Southwest
President Trump weighs in on Senate primary between two GOP heavyweights in major red state
President Donald Trump weighed in on an already contentious Senate primary race in the most populous red state in the nation, saying he will make an endorsement decision “at the right time.”
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate while speaking on Fox News last week. Paxton, a conservative firebrand and outspoken supporter of Trump, is seeking to replace incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, an influential member of the GOP who previously served as the Party’s Senate whip and has held the seat since 2002.
With both Paxton and Cornyn being considered leading members of the Republican Party, the race promises to be particularly messy.
Paxton has accused the current senator of being a lukewarm supporter of Trump’s agenda, saying, “It’s time that we have another great senator that will actually stand up and fight for Republican values, fight for the values of the people of Texas and also support Donald Trump in the areas that he’s focused on in a very significant way.”
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President Donald Trump, center, weighed in on an already contentious Senate primary race in the most populous red state in the nation, saying he will make an endorsement decision “at the right time.” (AP Photo/Susan Walsh/Fox News Digital)
For his part, Cornyn has dismissed the attorney general as a “fraud” motivated by “vanity and personal ambition.”
Trump told reporters that both GOP senatorial candidates in Texas are “friends of mine” and “good men,” but he stopped short of issuing an endorsement of one over the other, at least for now.
“Well, they’re both friends of mine,” said Trump. “They’re both good men, and I don’t know. We don’t, we don’t know who else is running, but these two, you know, Ken and John, they’re both friends of mine, so I’ll make a determination at the right time.”
Since announcing his candidacy, Paxton has already garnered endorsements from Reps. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, and Lance Gooden, R-Texas, as well as around 250 state legislators and business leaders across the state, according to a spokesperson.
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Those endorsing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton are emphasizing his pledge to double down on his conservative agenda and “take a sledgehammer to the D.C. establishment.” (Justin Lane/Reuters)
Those endorsing Paxton are emphasizing his pledge to double down on his conservative agenda and “take a sledgehammer to the D.C. establishment.”
One of Paxton’s supporters, conservative Texas Rep. Tony Tinderholt, called him “the most conservative attorney general in the nation,” saying he “will be a fantastic upgrade over John Cornyn.”
Gooden, whose district is just east of Dallas, said he was endorsing Paxton because “it’s time for change in Texas,” adding that “Texans deserve a conservative champion who has a record of taking on the establishment, fighting to secure our border, and advancing the Trump agenda.”
Meanwhile, Cornyn, who has been in the Senate for nearly 23 years, has the support of some of the Republican Party’s top leaders, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, Sen. Tim Scott, R-South Carolina, as well as the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
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Sen. John Cornyn, who has been in the Senate for nearly 23 years, has the support of some of the Republican Party’s top leaders, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, center, Sen. Tim Scott, R-South Carolina, as well as the National Republican Senatorial Committee. (Getty)
Since Trump returned to the White House three months ago, Cornyn has been supportive of the president’s Cabinet nominees and agenda.
Cornyn has emphasized previous corruption and bribery charges against Paxton, which in 2023 led to the attorney general being impeached by the Texas House of Representatives. Paxton was later acquitted of all charges by the Texas Senate.
Paxton was indicted on securities fraud charges soon after taking office in 2015 and also came under investigation by the FBI over bribery and corruption allegations from former top staffers. The charges in the long-running federal corruption probe were dropped during the final weeks of the Biden administration.
A spokesperson for Cornyn’s campaign asserted that Trump would be wise to endorse the senator, emphasizing his experience helping to lead the GOP.
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Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, speaks during the confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee for Dr. Mehmet Oz, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. on Friday, March 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
“During his first term, John Cornyn voted with President Trump more than 95% of current Senators, securing the votes for his biggest accomplishments as his Whip,” the representative told Fox News Digital.
“Democrats are trying to destroy President Trump,” the representative went on. “And he and Texas need a battle-tested conservative who knows how to protect his agenda in the Senate and won’t be outsmarted by [Minority Leader] Chuck Schumer.”
Paxton, however, posits that Cornyn’s enthusiasm for Trump is all an act.
“We’re all glad John Cornyn suddenly found religion and is embracing President Trump’s policies now that he’s facing a primary challenge,” Paxton told Fox News Digital. “But if he’s re-elected, he’ll immediately go back to being the same old John who said President Trump’s ‘time has passed him by’ and fought to stop the President’s America First agenda.”
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Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, left, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images | MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
He pointed out that he was one of only two elected officials present with Trump when he announced he was running for president for a third time.
