Senate GOP leaders gave President Donald Trump a clear warning before the Texas primary election in May as he weighed endorsing Ken Paxton over longtime incumbent John Cornyn: If the state attorney general won, Trump’s political operation would have to bankroll the expensive general election campaign to help make the controversial Paxton more appealing to voters, according to multiple Republican sources.
But more than three months later, MAGA Inc.’s wallet has so far been closed. And Republicans are growing anxious — as the Democrat, James Talarico, has had the airwaves largely to himself for weeks, spending roughly seven times more than the GOP since June.
“They keep saying they’ll spend, but they haven’t,” said one senior GOP source involved in the discussions.
With polls now showing Talarico, a state representative, holding a narrow lead in the race that could help determine which party controls the Senate, Trump is beginning to put more of his attention in Texas, headlining a Thursday fundraiser in Houston that he described as an effort to help Paxton. And a separate, pro-Paxton outside group unveiled a new $800,000-ad blitz on Friday, the latest example in recent days of Paxton getting more air support.
