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MustReadTexas.com – @MustReadTexas
BY: @MattMackowiak
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WEDNESDAY || 1/29/25
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TOP NEWS
“Key Trump ally to decide on possible run against leading Republican in 'next couple of months',” Fox News' Paul Steinhauser and Peter Pinedo — “Speaking to Republican Party members in Denton County Monday night, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a longtime ally of President Donald Trump, listed several Republicans he plans to purge from the Texas GOP for being insufficiently conservative.
Among those on Paxton’s list was Texas’ senior U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, one of the most powerful members of the Senate GOP.
The crowd erupted into loud applause as Paxton said, "The second thing we need to do, and I might play a role in this, is replace John Cornyn in the U.S. Senate."
The attorney general, who worked with the Trump team to file a lawsuit in December that successfully secured a court order stopping the Biden administration from continuing sales of border wall materials, has long hinted at a potential run to replace Cornyn.
"I can’t think of a single thing he’s accomplished for our state or even for the country," Paxton said in a September 2023 interview on the Fox News Channel. And pointing to a possible Senate run in 2026, Paxton said, "Somebody needs to step up and run against this guy," adding, "everything’s on the table for me."
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Paxton gave more credence to the rumors, saying despite "loving what I’m doing … I’m looking potentially at the U.S. Senate."
He shared that he is in talks with groups in Texas about a possible 2026 Senate run and will likely decide in the "next couple of months."
Paxton claimed Cornyn does not represent the conservative values of Texans and accused him of not being an ally of Trump.
He has also regularly labeled Cornyn a "RINO," a "Republican in name only" and an insult MAGA and "America First" Republicans have regularly used to criticize more mainstream or establishment members of the GOP.
Another source close to Paxton told Fox News Digital the attorney general "plans to spend the next few months meeting with voters, donors and grassroots activists across the state to gauge interest and decide how he can serve Texas best."
The attorney general has faced his own set of challenges. In 2022, he defeated a primary effort by primary effort by former Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush amid charges of bribery and corruption. In 2023, the Texas House of Representatives voted to impeach Paxton, but he was eventually acquitted of all charges by the state senate.
For his part, Cornyn, who has served in the Senate since 2002, has no intention of leaving the Senate. After serving in key GOP leadership positions, including chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, from 2009-2013, and Senate majority whip, from 2015-2019, he threw his hat in the ring to become the Senate majority leader in 2024, though he ultimately lost to South Dakota Sen. John Thune.
Cornyn, meanwhile, has said he will "absolutely" run again in 2026.
In recent months, he has also been a vocal supporter of Trump’s Cabinet picks and has slammed Democrats for delaying confirmations for key positions. In a speech on the Senate floor earlier this month, he said, "Our first and most urgent task is to confirm President Trump's nominees for his Cabinet."
With both considered leading Republicans and both holding significant support, any potential primary race between the two in the Lone Star State promises to be a dramatic — perhaps messy — showdown.
One of the primary questions that remains is whether the president would support his longtime ally Paxton or if he would, in the interest of preserving party unity, support a GOP establishment that has previously been criticized as "weak" and "ineffective."
"The big question is whether Trump would support Paxton over Cornyn in a primary challenge," Matt Mackowiak, a veteran Republican strategist and communications consultant based in Texas and Washington, D.C., told Fox News Digital.
"Cornyn’s never lost a race. Cornyn has a lot of support around the state. He’s traveled all corners of the state for a long time and is very well known and very well liked," said Mackowiak. "We haven’t had a Republican senator lose a primary since Richard Lugar in 2004. As much as people sometimes think it’s doable, think it’s easy, think it’s inevitable, it really just doesn’t happen. But I’m not saying it can’t happen. I’m not saying that Paxton can’t win. I think he certainly has a decent chance."
Mackowiak added that if Paxton runs, it "would be a massive race with national consequences."
