Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy said Senate Republicans have no money budgeted for Ken Paxton’s Texas Senate race. He said the party needs President Donald Trump’s financial help against Democrat James Talarico. Kennedy urged Trump to spend between $100 million and $200 million in Texas. Trump had not committed to that spending.
The remarks came during a Fox News discussion about Republican spending in the Texas Senate contest. The host asked whether Senate groups planned television ads supporting Paxton.
Kennedy said Republicans faced a competitive race and that Paxton needed more than attacks against Talarico. He said the attorney general also needed to present a positive Senate platform.
“You can’t win an election by saying the other guy’s worse than me,” Kennedy said.
The discussion then turned to campaign spending. Kennedy said Talarico had raised “bucket loads of money” from California and Hollywood.
“We in the Senate don’t have the money budgeted for Texas,” he said. Kennedy added that Republicans needed financial help from Trump.
He pointed to the $850 million Trump said he had in campaign accounts. Kennedy hoped the president would spend $100 million or $200 million in Texas.
John Kennedy Faces GOP Backlash Over Ken Paxton Funding
Kennedy’s comments quickly shifted attention to Republican spending during the Texas primary and whether Senate leaders should now fund Paxton.
“They had 100 million to blow on Cornyn. This is part them throwing a fit, and part them pointing out that you have to keep the money people happy,” one user wrote. Another questioned the apparent contradiction: “Someone should have asked him why hundreds of millions of dollars were spent in the primary then, for the incumbent to barely get over a third of the vote, if there was no ‘money budgeted for Texas’.”
Others directed their criticism at Senate leadership. “Yet @LeaderJohnThune blew $100mm on @JohnCornyn in a primary?” one response stated. Another asked, “If Cornyn was running against Talarico I bet you would have found the money.”
Not everyone rejected Kennedy’s assessment of the financial problem. “Kennedy is right. Now that Texas is more competitive, Trump has to pour money into the state,” one user wrote. Another said, “It’s time for @realDonaldTrump to start spending on Texas. He chose the more expensive path so he needs to provide some big money.”
Trump has not committed to the level of financial support Kennedy wants for Paxton. It remains unclear whether Senate Republicans or Trump-aligned groups will fill the funding gap.
