In Senate runoff, Ken Paxton is a bad choice for Texas, GOP and Trump | Opinion

Don’t do it, Republicans.

Don’t nominate Ken Paxton for the U.S. Senate. For the sake of Texas and your party. For the sake of the Senate and good governance. And even for the sake of President Donald Trump. The final two years of his term could be bumpy, and Trump will need a more effective ally than Paxton has ever been to anyone but himself.

If nothing else, Republicans, consider your own political preservation. Paxton is a compromised, corrupt candidate who will require perhaps as much as $100 million of national campaign money to drag over the finish line. And it still might not be enough for a GOP facing an unfavorable electoral climate and a well-funded candidate in Democrat James Talarico.

If Republicans choose the ethically hopeless three-term attorney general over the four-term incumbent senator, John Cornyn, when early voting starts Monday in their primary runoff, what will they actually gain? Even if Paxton wins, the loss of seniority and clout in the Senate, where Cornyn is a Republican leader, will hurt Texas. If Paxton wins, other Republicans will steer clear for fear of getting splashed every time he plows through another muddy puddle.

Texas needs senator to tend to business, including border

Do you want the border to remain secure after Trump leaves office? At some point, that will require legislation. Paxton has never shown the necessary focus and coalition-building ability. In Texas, he’s gotten by on being a favorite of the biggest faction of the GOP — but importantly, not a majority of the party or certainly even the state. He wins primaries that the base dominates but, in general elections, the “R” by his name is the determining factor.

Want Texas’ airports well-staffed, its highways well-funded? Want a robust military and the thriving industrial base, much of it in North Texas, that’s vital to its success? Paxton shows little interest in the required legislative details.

Cornyn does. He’s effective, not flashy. If there’s an age question, consider that he’s several years younger than Trump.

The shorthand for Republicans convinced that Cornyn is tired and Paxton is wired is that the attorney general “fights” — for Trump, for MAGA, against liberals.

If fighting means going on Fox News and stomping your feet, sending out tough tweets and videos, intimidating private actors with threats of costly legislation, sure, that’s Paxton.

But if it means actually achieving victories that last, Paxton scrapes by. He leaves details and hard work to others and always escapes blame if things don’t work out. Reports of dysfunction, poor morale, chronic turnover and understaffing in the AG’s office have marked his tenure.

Republicans have in Ted Cruz a senator who is an effective mouthpiece, and he’s gotten better at the less glamorous parts of the job in recent years. He needs a partner who can help carry the load.

Ken Paxton will weaken Texas Republican ballot

So, Paxton won’t deliver for Texas and can’t fight the way his sycophants believe. What’s left, politics?

There is no Paxton coalition, beyond the base of the party built and maintained by others over the decades. His appeal beyond that group is minimal.

Sure, most Republicans will grit their teeth and vote the GOP line rather than support a candidate as progressive as Talarico. But not all. Some have had enough of Paxton’s corruption, malfeasance and use of office for personal gain, along with his betrayals of classic conservatism. They have no such qualms about Cornyn, and Republicans shouldn’t kid themselves that the two will perform equally in the fall.

Evidence is mounting that plenty of Republicans, asked to promote a figure like Paxton, will stay home, skip the race, vote Libertarian, whatever it takes. That will hurt the GOP all the way down the ballot — including in U.S. House races that are suddenly closer because of Democratic enthusiasm and the mid-decade redistricting that spread out GOP voters in hopes of winning more districts overall.

A ticket topped by Cornyn, Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is politically proven. Do you think Reps. Craig Goldman, Beth Van Duyne and Roger Williams relish running with Paxton in districts that are a bit more Democratic than before?

Republicans need a winner. Texans need a legislator. Trump needs partners.

Ken Paxton has proved that when it matters, he represents a constituency of just one.