Republicans are looking at a battle in Texas for a U.S. Senate seat as a looming trainwreck in the upcoming midterm election that, at the moment, looks to be unavoidable.
A decision by scandal-plagued Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) to challenge longtime Sen. John Cornyn (R) has set off a panic that millions of dollars will be wasted on a primary fight for a seat that, under normal circumstances, would be a GOP lock in the conservative state, but may be put in play after a potentially bruising battle for the nomination.
According to Politico's Ben Jacobs, the war for the nomination will boil down to a "GOP trainwreck of the 2026 election cycle, a cash-burning demolition derby that threatens to fracture the party, force the White House to intervene."
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“I hate to see that kind of internecine warfare in my party,” explained Rep. Mike McCaul (R-TX) who predicted, "It’ll be an ugly one.”
According to the report, Cornyn has drawn a formidable opponent in Paxton because he "viewed by many in the party as insufficiently MAGA" while the AG has a penchant for Trump bombast which will attract the type of voters who will turn out for a midterm primary.
Also working in favor of Paxton is his legal problems which have an appeal to MAGA fans because they mirror Trump's own difficulties.
"The experience left Paxton with diehard support on the hard right of the Texas Republican Party, which has been embroiled in a civil war with more traditional conservatives," the report notes, and that has GOP strategists worried about the millions that will be expended in Texas that are needed elsewhere.
“Texas is a very expensive state to run a campaign in, and resources are not unlimited,” Jesse Hunt, a former top staffer at the National Republican Senatorial Committee, insisted. “A lot of the people who may be asked to get involved in that sort of intra-party feud in a state like Texas, could also be asked to help fund efforts to flip Georgia and flip other Democrat held states.”
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