Cornyn's Nasty Attack on Paxton May Haunt Texas Republicans

"The Cornyn/NRSC JFC is airing a new ad accusing Ken Paxton of "sleeping around with a married mother of seven" and calling him a "wife-cheater and fraud." Has there been another instance of a committee going so hard against a candidate who it may have to support in a few months?"

"So the very people running this ad calling Paxton a despicable family-wrecking, corrupt, and LGBTQ-loving piece of garbage may soon be backing his general-election candidacy to the absolute hilt. Paxton is the favorite in a toxic contest that will almost certainly go to a May runoff, in which his brand of fierce MAGA conservatives are likely to dominate turnout."

The Texas GOP Senate primary features an unusually vicious campaign, with John Cornyn and the Senate Republican Campaign Committee running ads attacking Ken Paxton with accusations of infidelity and fraud. This presents a strategic paradox: the same committee responsible for maintaining Republican Senate control may soon need to fully support Paxton in the general election if he wins the primary, which is expected to go to a May runoff. Meanwhile, Democrats face their own primary divisions between Jasmine Crockett and James Talarico, though they are likely to resolve their nominee question more quickly. The intensity of the Republican primary attacks raises questions about the effectiveness and long-term consequences of such aggressive intra-party warfare.

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