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Cornyn remains defiant, says he doesn’t ‘expect’ he’ll ‘have to deal’ with backing Paxton

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) will not commit Sunday to supporting Trump-backed Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) if he wins the Texas Republican Senate runoffs to face Democrat James Talarico in November, though he has said in the past he would support the Republican nominee.

NewsNation’s Chris Stirewalt asked Cornyn on “The Hill Sunday” how Paxton is unfit to serve in the U.S. Senate, based on past comments, but will support the nominee, and how Republican voters should reconcile that as they head to the polls in November.

“I’m asking these speculative questions about November, but I expect to be the party’s nominee, so I don’t think I’ll ever have to deal with that,” the senator said. “Of course people are looking for divisions among Republicans. We’ve got a pretty violent family feud here in the primary.”

Cornyn added that the goal is to stay united to beat Talarico in November, saying that is “the essence of my response.”

“But I think people are asking me about something that will never happen, so that’s why I’m framing it that way,” Cornyn said.

Cornyn said Tuesday’s failure to secure President Trump’s support was different from the losses Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) suffered to Trump-backed candidates. All three incumbents criticized the president in different ways; Cornyn said Trump’s time is “past” in 2023.

He said Cornyn’s criticism stemmed from him choosing fights on a case-by-case basis while remaining supportive.

“So I’ll continue to vote the same way, but sometimes the president needs a little help, especially when we’re dealing with the midterms here, I think there’s a lot more concern here about the midterms than maybe we fully appreciate,” he added. “And that will be critical for his final two years in office.”

Paxton questioned Cornyn’s loyalty to Trump, criticizing the senator’s support for a 2022 gun bill following the mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

Trump praised Cornyn as a “good man” while endorsing Paxton, but added that his opponent “was a true MAGA Warrior who ALWAYS served Texas.”

“John was very late in supporting me in what turned out to be a historic race for the Republican Nomination and then the Presidency,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday. “Ken Paxton has been through a lot, unfairly in many cases, but he is a Warrior and knows how to WIN. Our Country needs Warriors as well as Loyalty to the Cause of Greatness.”

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