All posts tagged: Paxton

Ken Paxton vowed to crack down on “illegal voting.” He may have violated Texas election law

Ken Paxton vowed to crack down on “illegal voting.” He may have violated Texas election law

Two weeks before this year’s primary elections, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced the creation of a tip line for the public to report people or groups suspected of voter fraud. “Free and fair elections are a cornerstone of a thriving republic, and with the authority granted to my office by the Legislature, we will stop at nothing to uncover and stop any illegal voting activity,” Paxton said in a February news release announcing the tip line. The announcement linked to guidance from his office about election laws in Texas, which included a requirement to be a U.S. citizen, a prohibition on collecting mail ballots on behalf of others and a warning that “it is illegal to misrepresent your residence on election records or to establish a residence for the purpose of influencing the outcome of an election.” “You must register to vote using the address where you reside,” the attorney general’s guidance stated. Despite his own warnings, Paxton appears to have used an address where he did not live while voting in six elections …

Andy Beshear says ‘Texas is in play’ for Democrats after Paxton nomination: Full interview

Andy Beshear says ‘Texas is in play’ for Democrats after Paxton nomination: Full interview

IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Mike Pence says 2nd Trump term ‘departed’ from ‘conservative agenda’: Full interview 15:43 Now Playing Andy Beshear says ‘Texas is in play’ for Democrats after Paxton nomination: Full interview 11:41 UP NEXT ‘Colossal blunder’: House Democrat slams Joe Biden’s 2024 run after Jill Biden’s new revelations 09:30 Debbie Wasserman Schultz defends her run in a majority-minority district as some Democrats push back 08:49 Jack Schlossberg says Trump ‘impeachment has to be on the table’ for House Democrats 15:04 Doctor who survived Ebola says there needs to be ‘less lip service and more boots on the ground’ 05:57 Nebraska Independent running for Senate is looking to ‘challenge the system’ 07:31 ‘Emotional’ and ‘humbling’: Veterans in Congress participate in washing of Vietnam Veterans Memorial 12:58 Ro Khanna says DNC chair Ken Martin should not resign over 2024 autopsy: Full interview 09:05 Thomas Massie says his ‘biggest crime’ was bipartisanship after primary loss: Full interview 13:21 Reshma Saujani says having kids ‘absolutely’ has …

With Texas Senate face off set, Paxton attacks Talarico on manhood : NPR

With Texas Senate face off set, Paxton attacks Talarico on manhood : NPR

Democratic senate candidate James Talarico speaks at a rally on May 27 in Houston. Danielle Villasana/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Danielle Villasana/Getty Images After Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton won the state’s Republican Senate primary this week, he delivered a run of insults directed at his general election opponent, Democratic Texas state Rep. James Talarico. “He goes by a few names that you all may have heard of. Some people know him as tofu Talarico. Some people call him six-gender Jimmy. I’ve even heard some people call him James Talafreako,” he said to laughter and cheers. “And others refer to him simply as Low-T Talarico.” Paxton also quickly released an ad that ends with an image of Talarico next to the words: “Radical Talarico: too low-T for Texas.” What followed was an immediate, widespread barrage of attacks on Talarico’s manhood from the right. This tactic — the explicit, sometimes vulgar emphasis on masculinity as an electoral argument — is one highly visible way that President Trump has changed the Republican Party, and American politics …

From Cornyn to Paxton: How Trump helped accelerate the Texas GOP’s transformation

From Cornyn to Paxton: How Trump helped accelerate the Texas GOP’s transformation

A senior senator who voted with President Donald Trump’s agenda 99% of the time. One of Texas’ most conservative lawmakers. A three-term state representative endorsed by Gov. Greg Abbott. All lost their runoff elections Tuesday night to Trump-endorsed opponents, a decisive sweep that serves as a fresh reminder that the Texas GOP remains in complete lockstep with the president. Once led by chamber of commerce conservatives who preached small government and big business, the Texas Republican Party has been conquered over the last 15 years by a hard-charging, uncompromisingly conservative faction, operating on the vanguard of the nation’s culture wars and driven by a sense of perpetual insurgency. Trump’s endorsements up and down the ballot have only served to accelerate the GOP’s transformation from the party of longtime Sen. John Cornyn to the home base of Attorney General Ken Paxton and his supporters. In trying to fend off Paxton’s primary challenge, Cornyn touted his fealty to the president and the MAGA movement and disavowed his own call a few years earlier for the GOP to …

