Texas Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton accused outgoing Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) of wanting him to lose in November, according to another leaked audio clip.
Paxton, the state attorney general, defeated Cornyn in a bitter Republican primary. He has publicly said he would “love to have” Cornyn’s endorsement, but the outgoing senator has declined to endorse either candidate in the race.
“He’s clearly not helping. He wants me to lose,” Paxton said at a Sept. 24 gathering in Washington, according to the recording obtained by CNN.
Paxton made the remarks after being asked about Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX), whom state Rep. James Talarico defeated in the Democratic primary.
The recording begins with Paxton questioning how much Crockett’s candidacy would affect the race, saying he did not “know how much she really affects votes.”
“I mean, maybe a little bit around the margins, just like Cornyn, basically how much he affects me,” Paxton said.
Paxton then described an alleged exchange with Cornyn in which the senator expressed opposition to his candidacy and suggested Republicans needed to learn a lesson from their primary decisions.
“Cornyn’s face went red. He backed off,” Paxton said. “He said, ‘Paxton’s gonna lose. We need to teach those Republicans a lesson. It’s going to be hard to learn, but they need to know that their decisions have consequences.’”
“That’s what he’s trying to do,” Paxton added. “That’s John Cornyn.”
The recording is the latest in a series of leaked audio clips to emerge from Paxton’s campaign.
In one clip, Paxton acknowledged that a Republican convention had hurt his standing in the race.
“So, to be honest with you, the numbers — when we did that convention — it dropped our numbers,” Paxton said. “Everybody’s numbers dropped. Right now, yeah, not good.”
Another recording captured Paxton expressing frustration with the influence of national Republicans over his campaign.
“I’ve never been in a race where I felt less control over the campaign and, like, what issues are going to matter because it’s all coming — you know — from D.C.,” Paxton said.
He also cited economic concerns, including tariffs, the war, and rising fuel costs, as issues affecting the race, saying that “people are feeling the pinch.”
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The Cook Political Report rates the Texas Senate race between Paxton and Talarico as a toss-up. Democrats are seeking to win a Senate seat in Texas for the first time since 1988, and recent polling has shown a competitive contest.
Meanwhile, Republicans have demanded that Talarico provide “proof of life” after he stopped appearing on the campaign trail following his campaign’s announcement that he had tested positive for the flu.