Paxton’s latest audio leak is making things tough for national Republicans

National Republicans have spent months trying to rescue Ken Paxton. He’s complicating that effort.

Tensions are brewing with some Republicans after POLITICO published Paxton’s closed-door comments that “D.C.” Republicans were largely controlling his race.

“He is welcome to raise his own money and say whatever he wants,” said one Republican involved in the Paxton rescue effort, who like others in this article was granted anonymity to speak candidly. “In fact, if he did that, he’d probably be winning right now and we wouldn’t need to spend all this money.”

Senate Republicans and top operatives didn’t want to be in this position in the first place. Many had warned that the Trump effort to unseat Sen. John Cornyn and back Paxton in the primary would cost Republicans hundreds of millions to drag Paxton across the finish line in the general election. Cornyn and Senate GOP groups spent millions of dollars on ads during the primary attacking Paxton over his series of scandals and warning he was a flawed candidate.