AG Ken Paxton announces $2.9 million fundraising haul in first 12 weeks of Senate campaign
Paxton’s GOP primary opponent, Sen. John Cornyn, has yet to release his fundraising numbers but is starting with a deeper campaign war chest. Full Story
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![from left: U.S. Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Paxton is challenging Cornyn in the Republican primary.]()
Credit: The Texas Tribune -
Sen. John Cornyn looks to overcome Paxton primary challenge by embracing Trump
As he faces the toughest electoral challenge of his career, Cornyn has also wielded his powers as a U.S. senator to lean into partisan issues prized by the GOP base. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, prepares to introduce Brooke Rollins, President Donald Trump's nominee to be Agriculture secretary, during her Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee confirmation hearing in Dirksen building on Thursday, January 23, 2025.]()
Credit: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call/Sipa USA via REUTERS -
Gov. Greg Abbott orders preemptive strike on screwworm in Texas
Abbott ordered two Texas agencies to begin working together and with residents and business leaders to stop the spread of the invasive fly before it even starts. Full Story
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![Cattle at a ranch in Cedar Creek on March 28, 2021.]()
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Former astronaut Terry Virts launches Democratic bid for U.S. Senate in Texas
The early announcement tees up what is likely to be a crowded primary field angling for the seat held by Republican Sen. John Cornyn. Full Story
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![International Space Station (ISS) crew member Terry Virts of the U.S. speaks by satellite phone shortly after landing near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, June 11, 2015. Three astronauts landed safely in the steppes of Kazakhstan on Thursday, ending their 199-day mission after an unexpected "bonus month" aboard the International Space Station, NASA Television showed.]()
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$12 billion added to congressional spending bill to reimburse states like Texas for border spending
The U.S. House approved the budget reconciliation bill, which also includes preservation of 2017 tax cuts and changes to Medicaid and SNAP. Full Story
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![A member of the Texas National Guard looks down at his rifle ahead of the arrival of Gov. Greg Abbott and several other states leadership ahead of a press conference at Shelby Park in Eagle Pass on Feb. 04, 2024.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee Beal for The Texas Tribune -
Sen. John Cornyn announces leadership team, including Trump pollster, for 2026 reelection campaign
Cornyn’s move to stockpile his campaign team with seasoned GOP operatives signals he is digging in for a serious fight against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. John Cornyn talks to reporters after Gov. Greg Abbott signs Senate Bill 2, the voucher bill, into law at the Governor's Mansion in Austin on May 3, 2025.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
TribCast: Get out the popcorn, it’s Paxton vs. Cornyn
The gang welcomes back an old friend, Patrick Svitek, to preview Texas’ biggest political throwdown in years. Full Story
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![Incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (l.) is being challenged by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The two Republicans will face off in the 2026 primaries.]()
Credit: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Sipa USA via REUTERS|Emil T. Lippe for The Texas Tribune -
Texas AG Ken Paxton officially joins U.S. Senate race challenging John Cornyn
The attorney general positions himself as a disruptor against the Republican establishment embodied in the longtime Senate fixture. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton at a press conference outside the Supreme Court building in Washington on Jan. 15, 2025.]()
Credit: Luke Johnson for The Texas Tribune -
As Texas gets redder, John Cornyn could face toughest primary season of his career
Attorney General Ken Paxton, who has hinted at a possible run, has more support than the four-term senator among Republicans, polling shows. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. John Cornyn speaks with members of the press during a visit to the Republican Party of Texas convention on May 24, 2024 in San Antonio.]()
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Texas’ senators plan to support Trump’s Cabinet picks
Some of President-elect Donald Trump’s picks have stirred controversy for past comments and allegations of malfeasance. Full Story
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![President Donald Trump is greeted by U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn as he arrives at El Paso International Airport on Aug. 7, 2019.]()
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Rep. Michael McCaul calls Tulsi Gabbard a “baffling” pick to lead intelligence community
The Austin Republican leads the House Foreign Affairs Committee and predicted Gabbard’s nomination would fail in the Senate. Full Story
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![House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin, questions witnesses during a hearing on the generational challenge of the Chinese Communist Party, at the U.S. Capitol, in Washington, D.C., Feb. 28, 2023.]()
Credit: Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA via REUTERS -
Houstonian Mark Swidan to be released from Chinese imprisonment
The Texan has been imprisoned in China for 12 years on charges of drug trafficking. Full Story
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![Mark Swidan.]()
Credit: Courtesy of Swidan Family Free Mark Campaign -
John Cornyn loses longtime bid to be next Senate majority leader to John Thune
Cornyn has for years signaled he wanted to succeed his close ally GOP leader Mitch McConnell. He lost in a vote decided by the Republican members of the Senate. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. John Cornyn speaks to reporters after a briefing on Ukraine and additional funding requests at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023.]()
Credit: Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA via REUTERS -
John Cornyn spent years preparing to run for Senate majority leader. Will it be enough?