2026 Midterms: Races to Watch Featuring Jon Ossoff, Spencer Pratt, Abdul El-Sayed, James Talarico, Ken Paxton

2026 Midterms: Races to Watch Featuring Jon Ossoff, Spencer Pratt, Abdul El-Sayed, James Talarico, Ken Paxton

Talarico, meanwhile, is a 36-year-old seminarian with the bedside manner of a Sunday school teacher. Republicans have sought to cast him as an effete extremist. Trump keeps saying “he wants six genders” and that he’s a vegan, a crime punishable by political death in the Lone Star state. Talarico, who is not a vegan, has cooked up a pithy riposte to this attack: “I’m an eighth-generation Texan. I’ve been eating barbecue since before Ken Paxton’s first indictment.” The midterm elections are upon us. Democrats are looking to win back the House and just maybe the Senate, promising to use that power to stop Trump. For Republicans, despite victories in a bare-knuckle redistricting war, the House already looks lost. They’re just hoping to hold on to the upper chamber of Congress. A year ago it would have been unthinkable for Republicans to lose the Senate, but as Trump wages an unpopular war with Iran while gas prices climb (“peanuts,” Trump says) and economic anxieties mount (“hoax,” Trump explains), his polls keep sinking. Republicans are panicking. Trump …

Trump will regret endorsing Ken Paxton in the Texas Senate primary

Trump will regret endorsing Ken Paxton in the Texas Senate primary

John Cornyn probably never had a chance to keep his seat. The senior Republican senator from Texas has repugnant, far-right politics. He even used the confirmation hearing for Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to float legal theories for ending same-sex marriage. But he is mild-mannered — a flaw in today’s GOP — and he doesn’t have a history of flashy corruption scandals and adultery, unlike Ken Paxton, the state attorney general who handily defeated him in the Republican primary on Tuesday night. Paxton is just a bigger scoundrel than Cornyn, so of course he drew a last-minute endorsement from Donald Trump, who took credit for Paxton’s victory, gloating on Truth Social with a meme declaring “Ken Paxton wins! Endorsed by Trump!” over a photo of the president glowering in a face he believes looks “tough.” But the president will likely come to rue the day he stuck his nose into this particular race. Or at least he would regret it, if he were capable of self-reflection. Polls show that the Democratic nominee, state Rep. James Talarico, …

Ken Paxton wins Republican Senate primary in Texas

Ken Paxton wins Republican Senate primary in Texas

IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Paxton thanks Trump after Texas Senate primary win 01:56 Cornyn concedes after projected loss in Texas Senate primary 01:52 Now Playing Ken Paxton wins Republican Senate primary in Texas 03:59 UP NEXT Rep. Al Green loses seat to Rep. Christian Menefee in Democratic primary 01:43 Steve Kornacki previews the Texas GOP primary runoff between Ken Paxton and John Cornyn 05:38 Trump’s influence faces test in critical Texas GOP primary runoff 01:49 Trump-backed candidates sweep GOP primaries 01:28 Jones talks November face-off with Tuberville for Alabama governor 04:35 Keisha Lance Bottoms wins Democratic primary for Georgia governor, NBC News projects 05:04 Gallrein praises ‘courageous’ Trump in Kentucky primary victory speech 03:37 Massie concedes Kentucky House primary to Gallrein: ‘We’ve been honorable’ 05:40 Andy Barr thanks Trump after winning GOP nomination for Kentucky Senate seat 02:04 Georgia GOP governor primary advances to runoff, NBC News projects 02:06 Ed Gallrein beats Rep. Thomas Massie in Kentucky primary, NBC News projects 04:17 Andy Barr …