Thune: ‘We’re going to need’ Trump to help in Texas Senate race
Senate Majority Leader John Thune emphasized the importance of President Donald Trump’s support for the GOP’s efforts to fund and secure the Texas Senate race, which is critical for maintaining the Republican majority. Thune highlighted that Texas is an expensive state to campaign in and called for Trump and his team to engage and allocate resources, especially since Trump’s campaign fundraising committee has not yet contributed to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s campaign despite having ample funds. Trump’s endorsement of Paxton, who faces a tough general election, has intricate support from GOP donors, with some expressing that Trump now bears obligation for the race’s outcome.
The article also discusses Paxton’s legal and ethical baggage,including charges and an impeachment that he was acquitted of,and his Democratic opponent James Talarico’s campaign tactics. Talarico has criticized paxton’s record and positions, including comments on capitalism and Texas’s oil industry, which he deems outdated. The campaign features ads portraying Paxton as taking on large corporations, while Talarico’s comments from 2020 linked capitalism to systemic oppressions like climate change and white supremacy. the race remains heavily influenced by Trump’s backing and the GOP’s efforts to rally support and resources for Texas’s pivotal Senate seat.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) on Tuesday said the Republican Party will need President Donald Trump’s help on the funding front in the Texas Senate race, emphasizing how critical the seat is to maintaining the party’s majority in the chamber.
Speaking with Fox News’s Martha MacCallum, Thune was asked about GOP donors looking to the president to spend money to support Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, as some donors feel Paxton’s primary competitor, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), was the better choice.
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Thune, who had endorsed Cornyn while Trump backed Paxton, said Texas is “an incredibly expensive state” that needs to be prioritized as the GOP seeks to keep its hold on the Senate.
“Everybody is all in for Ken Paxton. The primary is over. We’re focused now on the general election,” Thune said. “But because Texas is such an expensive state, we’re going to need the president and his team to be engaged there and to be putting resources into that race.”
Trump’s campaign fundraising arm, Make America Great Again Inc., has yet to write a check to support Paxton’s campaign despite having over $400 million in cash on hand at the end of July, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
Cornyn was viewed as a safe choice for Republicans in the Lone Star State, but Trump’s last-minute endorsement of Paxton tipped the needle in the primary runoff. The outgoing senator, who is known for his fundraising strength, has amassed over $14.2 million in fundraising dollars this year and is not putting it behind Paxton’s campaign after his loss.
Financial support from GOP donors doesn’t seem likely after Trump’s backing of Paxton scrambled the incumbent’s reelection bid. A Republican donor told Politico that Trump will need to step up to save Paxton in the race, saying the message to Trump is “you broke it, now you own it.”
Paxton enters the general election with significant baggage already stirring up trouble, including a dismissed securities fraud charge and an impeachment from which he was later acquitted. His competitor, Democratic state Rep. James Talarico, has sought to highlight Paxton’s past on the campaign trail.
But on Tuesday, the political action committee supporting Paxton, Lone Star Liberty, released an ad touting Paxton’s record as attorney general taking on big corporations. The PAC released a second ad bashing Talarico for supporting legislation that allowed Chinese-owned companies to purchase land in Texas.
In another hit to Talarico, a CNN report found that Talarico referred to capitalism as “oppressive,” tying it to climate change and white supremacy. The Democrat made the remarks during a 2020 video call with Austin Sierra Club activists.
“I’m … thankful that young activists have really drawn the link between climate change and white supremacy and capitalism in our country,” Talarico said. “And I think only understanding the ways that all three of those oppressive systems work together are we going to be able to begin the process of dismantling them.”
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Talarico also took aim at the oil industry during the reported meeting, characterizing the production that employs many Texans as unworthy of support.
“We all know that Texas has been a leader in oil and gas, but in many ways that’s like being the leader in cassette tapes in the 1980s,” Talarico said, according to the outlet. “That industry is not going to last. And if we want to ensure we have an economy that’s going to work for our children and our children’s children, we got to be ahead of the curve, and Texas has to lead instead of follow on this issue.”
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