NR was founded in 1955 to 'stand athwart history yelling Stop'; modern NR is anti-populist on personal conduct and institutional norms, pro-free-market, pro-life, hawkish on Russia/China, and pro-legal-immigration. NR ran the 'Against Trump' issue in 2016 and has remained critical of MAGA excess. Cornyn fits the post-Buckley NR framework about as closely as any current Republican senator does: pro-life on doctrine, pro-free-market on substance, hawkish on Russia/China, pro-legal-immigration in the Gang-of-Eight tradition, and institutionally measured under MAGA pressure — exactly the kind of Republican NR has spent the post-2016 era defending. Paxton hits some planks (taxes, abortion, guns) but flunks NR's anti-Trump, anti-populist, pro-Ukraine, pro-trade, and pro-institutionalist standards.
Sources
- Ken Paxton for U.S. Senate, official campaign issues page, accessed May 2026. (full list)
- Sen. John Cornyn, official Senate website and 2026 re-election campaign issues page, accessed May 2026 (cornyn.senate.gov; johncornyn.com). (full list)
- Cornyn votes on Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations (April 2024, $61B package); Cornyn statements on Israel aid and Iron Dome funding; Senate Foreign Relations Committee record on NATO and AUKUS. (full list)
- Senate Republican Whip (2013-2019); 2024 Senate Republican Leader race vs. Sen. John Thune (Cornyn lost 29-23); Republican Conference institutional record; New York Times coverage of Cornyn-Thune-Scott three-way race, November 2024. (full list)