Cornyn Blocked for Senate Intelligence Chair

Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), a McConnell loyalist, was just dealt a setback in his quest to be appointed as the Senate Intelligence Chair.

Corny and Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) are also allies, which is what surprised me about Thune being accepted while Cornyn taking over the chair was blocked.

The culprit… Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR), a Trump ally in the Senate.

The Message

It appears that Republicans in the Senate were trying to give Cornyn a consolation prize because Thune won the gavel in the Senate.

However, currently, Senator Cotton is the ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and as such, he was expected to get the chair.

Cotton is not interested in giving Cornyn a participation trophy, and he is going to fight it out for the chair.

According to reports, Thune has already told Cotton that he would be the one being elevated to chair, not Cornyn.

Cotton’s office stated, “Senator Thune has told Senator Cotton he’s taking over as chair. He is hiring staff, working with Senator [Marco] Rubio (R-Fla.) on the transition, and planning with Senator [Mark] Warner (D-Va.) for January confirmation hearings.”

Cornyn is one of those elected officials that Texans would love to replace if they get a decent alternative.

That may be happening when Cornyn runs for re-election in the next cycle, as there are rumors floating around the state that Attorney General Ken Paxton is interested in going for that seat.

I can tell you flat out that if Paxton runs, Trump will immediately endorse him, which should end Cornyn’s time in the Senate.

Cornyn and Trump have always enjoyed a rather unique relationship, as it always seems like it is teetering on the edge of collapse.

As a Texan, I can tell you most people I know are fed up with Cornyn and want him gone, so I welcome the primary challenge to him in the next cycle.