Trump predicts friendship with ousted Cornyn after endorsing Paxton – KATV
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by RAY LEWIS | The National News Desk
HUNT VALLEY, Md. (TNND) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday he and Sen. John Cornyn, the Texas Republican he helped oust, will stay friends, but recent history suggests a more adverse relationship.
Cornyn lost his Tuesday primary runoff to state Attorney General Ken Paxton, who Trump boosted with an eleventh-hour endorsement. The president's optimism about his friendship with the four-term senator runs counter to a trend of souring relations with outgoing lawmakers.
“Congratulations to Ken Paxton on such a tremendous win, and to John Cornyn for having run a strong and powerful race but, more importantly, having had a truly great career,” Trump wrote in a social media post. “John will remain my friend for a long time to come, as we both watch Ken become a fantastic, common sense Senator, one who is respected by all.”
Cornyn has been a reliable vote for the president since he returned to the White House. It’s unclear whether Trump will keep the lawmaker’s dependability now that his time in Congress is likely coming to an end.
Cornyn may act on legislation however he pleases without the worry of appeasing a Republican party defined by the president. His Louisiana colleague, Sen. Bill Cassidy, provided a recent example of unencumbered lawmaking by voting to advance a resolution checking Trump’s war powers. Cassidy opposed several previous versions of the measure before his primary defeat to a challenger backed by the president.
Other outgoing Republicans have acted more boldly. Sen. Thom Tillis, the North Carolina Republican, has opposed several measures demanded by Trump since announcing his retirement from the chamber last year. The lawmaker voted against the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, has blocked presidential nominees and demanded administration officials be fired.
Trump addressed Tillis’s behavior in a Truth Social post last week, noting how the senator has bucked him and deferential Republicans over the past year.
“The media said how brave he was to take me on, but he wasn’t brave, he was just the opposite – HE WAS A QUITTER!” the president wrote. “Now he can have all the fun he wants for a few months, with some of his RINO friends, screwing the Republican Party.”
The slowly growing gap between Trump and the Senate GOP could harm the president’s ability to push legislation through the chamber. Democrats will look to pick off Republican votes to strengthen their bloc, which has thwarted GOP measures over the past 16 months.
Do you have questions, concerns or tips? Send them to Ray at rjlewis@sbgtv.com.
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