"You’d have national activists and money involved on both sides," he said. "It could end up being one of the biggest primaries of the cycle and probably the most significant statewide primary in Texas since Dewhurst-Cruz [when former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz defeated Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst for the GOP Senate nomination in 2012 en route to winning his first U.S. Senate election] or it may not materialize at all. And I think it’s going to be several months before we know."" Fox News
TOP NEWS
HOU CHRON: “2 former Lina Hidalgo employees set to have criminal cases dismissed” Houston Chronicle ($)
#TXLEGE
TX TRIB: “Texas senators fast-track school voucher bill for full vote” Texas Tribune
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
HOU CHRON: “Whitmire says Houston police haven't assisted in deportations” Houston Chronicle ($)
CBS AUSTIN: “'APD does not have a role in enforcing that," Chief Davis on immigration operations in ATX” CBS Austin
DMN: “Dallas officials seek $5.6 million to fight homelessness” DMN ($)
2025
SAEN: “$987M Alamo Colleges District bond issue set for May 3 vote” SAEN ($)
NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE
> TX TRIB: "Abbott orders state police to help federal agents with immigration enforcement" TX TRIB
> TX TRIB: "Donald Trump’s push to freeze federal funds sparks confusion in Texas" TX TRIB
> TX TRIB: "Texas senators spar over whether school voucher proposal prioritizes vulnerable students" TX TRIB
> FWST: "Judge halts White House funding freeze, but what could Trump’s plan mean for Texans?" FWST
> DMN: "Greg Abbott directs DPS to help federal immigration efforts" DMN
> DMN: "Jasmine Crockett, other Democrats bash Trump freeze on funding" DMN
> TX TRIB: "Department of Justice cuts off federally funded legal aid to detained immigrants" TX TRIB
> HOU CHRON: "Republican lawmakers try again to bar Chinese citizens from buying Texas land" HOU CHRON
> TX TRIB: "“Wrap around the family”: Doulas, community health workers push Texas to cover more services for pregnant women" TX TRIB
> DMN: "Executive Editor Katrice Hardy leaving to become CEO of The Marshall Project" DMN
> TX MONTHLY: "Big Battle on the Little Wichita" TX MONTHLY
> TX TRIB: "Join us in Houston March 5 for a symposium on building a strong future for Texas’ cities" TX TRIB
> DMN: "Trump offers all federal workers a buyout with 7-month payout" DMN
> DMN: "Man tied to fatal drive-by shooting in Dallas said he meant to ‘scare’ people, police say" DMN
> TPR: "How Trump’s immigration mandates have played out across Texas" TPR
> HOU CHRON: "Judge temporarily blocks Trump's pause on federal loans, grants" HOU CHRON
> KXAN: "Willowood Ventures Unveils Direct Results Marketing: 300+ Dealers Crush Sales via Facebook Events for Auto Dealers" KXAN
> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "What to know about H-E-B Nutrition Services" COMMUNITY IMPACT
> HOU CHRON: "Target-anchored, $400 million mixed-use project breaks ground near Katy" HOU CHRON
> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "UT Health San Antonio professor appointed to US long-COVID committee" COMMUNITY IMPACT
> TPR: "The company planning a successor to Concorde makes its first supersonic test" TPR
EXTRA POINTS
Last night's Texas sports score:
> NBA: Houston 100, Atlanta 96
> NHL: Dallas 4, Las Vegas 3
> NCAAM: #13 Texas A&M 75, Oklahoma 68
> NCAAM: BYU 93, Baylor 89
> NCAAM: South Florida 69, Rice 64
Tonight's Texas sports schedule:
> 6pm: NCAAM: #6 Houston at West Virginia (ESPN+)
> 6pm: NCAAM: TCU at #22 Texas Tech (ESPN2)
> 6pm: NCAAM: UTSA at Florida Atlantic (ESPN+)
> 6:30pm: NCAAM: North Texas at Wichita State (ESPN+)
> 7pm: NBA: Dallas at New Orleans
> 7pm: NBA: LA Clippers at San Antonio
> 8pm: NCAAM: Texas at #23 Mississippi (ESPN2)
> 8pm: NCAAM: California at SMU (ESPN+)
DALLAS COWBOYS: "Cowboys hire Matt Eberflus as defensive coordinator" DMN ($)
DALLAS MAVERICKS: "Dallas Mavericks 2025 trade deadline preview" DMN ($)
SAN ANTONIO SPURS: "What Rockets' Amen Thompson, Dillon Brooks said after Celtics win" SAEN ($)
TEXAS MEN'S BASKETBALL: "Texas basketball vs Ole Miss: Rebel coach Chris Beard faces UT for first time since firing" AAS ($)
DALLAS STARS: "Johnson's natural hat trick and goal in OT give Stars 4-3" DMN ($)
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