Editor’s Note: This article is one of two opinion pieces on the Texas Senate race. An article arguing for Senator Cornyn’s re-election can be found here.
Washington, D.C. is a failure by all standards. It has become a place where members of Congress who claim to care about their constituents make backroom deals to benefit the elite and preserve their own power. At the center of this corruption is a politician who epitomizes what it means to be a part of the swamp: Senator John Cornyn.
While once seen as a steady hand in the Texas GOP and a future Senate Republican Leader, Senator Cornyn now symbolizes the rot at the core of the Republican establishment. Through his alliance with Mitch McConnell, milquetoast support of President Trump, and cooperation with Democrats on more spending, gun control, and lenient immigration policies, Cornyn has shown his true colors. He is not deserving of being re-elected by Texans. It’s time to show him the door and send Ken Paxton to fight for Texas in the United States Senate.
Cornyn’s Record: Conservative in Name Only
Cornyn’s resume represents a long tenure of being a do-nothing career politician. He’s served as a Texas Supreme Court Justice, Texas Attorney General, and U.S. Senator since 2002. He has held leadership positions in the Senate and currently sits on high-profile committees, including the Judiciary and Finance. But for all the positions that he has held, Cornyn’s record is conservative in name only.
According to Conservative Review, Cornyn earns a low 54% rating —equivalent to an F —making him one of the most liberal Republicans in the Senate.
Similarly, Cornyn has the lowest approval rating among Texas Republicans at the statewide level: 48% according to a recent Texas Tribune Poll. A more recent poll shows him with a disastrous 22% approval statewide.
These numbers make it abundantly clear that Texas Republicans do not want to send another bipartisan moderate to Washington. We want to send someone who will fight for our conservative ideals and codify President Trump’s agenda.
The Fiscal Fraud
In 2022, Cornyn voted for a $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill that funded many priorities of the Biden Administration. He also voted to approve $300 billion in corporate welfare for chip manufacturers. Similarly, he voted to send Ukraine hundreds of billions of dollars, and raised the debt ceiling to enable Biden’s reckless spending. This came at a time when inflation was crushing middle-class American families through record-high gas and food prices.
Texas families don’t want a globalist senator who voted for more pork spending and sent our tax dollars overseas while ignoring the pain felt by hard-working families. They want a senator who puts America First.
Voting to Confirm Liberal Nominees. Seriously?
Senator Cornyn voted to confirm various Biden Administration cabinet nominees who presided over one of the worst presidencies in American history. Cornyn voted to confirm Merrick Garland, who weaponized the Department of Justice to prosecute President Donald J. Trump in sham trials. He voted to confirm Janet Yellen as Treasury Secretary, who oversaw one of the largest increases in government spending in American history, while the country suffered from high inflation. He also voted to confirm General Lloyd Austin as Defense Secretary, who oversaw the shameful Afghanistan withdrawal. Likewise, he voted to confirm Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who oversaw the most disastrous foreign policy posture in decades with failures in Ukraine and the Middle East.
If he voted for all these liberal nominees, why should he receive the trust and support of Texas Republicans?
Cornyn’s Soft Stance on Immigration
Another critical issue for Texas is immigration. The border crisis spiraled out of control under President Joe Biden, with over 10.3 million border encounters during his tenure. The flood of illegal aliens brings not only security concerns, but waves of cartel violence and fentanyl. And what did Cornyn do? Joke about amnesty.
Cornyn has a long history of supporting various forms of amnesty. On DACA, he stated; ““DACA recipients must have a permanent legislative solution. They deserve nothing less. These young men and women have done nothing wrong.” Yes, Senator Cornyn, they deserve deportation. Cornyn also supported the passage of the Dream Act, another scam to prioritize foreigners over American citizens.
Amnesty has failed this nation before, and it is a plague that will continue to haunt the United States. Ronald Reagan’s 1986 amnesty bill is the disastrous origin of the problems we see today in places like California. It has strained the California economy and public services, and shifted the political balance in broad swaths of the state towards the Democrats. Cornyn either doesn’t understand that or, worse, he simply does not care. His record is clear. Prioritizing foreigners over Americans is clearly his modus operandi.
Cornyn also made news when he helped Democrats pass a gun control bill that would strip Second Amendment rights from his own constituents. As he stated, “first guns, now it’s immigration reform.” He later claimed it was a joke. Texas conservatives clearly aren’t laughing, and the polls show it.
Disrespecting President Trump
Cornyn has made his opinions of President Trump crystal clear. He attacked the border wall back in 2017, a centerpiece of the first Trump campaign, claiming that it simply made no sense. In 2023, he asserted that President Trump’s time had passed and that he could not win in 2024. Well, Senator Cornyn, you can tout your voting record however you would like, but to Texans, it’s clear that you are a two-sided, lying, and deceitful hypocrite who only cares about your Senate seat.
Betraying the Second Amendment:
One of Cornyn’s biggest betrayals came in 2022 when he worked with Democrats on the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. This legislation funded “red flag” laws and expanded background checks.
Red flag laws are a slippery slope that allows for the violation of our due process through the confiscation of firearms based on mere accusations of wrongdoing, not convictions. These laws treat law-abiding gun owners as guilty until proven innocent. This is something that no Constitution-loving conservative should ever support.
Senator Cornyn handed Joe Biden a legislative victory by undermining one of the most instrumental rights in our Constitution. For this, he rightfully earned boos from the Texas GOP at the 2022 convention.
So What’s Next? Enter Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton
Texans may be stuck with Cornyn until January 2027, but that doesn’t mean we should accept him as our Republican nominee for the United States Senate.
Unlike John Cornyn, Attorney General Ken Paxton has never backed down from a fight. Whether it was suing the Biden administration over unconstitutional executive orders, standing firm on election integrity, or challenging federal overreach, Attorney General Paxton has proven that he is ready to defend Texas and the Constitution at all costs.
Ken Paxton has also made his dominance among Republicans in the Lone Star State very clear; his popularity has surged after the failed impeachment scam that was pushed by the swamp in the Texas Legislature.
Ken Paxton has weathered attacks from the political establishment. Whether it has been lawfare, primary challenges, or the continued barrage of left-wing smears, through it all, he has stood firm and fought back. As Attorney General, Paxton has consistently aligned himself with the conservative wing of the Texas Republican Party, while Senator John Cornyn has drifted away.
What the polls show:
Multiple public and internal polls have demonstrated that Cornyn’s political career is in peril. It is also very telling when many members of the Republican delegation from Texas to the U.S. House of Representatives won’t even endorse him.
It is clear that Cornyn’s time has passed; he should show himself the door.
Let the Torch Pass
John Cornyn has had his time ripping off conservative voters and ignoring their message. Texan conservatives are tired of Republicans who capitulate. Conservative Texan voters want a fighter, not someone who will kiss up to the D.C. establishment.
If deep-state, national Republican politicians care at all about not putting this seat in danger like they have loudly claimed to outlets such as Politico and the Wall Street Journal, then they should tell Cornyn to retire.
Ken Paxton has the record and the will to be a conservative champion for Texans. In 2026, the choice is clear: a tired relic of the swamp that has been an abject failure or a bold defender of Texas values.
Let’s send a thundering message to Washington.
