Senate Republicans begged Trump for months to support Senator John Cornyn so the party could avoid a nasty and expensive runoff.
Trump went out of his way to refuse to express his support. Trump even went so far as to come to Texas and invite all the candidates to his event, then endorse no one in the Senate race.
The Republican primaries went as observers thought. Cornyn and Texas AG Ken Paxton are within less than two points of each other, heading to a runoff after neither candidate received more than 50% of the vote. It was a nightmare outcome for Trump’s party.
Former Texas political operative Mark McKinnon explained Why Republicans Are Panicking:
A perfect storm is brewing for Texas Democrats. They have a candidate who can appeal to both moderates and soft Republicans. Talarico could be Moses leading the Lone Star Democrats out of the desert they have been in for 35 years.
Now Trump is reversing course and trying to close out the Senate runoffs with a Bachelor-style reality show, where he will choose one nominee via an endorsement and step aside the other candidate in the runoff.
