{"id":2581141,"date":"2026-03-18T06:07:01","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T10:07:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-allows-key-deadline-to-expire-setting-up-huge-republican-showdown\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T06:08:34","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T10:08:34","slug":"trump-allows-key-deadline-to-expire-setting-up-huge-republican-showdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-allows-key-deadline-to-expire-setting-up-huge-republican-showdown\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Allows Key Deadline to Expire, Setting Up Huge Republican Showdown"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrump-allows-key-deadline-to-expire-setting-up-huge-republican-showdown%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2581141&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>trump has substantially shaped Texas politics ahead of the 2026 midterms, endorsing many GOP candidates in February, but has not endorsed in the Texas senate primary between incumbent John Cornyn and challenger Ken Paxton as of the latest reporting. The New York Post notes there still hasn\u2019t been an endorsement for that race, which is now headed to a runoff on May 26, with the winner facing democrat James Talarico in November. A Trump endorsement could have a major impact in what appears to be a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pennsylvanias-dem-governor-candidate-propped-up-his-own-rival-now-republicans-think-he-could-win\/\" title=\"Pennsylvania\u2019s Dem Governor Candidate Propped Up His Own Rival. Now, Republicans Think He Could Win.\">competitive contest<\/a>, but the absence of a decision has drawn attention. Previously,Trump indicated he would withhold endorsement until the Save America Act was on his desk; the act would impose voter ID and citizenship requirements,limit certain mail-in ballots,prohibit transgender operations for youth,and other measures. while the Save America Act is progressing,it has not yet become law.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>President Donald Trump already has his fingerprints all over various key races in Texas ahead of the 2026 midterms.<\/p>\n<p>In February, the president took to his  page and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-rolls-massive-list-endorsements-truth-social-just-days-ahead-key-primaries\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">endorsed<\/a> just about every GOP candidate imaginable in the Lone Star State.<\/p>\n<p>There was one glaring exception: Trump did not endorse a candidate for the Republican Senate primary.<\/p>\n<p>And he still hasn&rsquo;t.<\/p>\n<p>According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/03\/17\/us-news\/trump-doesnt-endorse-paxton-cornyn-in-heated-gop-texas-senate-runoff\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">New York Post<\/a>, as of Tuesday evening, Trump still had not picked between incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and challenger Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Cornyn and Paxton are headed for a special runoff after neither candidate was able to procure 50 percent of the votes &mdash; ostensibly a huge showdown in a state that the GOP is desperately trying to keep from turning purple.<\/p>\n<p>Trump&rsquo;s endorsement could trigger a major swing in what appears to be a rather competitive race &mdash; but the fact that Tuesday passed without an endorsement is raising eyebrows.<\/p>\n<p>Tuesday was the deadline for candidates to drop out, and that&rsquo;s significant.<\/p>\n<p>Because as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2026\/03\/17\/politics\/paxton-cornyn-tump-texas-endorsement\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CNN<\/a> reported, Trump had made clear that he expected the candidate he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/hunter-biden-defector-emails-pipeline-to-obama-admin-seen-as-currency\/\" title=\"Hunter Biden Defector Emails: &#039;Pipeline&#039; to Obama Admin Seen as &#039;Currency&#039;\">didn&#038;rsquo<\/a>;t endorse to drop out of the race.<\/p>\n<p>That, obviously, will not be possible now.<\/p>\n<p>While it&rsquo;s unclear if Trump forgot the deadline or simply can&rsquo;t pick between Cornyn and Paxton, the president did previously <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-confirms-will-withhold-endorsing-cornyn-save-act-desk-also-makes-another-demand\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">explain to CNN&rsquo;s Dana Bash<\/a> that he would withhold his critical endorsement until the SAVE America Act was on his desk.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">7\/7 And on Texas GOP Senate race, President Trump said he will make a &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >decision fairly shortly&#038;rdquo<\/a>; but that he wants &ldquo;to have the full and complete Save America Act (which Includes trans issues now) &ldquo;We have to have voter ID. We have to have proof of citizenship We have to have no&hellip;<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Dana Bash (@DanaBashCNN) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DanaBashCNN\/status\/2029927895930372128?\">March 6, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>According to Bash, Trump said he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trumps-debate-win-means-nothing-if-the-gop-doesnt-chase-ballots\/\" title=\"...&#039;s Debate Win Means Nothing If The GOP Doesn&#039;t Chase Ballots\">wanted &#038;ldquo<\/a>;to have the full and complete Save America Act (which Includes trans issues now).&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>For Trump, this issue was absolutely critical.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We have to have voter ID. We have to have proof of citizenship We have to have no mail in ballots except the military, illness, disability and travel. We have to have no men in women&rsquo;s sports &mdash; I added two things, and we have to have no transgender operations for youth.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The SAVE America Act, which aims to require voters to provide identification before voting, is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/breaking-save-america-act-clears-major-hurdle-senate-one-step-closer-becoming-law\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">progressing<\/a>, but still has not made it to his desk.<\/p>\n<p>The Texas primary runoff between Cornyn and Paxton is now slated for May 26. The winner of that will go on to face Democratic nominee James Talarico in the November midterms.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President Donald Trump has been heavily involved in Texas politics ahead of the 2026 midterms. In February he endorsed nearly every Republican candidate in the state, but he refused to back anyone in the Republican Senate primary between incumbent John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton. As of Tuesday evening, he still had not chosen between them. Cornyn and Paxton are headed to a runoff after neither surpassed 50% of the vote, making the race highly competitive and potentially swingy for the GOP. The absence of a Trump endorsement by the deadline to drop out has drawn attention, since Trump had suggested he expected the non-endorsed candidate to exit the race.<\/p>\n<p>Trump had previously told CNN that he would withhold endorsement until the SAVE America Act was on his desk, saying he would decide \u201cfairly shortly\u201d but insisting he wanted the full act in place, including provisions on transgender issues. The act would require voter ID and proof of citizenship, restrict mail-in ballots to certain circumstances, and oppose transgender operations for youth, among other measures. The Texas Senate runoff between Cornyn and Paxton is now scheduled for May 26, with the winner advancing to face Democrat James Talarico in November<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2581142,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-03-17T230412.005.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[15402,5894,3911,12152,3634],"class_list":["post-2581141","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-deadline","tag-politics","tag-republican","tag-showdown","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-03-17T230412.005.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2581141","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2581141"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2581141\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2581145,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2581141\/revisions\/2581145"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2581142"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2581141"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2581141"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2581141"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}