It seems as though President Trump was having second thoughts about a GOP candidate he endorsed over the summer long before that candidate ultimately went down in flames to a Democratic challenger.
Trump privately regretted endorsing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over longtime Republican Sen. John Cornyn, according to a new report examining Republican midterm failures.
The Wall Street Journal reported Trump began second-guessing the decision before Election Day as concerns intensified about Paxton’s ability to hold the traditionally Republican Senate seat.
Those concerns ultimately proved consequential when Democrat James Talarico defeated Paxton Tuesday, becoming the first Democrat elected to the Senate from Texas in decades.
The loss came despite Trump carrying Texas comfortably in 2024 and Republicans maintaining a longstanding advantage in statewide elections.
According to advisers cited by the Journal, Trump privately complained about Paxton as a candidate and questioned whether Republicans would have faced an easier general election with Cornyn.
The reported doubts contrasted sharply with Trump’s public statements.
Asked in October whether he regretted endorsing Paxton, Trump rejected the suggestion.
“No, no, no, not at all. He was a great attorney general. I think he’ll be a great senator,” Trump said. Trump later told Newsmax that Cornyn would have lost the general election anyway. “No, because I think Cornyn would have lost. I think Cornyn would have lost,” Trump said.
The internal fight began months earlier as Republican leaders became increasingly concerned about the Texas race.
Cornyn finished first in the March Republican primary but failed to reach 50%, forcing a runoff against Paxton.
The Washington Post reported that Trump initially told Senate Majority Leader John Thune he planned to endorse Cornyn.
A social media endorsement of Cornyn was even drafted but never published.
Thune, Sen. Tim Scott and several Trump political advisers reportedly urged the president to support Cornyn, warning that nominating Paxton could force Republicans to spend enormous amounts defending Texas.
Republican leaders feared the general election could cost between $200 million and $300 million, draining resources needed in competitive races elsewhere.
Paxton’s supporters countered that Cornyn had become disconnected from Republican voters and that Paxton better represented Trump’s MAGA movement.
Trump ultimately sided with Paxton.
The president endorsed him May 19, calling Paxton “a true MAGA Warrior who has ALWAYS delivered for Texas, and will continue to do so in the United States Senate.”
Trump also criticized Cornyn’s previous relationship with him.
“John Cornyn is a good man, and I worked well with him, but he was not supportive of me when times were tough,” Trump said.
Paxton subsequently crushed Cornyn in the runoff, winning nearly 64% of the vote despite being heavily outspent during the campaign.
But the bruising primary exposed divisions Republicans never fully repaired.
Cornyn declined to endorse Paxton after losing, and Trump later publicly accused the senator of trying to sabotage the Republican nominee.
Talarico capitalized on those divisions while attacking Paxton over controversies that followed him throughout his tenure as attorney general.
Paxton had been impeached by the Republican-controlled Texas House in 2023 over allegations including bribery and abuse of office, although the state Senate ultimately acquitted him.
Republican strategists repeatedly warned that those controversies could become liabilities in a general election.
Former North Carolina Republican Sen. Thom Tillis described the decision to nominate Paxton as an “unforced error.”
“That’s just laying the ground for historic gains for the Democrats,” Tillis told the Washington Post. “And Democrats aren’t winning these elections; we’re losing them.”
Even on Election Day, Trump publicly defended choosing Paxton.
“I had no choice. Ken Paxton was a good guy, and I just wasn’t a fan of Cornyn,” Trump told Fox News. “I found him to be a disloyal guy. He was not a fan of mine.”
Paxton’s defeat became one of several damaging Republican Senate losses Tuesday as Democrats captured control of both chambers of Congress. The Texas result was particularly significant because Republicans had not lost a statewide election there since 1994.
