John Cornyn undone by past Trump misgivings in Texas GOP Senate runoff after decades as a loyal party man

John Cornyn was a loyal Republican soldier. There’s no disputing that Cornyn’s voting record was almost perfectly aligned with Trump. Ken Paxton’s lopsided victory captured an important reality of the GOP in 2026, too: That’s not enough.

Ahead of his Republican primary runoff Tuesday, Sen. John Cornyn highlighted a photo of himself standing next to President Donald Trump as his pinned post on X. He boosted one post disputing that he’s “disloyal” to Trump and another about voting “yes on every major Trump law.”

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The posts captured an important side of Cornyn: a loyal Republican soldier, standing with his party’s leader. There’s no disputing that Cornyn’s voting record was almost perfectly aligned with Trump.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lopsided victory in the election results captured an important reality of the GOP in 2026, too: That’s not enough.