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Just dropped · Trial Balloon · Ep. 195

Shake Up

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Trial Balloon · Ep. 195: Shake Up

Texas Has the Wildest Senate Race in the Country

February 10, 2026 · 9:15 am ET · Leave a Comment

Philip Elliot: “No candidate on the ballot this year made a bigger splash simply by entering a race than Ken Paxton. The firebrand Texas Attorney General is giving U.S. Sen. John Cornyn a serious run for his money in the GOP primary, which in turn has launched an increasingly nasty fight among Democrats who view Paxton as beatable. Now, with early voting for the March 3 primary set to start next week, the mudslinging in both races is expected to soar, according to insiders with both parties watching with skittishness from Texas and Washington…”

“The fulcrum for both parties’ chaos is Paxton, a polarizing figure whose potential strength among MAGA die-hards has triggered Cornyn’s allies to dump $50 million and counting on ads to prop up the incumbent.”

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Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.

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