“I was grateful to join my friend Troy Nehls as one of two elected officials at President Trump’s 2024 announcement and have always been proud to stand with him,” he said. “I will continue to support the President and work with him to secure our border, defend the integrity of our elections, and protect our 2nd Amendment—unlike John Cornyn who has tried to undermine President Trump every step of the way.”
“I’m incredibly grateful to have the support of over 250 conservative leaders from across our great state,” Paxton went on. “While John Cornyn is relying on the Washington establishment to save him, I’m proud that my campaign is powered by the grassroots and the people of Texas.”
As Cornyn and Paxton vie for the GOP nomination, former Democratic Rep. Colin Allred, who launched a surprisingly competitive but ultimately unsuccessful challenge against Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, in 2024, is weighing another run in 2026.
Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
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Republican senators hit border, touting tougher security and tax cuts, in 2026 kickoff
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Aiming to not only hold but expand their 53-47 majority in November’s midterm elections, top Senate Republicans are showcasing the plummeting rates of border crossings during a stop Friday at the nation’s southern border with Mexico.
And the group, led by Senate Majority Leader John Thune, is also highlighting how President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers are “putting more money in Americans’ pockets.”
The stop at the border, hosted by One Nation, a nonprofit outside group closely aligned with Thune, is seen as an unofficial kickoff by Senate Republicans ahead of the midterms to tout the sweeping “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act,” Trump’s signature domestic achievement last year that was passed nearly entirely along party lines in the GOP controlled Congress.
At the event at the border, which was a regular stop for Republicans amid the surge in border crossings during then-President Joe Biden’s administration, the GOP senators are teaming up with members of the National Border Patrol Council. And they are highlighting how the passage of the domestic policy measure “secured transformational border security funding,” according to One Nation.
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Senate Majority Leader John Thune and fellow Senate Republicans speak to reporters at an event at the nation’s southern border with Mexico, on Jan. 9, 2026. (One Nation)
“This is a remarkable, remarkable difference in just a year,” Thune said at the event. “It’s been an incredible year of progress when it comes to the southern border and the American people are experiencing the benefit of that in the form of having safer streets and safer communities and safer neighborhoods.”
But with Democrats enjoying decisive victories and overperformances in the 2025 elections and in a slew of special elections and other ballot box showdowns last year, which were fueled by their laser focus on affordability amid persistent inflation, the Republican senators are also using Friday’s trip to spotlight the tax cut and energy policy provisions in the bill, which they rebranded as the “Working Families Tax Cut.”
“The Working Families Tax Cut will make buying groceries more affordable for working Americans this year,” the Senate Republicans touted on social media on the eve of the border stop. “Every Democrat voted against it.”
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And they also highlighted that “Senate Republicans have worked closely with President Trump to lower energy prices and make life more affordable — and the results speak for themselves.”
Thune, at the border, pointed to the tax cut provisions in the GOP measure, including no tax on tips and overtime and reduced rates for seniors on Social Security, along with “the jobs that are going to be created by the pro-growth policies that we put in place….are going to lead us to a place where the American people are seeing their incomes go up.”
But Democrats see the cost of living as their winning issue heading into the midterms.
“If the Republican agenda actually made life more affordable for working Americans, then they wouldn’t be desperately flailing as families struggle to afford groceries, health care, and housing,” Lauren French, communications director at Senate Majority PAC, the top Senate Democrat-aligned outside group, told Fox News Digital. “Instead of focusing on working people, Trump and Senate Republicans are focused on bringing chaos and instability into our communities.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., holds a political and policy event Friday at the nation’s southern border with Mexico. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Joining Thune, the longtime senator from South Dakota, at the border is Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, number two in Senate Republican leadership.
There are also Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, who faces a bruising GOP primary showdown in March against challengers Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Rep. Wesley Hunt; and Republican Sens. Jon Husted of Ohio and Ashley Moody of Florida, who were appointed last year and will face voters this November.
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GOP Sens. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska and Mike Rounds of South Dakota, who are up for re-election this year, are also on the trip, as are former Rep. Mike Rogers and former Republican National Committee chair Mike Whatley, the GOP Senate candidates in battlegrounds Michigan and North Carolina who are backed by Thune and the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
“We’re seeing signs already that the economy is starting to tick up and is starting to take hold as the President’s policies are getting in place,” Whatley argued last month in a Fox News Digital interview. “We need to make sure that we have the trade policies, the tax policies, the regulatory policies from this administration that are going to help our small businesses, our manufacturers and our farmers across North Carolina.”
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But Democrats are energized as the midterm year begins, as they continue to keep their focus on the issue of affordability.
“Donald Trump has lost the economy, is losing his mind, and is going to lose the midterms,” Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin claimed in a recent statement.
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Southwest
Body found during search for missing Texas teen Camila Mendoza Olmos as another teen girl disappears
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A body was found Tuesday evening as authorities in Bexar County, Texas, grapple with a series of disappearances involving teen girls who all went missing within a week.
The body was found during the search for 19-year-old Camila Olmos, though police said it is too early to determine whether the remains belong to her.
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said during a news conference that investigators had “just recently found a body in a field” around 4:40 to 4:45 p.m., adding that the medical examiner will determine both the identity of the body and the cause and manner of death.
The body was found by a joint team of sheriff’s deputies and FBI agents in an area of tall grass near a landscaping business, a few hundred yards from Olmos’ home, according to Salazar.
MISSING CAMILA MENDOZ OLMOS: DASHCAM CAPTURES LAST SIGHTING OF TEXAS TEEN WHO VANISHED CHRISTMAS EVE
Camila Olmos was reported missing on Christmas Eve. (Bexar County Sheriff)
A firearm was recovered near the body, which authorities said had been an item of interest during the search.
Salazar said investigators do not currently suspect murder and noted there were indicators consistent with possible self-harm, though he stressed it is too early to draw conclusions while the scene is still being processed.
Olmos was last seen leaving her home in far northwest Bexar County around 7 a.m. on Dec. 24, authorities said. Her case came as two other girls were reported missing in the area. Fourteen-year-old Sofia Gabriela Peters-Cobos has since been found safe, while 17-year-old Angelique Johnson remains missing, according to police.
Law enforcement has said there is no confirmed connection between the cases.
MISSING CAMILA MENDOZ OLMOS: DASHCAM CAPTURES LAST SIGHTING OF TEXAS TEEN WHO VANISHED CHRISTMAS EVE
Angelique Johnson, from San Antonio, Texas, was reported missing. (Bexar County Sheriff’s Office)
Texas Department of Public Safety said the Clear Alert for Olmos has been discontinued, though authorities urged anyone with information related to the cases or the whereabouts of Angelique Johnson to contact the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office.
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The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office and the San Antonio Police Department did not respond immediately to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Greg Norman and Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.
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Former GOP Sen Jon Kyl announces dementia diagnosis, steps away from public life
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Former Republican Sen. Jon Kyl announced on Tuesday he is withdrawing from public life after being diagnosed with dementia.
Kyl, 83, became one of Arizona’s most prominent Republicans during a career that spanned nearly three decades across both chambers of Congress, including a stint as Senate minority whip.
“I was blessed to represent the people of Arizona in Congress and to have numerous other opportunities to contribute to the political and civic life of our nation and state,” Kyl said in a statement. “However, the time has come for me to withdraw from public life. I have been diagnosed with a neurological disease manifesting as dementia.”
Kyl represented Arizona’s 4th Congressional District in the House from 1987 to 1995 before serving in the U.S. Senate from 1995 to 2013.
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Former Arizona Republican Senator Jon Kyl announced on Tuesday he is withdrawing from public life after being diagnosed with dementia. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)
After leaving the Senate, Kyl joined the lobbying firm Covington and Burling, before being appointed in 2018 by then-Gov. Doug Ducey to fill the vacancy caused by the death of former Sen. John McCain.
Kyl held the seat for several months in the Senate before rejoining the firm in 2019, where he helped guide the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
The longtime Arizona lawmaker described himself as “a very fortunate man” despite the diagnosis.
FORMER COLORADO SEN. BEN NIGHTHORSE CAMPBELL DEAD AT 92
Former Arizona Republican Sen. Jon Kyl, left, and Bruce Babbitt, right, former Arizona Republican governor and secretary of the Interior, wave to the crowd as they are recognized during Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey’s state of the state address Monday, Jan. 14, 2019, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
“My family and I now head down a path filled with moments of joy and increasing difficulties,” he stated. “I am grateful beyond expression for their love and support, in these coming days as in all the days of my life.”
Kyl moved to Arizona as an 18-year-old freshman to attend the University of Arizona, where he met his wife.
The university said Kyl devoted more than two decades to public service, leaving a lasting impact on water policy, national defense and intelligence.
“His leadership, integrity, and commitment to service reflect the highest ideals of public life,” the university said in a statement.
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Former Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., announced he is withdrawing from public life after being diagnosed with dementia. (Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said Kyl gave “decades of his life” serving Arizona, adding that he’s grateful for the former GOP senator’s “commitment to our state and country.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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