John Cornyn is running to succeed Mitch McConnell after years waiting in his shadow. But the far-right, in Texas and Washington, are putting up a fight. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. John Cornyn speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023.]()
Credit: Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA via Reuter -
The Odd Couple: How Ted Cruz and John Cornyn went from fractured to friendly
The two Texas senators have come together to serve Texas — and themselves — as both head into career-defining elections later this year. Full Story
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![From left, Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn speak as Judge Brett Kavanaugh testifies in front of the Senate Judiciary committee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 27, 2018.]()
Credit: Erin Schaff/Pool via REUTERS -
Russian captive’s father blasts Ted Cruz in ad endorsing Colin Allred
Joey Reed said the Texas senator did not do enough to free his son Trevor who was held in Russia for three years until he was released in 2022. Full Story
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![Former U.S. Marine Trevor Reed during a 2020 court hearing in Moscow on March 11, 2020.]()
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In Austin, Biden slams “extreme” U.S. Supreme Court
Biden asked Congress to pass a constitutional amendment to end to presidential immunity during a speech to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act at the Lyndon B. Johnson Library. Full Story
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![President Joe Biden delivers the keynote address during an event commemorating the 60th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act at the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library Monday, July 29, 2024, in Austin. Biden’s visit to Austin, originally planned for July 15, was postponed for two weeks after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally on July 13 in Butler, PA and comes only a week after he dropped out of the 2024 presidential election.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Before he was Donald Trump's running mate, J.D. Vance was U.S. Sen. John Cornyn’s staffer
Cornyn said Vance was “smart” and “well spoken,” praising former President Donald Trump for selecting him as a running mate. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) is seen during a press conference with U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, (R-Ohio) calling on U.S. President Joe Biden to negotiate with Republicans in order to make a deal on raising the debt ceiling on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. on May 3, 2023.]()
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With new legislation, Ted Cruz and John Cornyn aim to pressure Mexico to send water to Texas
Mexico owes Texas 900,000 acre-feet of water. But a regional drought is complicating the binational agreement. Full Story
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![Large amounts of dry lakebed surround the shoreline of the Falcon International Reservoir in Starr County on May 15, 2024. Water levels at the reservoir are at historic lows. On the 15th of May the water level was at 8.8% full. The Falcon Reservoir straddles the border between Mexico and the USA in deep south Texas and is the primary source of water for the Rio Grande Valley which has an estimated population of 2.67 million. 1.3 million people south of the Rio Grande and 1.29 million north of the international border.]()
Credit: Carlos Kosienski/Sipa USA via Reuters -
Texas delegation urges Congress to withhold aid to Mexico over water treaty dispute
A bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers are demanding appropriators withhold funds for the country until Mexico lives up to its end of a 1944 water treaty that requires it to send 1.75 million acre-feet to the U.S. every five years. Full Story
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![The Rio Grande at Los Ebanos in Hidalgo Co. on Jan. 14, 2022. The United States is on the right, Mexico on the left.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune