GEOFF BENNETT: Texas has been reliably Republican for three decades, despite repeated Democratic hopes that shifting demographics might change its politics.<\/p>\n
But, this year, Republican divisions, political scandals, rising prices, and local fights over big tech are giving Democrats new hope of an upset in the U.S.<\/p>\n
Senate race there.<\/p>\n
Our Liz Landers was in Texas earlier this week and has this report.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: In deep red rural Texas, Cheryl Shadden and her dogs round up the horses.<\/p>\n
She’s a lifelong Republican and has lived in Hood County for decades, but over the last few years, a new neighbor has dramatically changed her life and her political allegiances.<\/p>\n
CHERYL SHADDEN, Texas Voter: It’s become unbearable living here.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: Across the street, a new data center.<\/p>\n
She says it’s constant noise is costing her sleep, her health, and her property value.<\/p>\n
CHERYL SHADDEN: I wake up in the morning and my ears buzz and ring.<\/p>\n
I have lost hearing because of this.<\/p>\n
I have got permanent conductive hearing loss.<\/p>\n
We have health problems.<\/p>\n
We don’t sleep.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: Uproar over data centers has become a national flash point, with Republicans and Democrats still figuring out how to handle the issue.<\/p>\n
CHERYL SHADDEN: Typically, what it sounds like is Niagara Falls.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: It’s having a direct impact now on Shadden’s vote in the high-profile race for U.S.<\/p>\n
Senate, leading her to break from her party.<\/p>\n
KEN PAXTON (R), Texas Senatorial Candidate: I think it’s a good idea to slow this down so that we can listen to our to our constituents.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: In late August, U.S.<\/p>\n
Senate candidate and current state Attorney General Ken Paxton called for repealing a tax break that spurred data center growth in Texas.<\/p>\n
Shadden says that’s not good enough.<\/p>\n
CHERYL SHADDEN: Where have you been the last three years?<\/p>\n
Not here with us.<\/p>\n
So, in our mind, unless you do something meaningful before November, you won’t get our vote.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: Data centers aren’t Republicans’ only electoral problem.<\/p>\n
Gas prices are higher than usual.<\/p>\n
Diesel is off the charts, driven by a foreign war extending into its seventh month and opposed by many conservatives.<\/p>\n
And then there’s Paxton himself.<\/p>\n
CHERYL SHADDEN: He’s seeming kind of dirty right now, like a career politician that could possibly be a used car salesman.<\/p>\n
ANNOUNCER: Ken Paxton.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: His bruising primary win over incumbent Senator John Cornyn split the party.<\/p>\n
Trump backed Paxton, while Cornyn warned Paxton’s history of scandal could put the safe seat at risk.<\/p>\n
He spent nearly nine years under indictment for securities fraud before a deal got the charges dropped.<\/p>\n
The Texas House impeached him in 2023, mostly over abuse of power allegations.<\/p>\n
The state Senate acquitted him.<\/p>\n
And last year, his wife filed for divorce, citing adultery.<\/p>\n
Paxton denies wrongdoing.<\/p>\n
Mr.<\/p>\n
Paxton, Liz Landers with “PBS News Hour.”<\/p>\n
Paxton didn’t take our questions, but did speak with FOX News’ Bret Baier.<\/p>\n
KEN PAXTON: Well, look, Bret, when you’re fighting, they come after you.<\/p>\n
Look at Donald Trump.<\/p>\n
He had many more indictments than I did.<\/p>\n
He had two impeachments.<\/p>\n
I went through a very similar process as him.<\/p>\n
When you go after things that protect the people of your state, they come after you, and none of those things were proven.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: Democrats haven’t won statewide in Texas in more than 30 years, but this year they see an opening thanks to the local, state, and national political landscapes, as well as a strong candidate.<\/p>\n
STATE REP.<\/p>\n
JAMES TALARICO (D-TX), Senatorial Candidate: In red areas and blue areas alike, everyone is struggling.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: Democrat James Talarico is a state representative and seminarian, running as a moderate, guided by his Christian faith.<\/p>\n
STATE REP.<\/p>\n
JAMES TALARICO: We are building a movement to take back our state and take back our country.<\/p>\n
STATE REP.<\/p>\n
JAMES TALARICO: We are uniting Texans onto one team to take on this broken, corrupt political system.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: He’s focused on issues like raising the federal minimum wage to $15, raising taxes on billionaires, and passing comprehensive immigration reform.<\/p>\n
And Talarico wants to give local officials approval power over new data centers.<\/p>\n
While Republicans met for a midterm convention in Dallas, his campaign rolled out 21 current and former Republican officials backing him.<\/p>\n
STATE REP.<\/p>\n
JAMES TALARICO: God is both masculine and feminine and everything in between.<\/p>\n
God is nonbinary.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: But his critics have forced him to walk back past controversial comments on social issues.<\/p>\n
QUESTION: God is nonbinary.<\/p>\n
Do you still stand by that?<\/p>\n
STATE REP.<\/p>\n
JAMES TALARICO: I was being provocative with that statement.<\/p>\n
I get that.<\/p>\n
What I was trying to say is that you can’t use human categories to define God.<\/p>\n
And that’s not controversial theologically.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: The president’s backing proved instrumental in Paxton’s primary.<\/p>\n
Trump used the convention spotlight to argue he can be again this November, even with his approval rating underwater.<\/p>\n
DONALD TRUMP, President of the United States: I’m asking you to pretend that I’m on the ballot.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: Trump’s just begun fulfilling his promise to financially float Paxton’s campaign, his super PAC, MAGA Inc., buying $10 million worth of ads on Paxton’s behalf.<\/p>\n
NARRATOR: Paxton’s plan?<\/p>\n
Doubling the child tax credit, big write-offs for medical expenses, and a $50,000 deduction for first-time homebuyers.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: That prompted additional cash and ads from other Republican groups, effectively erasing Talarico’s sizable cash advantage.<\/p>\n
Back at the convention, suburban Dallas Republicans told us they will back their nominee.<\/p>\n
Not all of them are sure he can win.<\/p>\n
FRANK HOLOMSHEK, Texas Voter: Not sure Paxton’s the right guy, but he’s the right guy this time.<\/p>\n
CHRIS DANIEL, Texas Voter: What I say to a Republican who’s either thinking of not voting or voting for Talarico is, the alternative is worse.<\/p>\n
For all the things that you don’t like about Ken Paxton, and there can be many, and — it will be far worse.<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: Cheryl Shadden expects a lot of Republicans to skip the Senate race, rather than back a Democrat they see as too far left.<\/p>\n
CHERYL SHADDEN: As far as Paxton goes, I will most likely not vote for Paxton.<\/p>\n
A lot of Republicans are just not going to vote for that slot because they feel like Talarico is too far left.<\/p>\n
In my mind, how I look at it is, we have seen what has happened to my community for the last three years.<\/p>\n
So why would we vote for these same people again?<\/p>\n
LIZ LANDERS: How many Texas Republicans stay home, skip the race, or cross over will likely decide whether their party’s 30-year streak survives?<\/p>\n
For the “PBS News Hour,” I’m Liz Landers in Granbury, Texas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"GEOFF BENNETT: Texas has been reliably Republican for three decades, despite repeated Democratic hopes that shifting demographics might…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":440568,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[27,29,28],"class_list":["post-440567","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/440567","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=440567"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/440567\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/440568"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=440567"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=440567"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=440567"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}