Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) is holding off on fundraising for Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in his race to replace the senator in the upper chamber, calling Paxton “lazy.”
“Paxton’s a poor campaigner,” Cornyn told the Texas Tribune. “He’s lazy and doesn’t raise money. And he basically is not offering a very compelling case for his election. He’s making this harder than it needs to be. But so be it — we are where we are.”
The tension comes after Cornyn and Paxton faced off in a heated GOP primary runoff earlier this year, in which the four-term senator sought to defend his seat, while Paxton ran a MAGA-style campaign bashing the incumbent’s record. President Donald Trump’s endorsement played a crucial role in the matchup, as he ultimately backed Paxton before the election, having withheld his choice between the two Republicans for months.
The Washington Examiner has reached out to Paxton’s team for comment.
Paxton now faces Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in the Senate general election. The two are facing off in what will be one of the closest-watched races of the 2026 election season. Cook Political Report lists the race as a toss-up, while recent polling has shown the candidates within close single-digit margins of each other.
But the outgoing senator, who is known for his fundraising prowess, having amassed over $14.2 million in fundraising dollars this year, is not putting his fundraising skills behind Paxton’s campaign. He told the outlet that he will be fundraising for GOP candidates in New Hampshire, Michigan, and Alaska, but not for Paxton’s race. He also told the outlet that he does not support Talarico’s policies.
The bitter primary and flared tensions over the Trump endorsement have left Cornyn as a lame duck, giving him more room to push back on or negotiate with the White House on policy from Capitol Hill. In a June interview with the Washington Examiner, Cornyn called the position “liberating.”
JAMES TALARICO ASKS COURT TO UNSEAL KEN PAXTON DEPOSITIONS ALLEGING THEY RAISE ‘ETHICAL QUESTIONS’
Paxton’s campaign, as of the end of June, has garnered over $9.2 million dollars in campaign contributions and has over $1.7 million in cash on hand.
Talarico’s team, on the other hand, has raised over $68.5 million, with over $21.5 million in cash on hand.