DALLAS — When President Donald Trump pops up in Texas for an event at the Port of Corpus Christi on Friday, he’s not expected to put his finger on the scale in the closely watched Republican Senate primary between incumbent John Cornyn, state Attorney General Ken Paxton and Rep. Wesley Hunt — all of whom will be in attendance.
But Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign team’s involvement with Cornyn’s reelect is opening a fresh wound for some pro-Paxton MAGA types.
Tony Fabrizio, Trump’s top pollster, is working for Cornyn’s campaign, and Chris LaCivita, one of Trump’s top campaign hands, works as a senior adviser for the pro-Cornyn super PAC Texans for a Conservative Majority. Steve Bannon, the longtime MAGA torchbearer, has taken issue with Fabrizio and LaCivita’s involvement.
“My belief is the Trump team should have stayed out of this race, absolutely,” Bannon told POLITICO from a rented ranch in North Texas, where he’s been broadcasting his “War Room” show.
Asked about Bannon’s criticism of their involvement with Cornyn’s reelection efforts, Fabrizio did not respond — but LaCivita texted POLITICO a fiery reply: “Associating with Senator Cornyn is better than being a lacky [sic] for Epstein,” he said, an apparent reference to Bannon’s newly surfaced ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The Justice Department’s release of documents in January revealed extensive exchanges that Epstein had with Bannon as he mounted a political influence campaign across Europe. Bannon has said little publicly about his relationship with Epstein, but he did previously call for an independent investigation into the files. Bannon didn’t respond to a request for comment on LaCivita’s response.
The intraparty conflict also foreshadows what’s likely to be an increasing number of such battles for the future of the Republican Party. Bannon, who’s all in for Paxton, is portraying the expected runoff between Paxton and Cornyn as nothing less than the battle for the soul of MAGA.
“The Paxton situation is critical, because he has been the MAGA guy since Day One,” Bannon told Playbook. Paxton, Bannon said, is more than just a candidate in a contested GOP primary. “He is a symbol of the heart of the grassroots MAGA movement.”
A White House official told POLITICO “the president is neutral until he’s not,” and added that “John Cornyn votes with the President.”
LaCivita declined to share the backstory of how he and Fabrizio ended up working with Cornyn.
But the White House doesn’t seem bothered. “We don’t regulate the business/political choices of private individuals — if they are a part of our world — in a race where the President is neutral,” the White House official said.
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