John Barrasso heads to Texas to stump for Paxton

Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., the Republican majority whip, plans to campaign with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for Senate next week, as the midterms enter the home stretch.

Paxton faces an unexpectedly competitive battle for the seat against Democrat James Talarico, and Republicans and President Donald Trump are working to bolster his campaign to avoid an embarrassing loss. Barrasso confirmed his plans to campaign with Paxton in a recent interview, Politico reported.

Barrasso was one of outgoing Sen. Mitch McConnell's, R-Ky., "three Johns," along with Senate Majority Leader John Thune and ousted Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, whom Paxton defeated in the primary.

Cornyn has vocally criticized Paxton since his defeat, while Barrasso's backing seems to suggest a modest split in the bloc of former McConnell stalwarts.

Paxton trailed Cornyn in the first round, but managed to secure Trump's endorsement for the runoff. He had offered to drop out entirely if Cornyn secured passage of the SAVE America Act, a marquis voter ID bill that languished in the upper chamber. But Cornyn was unsuccessful and Trump backed Paxton, who then cruised to victory.

Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent at Just the News. Follow him on X.