President Trump traveled to Texas on Tuesday for a pair of high-stakes rallies in Corpus Christi and Lubbock, urging voters to support Attorney General Ken Paxton in his competitive Senate bid alongside several House candidates, including Representative Monica De La Cruz in South Texas.
The visits come as Republicans work to defend their decades-long dominance in statewide elections, with analysts viewing the contest between Paxton and Democratic challenger James Talarico as a tight race. The competitive landscape persists despite Trump having carried the Lone Star State by more than 13 points two years prior. Talarico held a competing event nearby in Lubbock as both campaigns made their final appeals ahead of Election Day.
During his speeches, Trump highlighted his administration’s economic record and deployed his familiar call for supporters to treat the upcoming election as a referendum on his own leadership, telling crowds to pretend he was on the ballot. He specifically targeted undecided voters by pointing to retirement account performance, advising citizens to check their 401(k) portfolios before casting their ballots.
Addressing economic concerns, Trump acknowledged that elevated gas prices stemming from the ongoing conflict with Iran have frustrated voters, but he predicted that fuel costs would decline rapidly. At the same time, he praised the resilience of the state’s domestic energy sector, asserting that Texas is generating unprecedented financial returns through its oil production.
The president also addressed the legislative balance of power, warning that a Democratic Senate majority would trigger widespread executive vetoes while expressing a preference for constructive cooperation. In a lighter moment, Trump revisited controversial remarks he made earlier in the month regarding Republican Senator Jon Husted of Ohio, defending a past joke about the lawmaker’s collegiate athletic physique and joking that Paxton’s physical attributes might not measure up in the same fashion.
