Sen. Cornyn Team: Rival Paxton 'Funding the Left'

Sen. John Cornyn's reelection campaign on Wednesday rolled out four ads to attack his GOP election rival, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, with accusations that Paxton's office has been "funding the left" by giving money to several Texas entities.

The spots, 30 seconds each, slam Paxton for allowing grant money for Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas, the Tahirih Justice Center, the Montrose Center, and Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, claiming the four organizations go against the Republican agenda on gender and immigration matters, The Hill reported.

Lone Star Liberty PAC, which backs the Paxton campaign, responded to the Cornyn ads with a spot of its own, accusing the long-time senator of "lying" because he is "losing" his reelection bid.

In the ad for the Montrose Center, the Cornyn campaign accuses the organization of hosting "child-accessible drag shows" and claims it offers "gender programs for children as young as seven."

The center serves the LGBTQIA+ community in Houston, where it offers services that include counseling, and has hosted events including drag shows, drawing scorn from Republicans nationally.

The ad's claims on gender programs likely refer to Hatch Youth, which Montrose says is "Houston’s oldest, currently active social group dedicated to empowering LGBTQIA+ youth and young adults between the ages of 7 and 24."

Cornyn campaign senior adviser Matt Mackowiak told The Hill that the grants amounted to millions of taxpayer dollars. The Paxton campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

The groups have received several grants in the past for victim assistance services, including for victim services training, direct victim services, crime victim liaison, and outreach and education.

Paxton investigated the Tahirih Justice Center, which received Texas Bar Foundation funding, in 2022 to determine if the funds were being used to "exacerbate the current crisis at the border and to thwart the efforts of federal and state law enforcement to secure the border."

Meanwhile, Lone Star Liberty PAC's ad, accusing Cornyn of lying because he's losing the race for the nomination, said he's lied about President Donald Trump as well as Paxton.

The ad states that organizations such as the ones listed in the Cornyn ad, by law, are reimbursed for the costs of helping crime victims, including sexual assault survivors.

"Under Attorney General Ken Paxton's leadership, grants for immigration claims are banned," the ad further states.

The Paxton spot also quotes Trump in a social media post from 2023, where he calls Cornyn a "RINO" and accuses him and others of working to get concessions for then-President Joe Biden.

"Texans and President Trump know who really sold out to the left," the ad states.

The ads come as the campaign between Cornyn and Paxton heats up. Cornyn is vying for a fifth term in the Senate.

Paxton has described Cornyn as a "RINO" (Republican in name only), with Cornyn's side insisting the attorney general is a "fraud."