Weatherford, TX — In a desperate attempt to salvage his political career, Senator John Cornyn and Republican establishment elites are reportedly scrambling to secure President Donald Trump’s endorsement for Cornyn in what is shaping up to be a brutal Republican primary showdown with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. 

Attorney General Paxton recently made headlines for claiming that he can defeat Cornyn in a hypothetical match-up if he could raise $20million. And following an announcement Tuesday afternoon, it seems Paxton believes he will be able to do that after officially throwing his hat in the ring as a candidate to take on the incumbent senior U.S. Senator of Texas.

Cornyn, once a towering figure in the GOP establishment, is now seen by grassroots conservatives and gun owners alike as a symbol of everything wrong with Washington, D.C. 

Most recently, Cornyn’s role as the architect of the so-called “Bipartisan Safer Communities Act” (BSCA) earned him the ire of millions of gun owners across the country. 

That Cornyn-Biden gun control bill was the most sweeping anti-gun legislation in three decades — according to the Biden administration — with $1.4 billion being funneled into gun control causes, including $750 million that went toward state incentivizing “red flag” laws across the country — with at least $12 million being granted to Texas.

Cornyn’s BSCA also led to the creation of the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, and Kamala Harris’ National “Red Flag” Gun Confiscation resource center.

But arguably one of the most egregious outcomes of the BSCA was the perceived authority it gave to the ATF to continue its war on gun owners by converting the NICS gun ban registry into a de-facto universal gun registry with their “dealer in firearms” rule.

But Cornyn’s transgressions pre-date the 2022 BSCA.

From authoring the 2017 FIX-NICS bill — which ballooned the NICS “no guns” list by nearly a million Americans per year — to voting to confirm radical anti-gunners like Attorney General Merrick Garland & Hillary Clinton, Cornyn’s record is riddled with betrayal.

“Gun owners haven’t forgotten what John Cornyn did to them,” said Chris McNutt, President of Texas Gun Rights. “He led the charge to fund Red Flag laws, attack young gun owners, and empower the Biden DOJ and ATF. He has no business pretending to be pro-gun now.”

While Trump has taken bold steps to restore Second Amendment freedoms in his second term — including firing anti-gun ATF Director Steve Dettelbach, appointing Kash Patel as Acting ATF Director, and recently placing constitutional attorney Dave Warrington in a senior role — endorsing Cornyn would undermine all of that.

By contrast, Attorney General Ken Paxton has emerged as one of the most vocal defenders of gun rights in the nation. He has used his office to push back against federal overreach and unconstitutional firearm regulations, making him a natural ally for those who want a fighter in the U.S. Senate.

“A pro-gun Senator like Ken Paxton would be a powerhouse alongside Senator Ted Cruz,” McNutt added. “We need more bold fighters in the Senate, not swamp creatures like Cornyn.”

The best-case scenario for gun owners? President Trump holds firm to his pro-2A base and only endorses a candidate who will defend the right to keep and bear arms — not regulate it into oblivion.

The worst-case? Trump bends to the GOP establishment and backs Cornyn, alienating millions of grassroots gun owners who propelled him to victory in the first place.

And while a neutral Trump could allow Paxton and Cornyn to duke it out, the risk is a brutal primary leaving the eventual nominee wounded — potentially opening the door for Democrat Colin Allred to mount a serious general election challenge.

Texas Gun Rights has not officially taken a stance on the race between Cornyn and Paxton, however, McNutt stated that “Texas Gun Rights PAC is all-in for A.B.C: Anyone But Cornyn.”