Paxton: Iran war a drag on Texas Senate campaign

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee for Senate in the Lone Star State, said in a leaked audio recording that the war in Iran and high prices at home are a drag on his midterm campaign.

“It’s not tariffs. … It’s the war, it’s gas prices, it’s diesel,” Paxton told donors and lobbyists at a closed-door fundraiser, according to audio shared by Axios , when asked what issues were “dragging” on his campaign.

“When it’s over $6 per gallon for diesel … people are feeling the pinch. So I’d say that’s probably the biggest problem, and that pinch drives up food prices and everything else,” the Republican Senate hopeful said.

“That’s by far our biggest problem, and I think that’s why we’re having a hard time with numbers.”

It’s the latest sign of Paxton acknowledging a tough midterm election landscape, after The New York Times first leaked an audio clip of the same meeting in which Paxton said Republicans’ first-ever midterm convention in Dallas last month “dropped our numbers.”

A Paxton campaign spokesperson told Axios that “this is a non-story” and that Paxton acknowledged “what every Texan already knows: gas and diesel prices are too high.” The Hill has reached out to Paxton’s campaign for additional comment.

Paxton, who won the GOP Senate nod in Texas over incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R), is now trailing Democrat James Talarico by 2 percentage points ahead of the general election, according to Decision Desk HQ’s latest polling averages. Cook Political Report considers it a toss-up, despite Texas Democrats’ losing streak in statewide races.

President Trump is heading back to Texas Wednesday for his third visit to the state in a month, including the GOP’s Dallas convention. Paxton is expected to speak at a rally in San Antonio , which he said he hopes will “keep Texas red and Keep America first.”

But voter frustration with the economy, the war in Iran and immigration are dragging down Trump’s approval rating, raising questions about whether he’ll ultimately help or hurt Republicans in tough races this cycle.