'Raise the alarm': GOP dumps $50 million into Texas as Republican senator fights for life

As Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) fights for his life in a bitterly divided primary, Republican leaders have poured $50 million into Texas to try to regain control of the contest, The New York Times reported on Wednesday.

"Allies of Mr. Cornyn have spent about $50 million on advertising on his behalf since last July, an unheard-of sum to support a fourth-term incumbent running for re-election in a primary contest," said the report. "The outlay is all the more remarkable because the three-way March primary race is widely expected to go to a runoff election in May. That Cornyn supporters believe he needs millions of dollars in spending just to advance to the runoff speaks to how precariously he is positioned in a party in which he was once seen as a potential Senate leader."

Cornyn's biggest opponent is Ken Paxton, the far-right and scandal-plagued Texas attorney general who has commanded a large MAGA following. Allies of Cornyn were hoping President Donald Trump could put this to rest with an endorsement of the sitting senator. So far he has refused to do so, but is now reportedly considering it.

A third player in the race is Rep. Wesley Hunt, another pro-MAGA candidate who could affect the final split. Cornyn has been dragging him hard for missing votes in the House to campaign, while accusing Paxton of illegally using his state office to campaign.

"Republican leaders in Washington, with the help of establishment party donors, are making an all-out push to stop Mr. Paxton, worrying that his right-wing politics, his history of legal and ethical troubles and a messy divorce could give Democrats an opening in the red-state race," said the report. Alex Latcham, who heads up the GOP-aligned Senate Leadership Fund, said, “We were the first to raise the alarm bells that this race was going to be a problem if Ken Paxton is the nominee.”

On the Democratic side, the primary contest has heated up between Dallas-area Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett, a firebrand known for her committee speeches tearing down the MAGA movement, and Austin-area state Rep. James Talarico, a Presbyterian minister who has campaigned on a message of unity and compassion.