Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton won the Republican runoff for U.S. Senate against four-term Sen. John Cornyn, setting up a November contest against Democrat James Talarico. In Washington state, a chemical tank imploded at a paper mill in Longview, killing on
Ken Paxton’s victory speech didn’t land like a routine win. He addressed President Donald J. Trump directly, thanking him for a “complete and total endorsement” after “everyone in Washington told him to ABANDON me and abandon the people of Texas.”
On Tuesday, Paxton — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — knocked out four-term Sen. John Cornyn in a Republican U.S. Senate runoff, one of the biggest GOP tests of the year. The race shifted from settled political expectations to something sharper when Trump backed Paxton just last week. calling him a “true MAGA warrior.”.
Paxton now advances to a November matchup against Democrat James Talarico.
Cornyn’s loss left a mark beyond Texas geography. With the loss, Cornyn becomes the first Republican U.S. senator from Texas to lose a GOP reelection primary, according to the Associated Press.
At the event after his defeat, Cornyn said, “I’ve always supported the Republican ticket, and I intend to do so again in this general election. I’ve said throughout this race that I trust the voters of Texas, and they’ve made their decision, and I must respect it.”
Paxton had his own message for the moment Washington politics is watching. “Instead, he gave his complete and total endorsement,” Paxton said. “President Trump is the leader of our party, and his endorsement is the most powerful force in politics. And I’m honored to have his support. and I look forward to working with him in the Senate to deliver for Texas.”.
Beyond the Senate race, Tuesday’s runoffs also shaped the House map in Texas. In Houston, freshman Rep. Christian Menefee defeated longtime Rep. Al Green in the Democratic runoff for the 18th district. In Dallas’ deep blue 33rd district, former Rep. Colin Allred unseated Rep. Julie Johnson in the Democratic primary runoff. And in San Antonio’s Texas’s 35th district, Democrat Johnny Garcia won his party’s primary, defeating Maureen Galindo.
Hours before the broader nation could fully settle into the political news cycle, another crisis unfolded on the other side of the country — and it was the kind that changes the day for families in seconds.
An implosion inside a paper mill in Longview, Washington, left a worker dead and nine others injured, while crews continued searching for answers and nine more people remained unaccounted for. The incident happened Tuesday morning at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging facility, near the Oregon border.
Authorities said a massive chemical tank ruptured, producing what firefighters described as a mass-casualty scene.
The tank contained white liquor, a corrosive chemical mixture used in paper manufacturing.
Mike Gorsuch with the Longview Fire Department said. “There were multiple critical injuries. and patients were transported to hospitals in Longview and throughout the Vancouver. Portland area. We can also confirm there were fatalities related to the incident. We are not confirming or giving any information on their names until their families have been notified.”.
In the injuries reported, one responding firefighter was among those hurt. Patients suffered burns and inhalation injuries. Investigators still don’t know what caused the Washington tank to implode, and recovery crews said unstable conditions at the site have made operations more difficult.
The Washington emergency landed in the middle of another chemical scare farther south. Officials in Southern California said the threat of a catastrophic explosion at a damaged tank at a damaged aerospace plant has been reduced. but roughly 16. 000 people still have not been allowed back into their homes while crews continue monitoring the site.
With both politics and public safety demanding attention, President Donald Trump is set to pull his Cabinet together on Wednesday morning for an agenda expected to be dominated by Iran.
The meeting — originally planned for Camp David — has been moved to the White House due to weather concerns. Trump and top advisers are expected to discuss Iran along with other foreign and domestic issues.
Tehran is setting a tense tone. Iran claims the U.S. violated the ceasefire and released a video Tuesday it says shows its military responding to recent U.S. actions — including what it says was the shootdown of an American drone and the tracking of an F-35 fighter jet — following U.S. strikes earlier this week.
An official with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard told the semi-official Tasnim news agency that a return to full-scale fighting is unlikely but warned that if the war restarts, Iran is prepared to turn its southern coast into a “graveyard for aggressors.”
Even as that warning aired, the Trump administration continues to project optimism about a deal.
Vice President JD Vance told NBC News he’s “extremely hopeful” Iran will agree to an arrangement that prevents it from developing nuclear weapons. Vance said the bigger challenge will be building an enforcement system that “gives us confidence that they won’t violate the deal in the future.”
At the same time, U.S. Central Command said Tuesday its ongoing naval operations have turned away 108 vessels attempting to enter or exit Iranian ports. The U.S. Central Command post said that as of May 26, U.S. forces have redirected 108 commercial vessels to ensure compliance.
Iran has called those actions a violation of the ceasefire.
On Capitol Hill and in statehouses, the fight lines are shifting too. In South Carolina. Republicans seeking to redraw congressional maps hit roadblocks Tuesday — one in a courtroom and another within their own party. South Carolina lawmakers abruptly halted work on a plan that would have reshaped Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn’s district and could have moved the state closer to an all-Republican congressional delegation.
The proposal had already cleared the Republican-led House, but a group of GOP state senators joined Democrats to block it after early voting had begun. South Carolina State Sen. Richard Cash (R) said, “Obviously I disagree — we are at a pivotal point in this process.”
Clyburn, the state’s first Black member of Congress elected in nearly a century and now seeking an 18th term, insisted he would run regardless of the district lines.
In Alabama. a federal court blocked a separate Republican-backed map that would have given the GOP an advantage in six of the state’s seven congressional districts. Judges ruled the plan could not move forward. saying it represented an intentional effort to split up Black voters and dilute their voting strength. Republican officials in Alabama have already vowed to appeal to the Supreme Court.
And in federal courts, the legal war over the classified documents probe is continuing to spill into the political arena. Former President Joe Biden filed a lawsuit against the Justice Department to keep hours of recordings tied to the classified documents investigation from becoming public.
The lawsuit centers on interviews Biden gave in 2016 and 2017 to ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer while working on his memoirs. The recordings later became part of special counsel Robert Hur’s investigation into Biden’s handling of classified documents.
Hur’s investigation recommended no criminal charges, but his report triggered a major political firestorm after raising questions about Biden’s memory and describing him as a well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory.
Biden’s attorneys argue that releasing the material would violate his privacy rights, saying the conversations took place inside his home and were obtained through a criminal investigation.
The suit comes after the Justice Department said it planned to release the recordings and transcripts to Congress and to The Heritage Foundation in June. Trump weighed in late Tuesday on Truth Social, calling Biden a “crooked politician.”
Even as foreign policy disputes and domestic court fights play out. the White House is preparing for spectacle — and it’s already underway. Construction has begun on an octagon on the south lawn for an Ultimate Fighting Championship celebration tied to the next month’s America’s 250th birthday and also coinciding with Trump’s 80th birthday.
For months, Trump had been discussing bringing a UFC fight card to the White House grounds. Inside the cage, fighters are expected to compete for the UFC heavyweight title, the lightweight belt and other matchups. Plans call for a red, white and blue stage with a stars-and-stripes theme built around the octagon.
Crews are also building a 5,000-seat arena just outside the White House for in-person fans. On the ellipse, the UFC plans to distribute up to 85,000 free tickets so fans can watch the fights on large video screens.
The event is scheduled for Flag Day, June 14.
In New York. the justice system’s pressure points are being felt by people with little leverage and nowhere to go. A story described how when Emile Herrera Acosta agreed to plead guilty. he had already been locked up for three months on Rikers Island. While awaiting his court date at New York’s jail complex. he got COVID-19. endured weeks of medical processing — including blood testing and STD tests — and lived in a cell so cramped that he and another prisoner had to squeeze past each other to reach the toilet.
Acosta told Straight Arrow, “The food was so horrible, I couldn’t go to the bathroom for 16 days.” He added, “When I finally did, the guys could hear me screaming and said it sounded like I was giving birth.”
Ken Paxton John Cornyn Texas Senate runoff James Talarico Longview Washington chemical tank implosion Nippon Dynawave Packaging Iran ceasefire Trump Cabinet JD Vance South Carolina redistricting Alabama voting rights map Joe Biden lawsuit recordings