Rep. Wesley Hunt’s entry into the Texas Republican primary has embroiled him in a bitter fight with incumbent Sen. John Cornyn.
Hunt has attacked Cornyn — already under pressure from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — as a “zombie” candidate who helped negotiate a gun-control deal following the 2022 Uvalde school shooting.
Hunt also pointed to public criticism of Cornyn from President Donald Trump. Trump hasn’t endorsed in the Texas GOP primary yet, despite heavy lobbying to back Cornyn from Senate Majority Leader John Thune and NRSC Chair Tim Scott.
Cornyn’s camp has responded with their own offensive against Hunt’s habit of missing floor votes. A Cornyn campaign spokesperson noted that the two-term lawmaker has missed more than one quarter of floor votes since Hunt won his House seat. Cornyn’s campaign also made sure everyone knew Hunt didn’t vote for Trump in 2016 and criticized the president for bashing the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in 2021.
In response to the missing votes claim, Hunt released a video from his wife, Emily, where she discussed the difficult birth of their son in 2023. Hunt’s campaign also said that he missed some votes while out campaigning for Trump.
“Wesley Hunt’s record is not only unimpeachable, it’s unmatched by anyone in this race,” a Hunt spokesperson said. “As a Member of Congress, Wesley has been a workhorse, not a ‘show horse,’ as Cornyn’s campaign has claimed…whatever that’s supposed to mean.”
Committee check. Hunt’s committee voting record is worse than his floor voting record over both Congresses.
The former Army helicopter pilot and combat veteran has missed a large percentage of votes in the Judiciary and Natural Resources committees. Hunt served on the Small Business Committee during the 118th Congress but isn’t on the panel this Congress.
The 43-year-old Hunt — who dubbed himself the “Energy Congressman of the World” — missed 30% of the full Natural Resources Committee hearings and markups since 2023, according to a review of committee records (the Cornyn camp says the number is higher). This includes a field hearing in Midland, Texas, ground zero for the state’s massive oil and natural gas industry.
The Texas Republican missed 12 out of 28 full Judiciary Committee hearings and markups, which is more than 40%. Some of these took place during recess, while Hunt was out campaigning or home with his family.
Hunt’s subcommittee record is also spotty, with dozens of missed sessions on both his two current panels and Small Business.
Despite being in his second term, Hunt isn’t on an “A” committee — Appropriations, Energy and Commerce, Financial Services or Ways and Means.
Hunt’s legislative record is limited, too. Hunt has sponsored 18 bills and resolutions since he entered Congress. Only one — a bill dealing with royalty payments — became law in its original form.
The identical Senate version of a Hunt bill — the Recruit and Retain Act — was passed and signed into law. Another Hunt bill was included in the One Big Beautiful Act.
More from the Hunt spokesperson:
“In the 118th Congress, as a freshman whose baby boy was born months premature, Wesley had two bills signed into law by President Biden, making him the 2nd most effective lawmaker from the TX delegation that Congress.
“So why the attacks? Why the distraction campaign?
“Because Texas GOP primary voters are not buying what John Cornyn is selling, and his campaign knows it. They would rather smear Wesley than defend Cornyn’s own record, because Cornyn’s record is the real problem.”
The lack of legislative accomplishments isn’t that unusual for a second-term member. Yet Hunt is challenging Cornyn, who has a long record of legislative achievements. Paxton has been in Texas politics for decades, too.
We’ll also put this out there — as far as we can tell from the Congressional Record, Hunt hasn’t spoken once on the House floor during this Congress. Hunt made floor speeches a number of times during the 118th Congress, but nothing this year.
