator's primary defeat. Cornyn suggested that President Trump, who attended a fundraiser for Paxton, could be the one to provide financial support. "He could write a check if he wanted Paxton to be the nominee, with all his wrinkles and warts — then it’s a simple solution to that," Cornyn remarked.
The senator also asserted that Paxton's campaign has made little effort to engage his supporters. "I can’t tell that any of the supporters of Paxton have done diddly squat to reach out to what I would call mainstream traditional Republicans in Texas," Cornyn stated.
Texas has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1988, but Cornyn voiced concerns that the current race could prove "disastrous" for Republicans if trends do not improve. "This is unfortunately shaping up to be a close and I hope not disastrous election. But it ain’t looking good right now," he said. The Paxton campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment.