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Quick Hits: Today’s Top Stories
Slain American Service Members Named
On Tuesday, the U.S. government identified four of the six U.S. service members who have been killed in the United States’ war on Iran, all of whom died during an unmanned aircraft attack in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait. The four were in the U.S. Army Reserve: Capt. Cody A. Khork, Sgt. 1st Class Nicole M. Amor, Sgt. 1st Class Noah L. Tietjens, and Sgt. Declan J. Coady. Yesterday in the Oval Office, President Donald Trump continued to defend his decision to launch the ongoing conflict with Iran, saying that “if we didn’t do what we’re doing right now, you would have had a nuclear war and they would have taken out many countries.” He also claimed that the Iranian military had been mostly “knocked out.” On Tuesday afternoon, the White House released a fact sheet outlining its war aims, claiming that it sought to destroy Iranian missiles and its missile industry, destroy Iranian naval forces, prevent proxy groups from being able to “destabilize the region,” and ensure that “Iran can NEVER have a nuclear weapon.” Regime change was not a listed objective.
- The war spread further across the Middle East on Tuesday, with Iran launching drones at and striking the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh and consulate in Dubai. Iranian missiles and drones continued to strike targets throughout the Persian Gulf, including by hitting multiple Amazon data centers and targeting maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
- Israeli troops also invaded southern Lebanon on Tuesday, with the Israel Defense Forces continuing to strike Hezbollah targets in the country and Hezbollah declaring that it was prepared for “open war” with Israel.
- Tens of thousands of travelers in the region are currently stranded, including more than 3,000 U.S. citizens, with State Department officials saying Tuesday that they were currently working to organize military and charter flights to help U.S. citizens flee the Middle East.
Texas Votes in Senate, Governor, and Attorney General Primaries
Texas state Rep. James Talarico defeated U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett in Tuesday’s Texas Democratic Senate primary, 53 percent to 45.7 percent with 91 percent of the vote in this morning. The Republican primary—a three-way race between incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and U.S. Rep Wesley Hunt—will head to a May 26 runoff between Paxton and Cornyn after no candidate managed to secure more than 50 percent of the vote. The scandal-plagued Paxton, who’s staked out a position as one of the farthest-right politicians in Texas and a Trump ally, has attacked Cornyn as insufficiently committed to the president’s agenda. Four-term incumbent Rep. Dan Crenshaw lost his primary to Republican Texas state Rep. Steve Toth. To learn more about the Texas primaries, continue reading today’s TMD.
- In North Carolina, ex-Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley won the Republican primary for a U.S. Senate seat, and former Gov. Roy Cooper triumphed in the Democratic contest, setting up a November clash in the critical swing state.
- In Arkansas, incumbent Sen. Tom Cotton won 81.6 percent of the vote in his Republican Senate primary and will face Democratic challenger Hallie Shoffner in November. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders was uncontested on the Republican side as she seeks a second term, facing off against Democratic challenger Fred Love.
Noem Testifies Before the Senate
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, her first congressional appearance since Renee Good and Alex Pretti were killed by federal agents in Minneapolis in January. In response to questioning over her quickly disproven claims about Good and Pretti, Noem said she was “getting reports from agents on the ground,” characterizing the immediate situation as a “chaotic scene.” Sen. Thom Tillis called for Noem’s resignation during the hearing.“Quality matters, not quantity—and what we’ve seen is a disaster under your leadership, Ms. Noem, a disaster,” he said.
- Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced the beginning of an investigation into alleged misconduct by federal immigration officers during the immigration crackdown in Minnesota earlier this year, including a case in which former Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino threw a smoke canister at protesters and another incident in which chemical irritants were used near a high school.
- “Federal officials acting in the course of their duties are immune from liability under state law,” DHS responded in a statement.
- The state of Minnesota also said Tuesday that it would sue to block the federal government’s pause of $243 million in federal Medicaid funding. Vice President J.D. Vance had announced the pause over concerns of fraud in the state.
Ukraine Discussions
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday to discuss “energy security.” A spokesperson said they would likely address the issue of re-opening the Druzhba pipeline, an oil pipeline that Ukraine claims was damaged by Russian attacks in January, causing a shutdown that Hungary and Slovakia have accused Ukraine of prolonging—a charge both countries have used to justify blocking greater EU aid to Ukraine. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz also met with U.S. President Donald Trump in the White House on Tuesday, during which he told Trump that any peace deal between Ukraine and Russia would have to allow Ukraine to “preserve its territory” and protect its security interests.
- On Monday, Zelensky told reporters he was concerned that the U.S. and Israeli war with Iran would deplete supplies of the air defense systems his country relies on to defend against Russian attacks. “We understand that a long war—if it is long—and the intensity of the military actions will affect the amount of air defense we receive,” he said.
Father of School Shooting Suspect Convicted of Second-Degree Murder
Georgia resident Colin Gray was convicted on all charges Tuesday for his failure to prevent his 14-year-old son Colt Gray, from carrying out a mass shooting in September 2024. Prosecutors accused Colin Gray of ignoring multiple warning signs, including a plea from his son’s mother to cut off his access to guns, before Colt Gray used his father’s AR-15 to kill two students and two teachers at his high school. Gray was found guilty on 27 counts, including second-degree murder and cruelty to children, with a maximum sentence of 180 years in prison. Colt Gray is awaiting trial.
- The Grays’ case is the second conviction of the parents of a school shooter for negligence in supervising their children’ s access to weapons and mental state, following the convictions of Michigan parents Jennifer and James Crumbley for involuntary manslaughter after their son committed a school shooting in 2021.
The midterm election season is officially underway, with voters in Texas, North Carolina, and Arkansas heading to the polls on Tuesday to vote in their party’s primary elections. But the most interesting and competitive races were in the Lone Star State.
The Results
Republican Senate Primary: In RealClearPolitics polling averages ahead of the primary, incumbent John Cornyn slightly trailed his challenger, GOP state Attorney General Ken Paxton. But with more than 93 percent of the vote in, Cornyn leads Paxton 41.9 percent to 40.8 percent, with Republican Rep. Wesley Hunt a distant third with 13.5 percent. But Texas law requires a runoff in primary elections when a candidate fails to win more than 50 percent of the vote, so this isn’t over yet.
Democratic Senate Primary: With more than 90 percent of the vote in, Texas state Rep. James Talarico is leading incumbent Rep. Jasmine Crockett 53 percent to 45.7 percent.
- With 94 percent of the vote counted, Republican Texas state Rep. Steve Toth has defeated four-term incumbent GOP Rep. Dan Crenshaw 56 percent to 40.5 percent in Texas’ 2nd Congressional District.
- Democratic Rep. Christian Menefee, who won a special election last month following the death of Rep. Sylvester Turner, will head to a runoff in Texas’ 18th Congressional District against Rep. Al Green, who’s running in a newly redrawn district. With 87 percent of the votes counted, Menefee leads with 45.9 percent of the vote, to Green’s 44.4 percent.
- Retired Major League Baseball player Mark Teixeira—a three-time All-Star and 2009 World Series champion—won a landslide victory in Texas’s 21st Congressional District Republican primary, winning 61 percent of the vote, with 94 percent of the votes counted.
- Incumbent GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales—facing allegations that he pressured an employee to have an affair with him, prompting calls from both sides of the aisle for his immediate resignation—will head to a runoff against firearm YouTuber Brandon Herrera in Texas’ 23rd Congressional District. With 93 percent of the votes counted, Herrera leads with 43.4 percent, and Gonzales follows with 41.7 percent.
With 89 percent of the vote counted, Democratic state Sen. Nathan Johnson received 48 percent in the Democratic primary for state attorney general, likely also advancing to a runoff against Joe Jaworski, former mayor of Galveston, trailing second with 26.7 percent. A Democrat has not been attorney general of Texas since 1999, and there is little reason to think either Johnson or Jaworski would break the streak.
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott was easily renominated with 81.8 percent of the vote and will face Democratic state Rep. Gina Hinojosa in November, who won her primary on Tuesday with 59.1 percent support. Abbott will almost certainly win, becoming the first governor of Texas to win four consecutive terms.
For attorney general, the GOP nomination will head to a runoff between Republican state Rep. Mayes Middleton and U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, with 39.2 percent and 31.5 percent of the vote as of publication time, respectively.
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The Analysis
John Cornyn has represented Texas in the Senate since 2002, serving stints as the Senate majority and minority whip, and before that, had been a justice on the Texas Supreme Court and the state’s attorney general. His last competitive primary campaign came during the 1998 attorney general election, and he’s never faced serious challengers in any of his four previous Senate primaries. But now, Cornyn is fighting to keep his seat as he seeks to fend off another longtime elected Republican in Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Cornyn’s struggles stem partly from his consistent record as a traditional conservative, even as President Donald Trump’s MAGA movement has taken over the party. As The Dispatch’s David Drucker reported in late January,
When Cornyn entered GOP politics decades ago, he was a mainstream Republican who matched the sensibilities of his party’s voters. Since then, the senator hasn’t changed. But grassroots Republicans have: Cornyn is a traditional, Reagan-era conservative (Strike 1). Cornyn occasionally compromises with Democrats to pass legislation (Strike 2). Cornyn isn’t a culture warrior-media hound, although he’s always authored his own X posts, and a fair amount of them at that. But generally, Cornyn focuses on lawmaking and reports back to voters every six years when it’s time to reinterview for his job.
“The correct strategy for any candidate is to tie yourself as closely to President Trump as possible,”Rice University political science professor Mark Jones told TMD. “We can expect the Paxton campaign to really hit him [Cornyn] hard on this … that he’s insufficiently conservative, and that his track record has not always been nearly as supportive of President Trump as Ken Paxton’s record.”
Jones told TMD that while “Paxton has been a die-hard Trump supporter from the very beginning, Cornyn has ebbed and flowed” in his support for Trump. The Cornyn campaign has taken steps to address this, such as flagging that he votes in line with the White House 99 percent of the time. But Paxton—who appealed the 2020 election results to the Supreme Court, seeking to throw out electoral votes from Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, based on Trump’s spurious claims of voter fraud—has worked to position himself as the authentic MAGA option.
Paxton is a familiar name to Texan voters, having served a dozen years in the Texas House and Senate before winning election as attorney general in 2014, 2018, and 2022. Paxton has had a series of scandals, including allegations of political corruption and marital infidelity. In 2023, the Texas House impeached him on bribery charges, alleging that Nate Paul—an Austin real estate developer and campaign donor who would later plead guilty to federal bank fraud—had hired Paxton’s mistress at his firm, effectively relocating her to Austin so Paxton could be near her, in exchange for the attorney general’s help shielding Paul’s business dealings from federal scrutiny. The Texas Senate narrowly voted to acquit him.
“Republican primary voters are very much aware of his legal baggage,” but they “discount it pretty heavily as partisan,” Southern Methodist University political science professor Cal Jillison told TMD. “They know that he has ethical and legal baggage, but they see him as a knife fighter, and that’s what they want.”
The runoff election between Cornyn and Paxton will be May 26, with no foregone conclusions. A poll conducted last month by the University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs found that Paxton leads Cornyn 51-40 in a runoff election but that 72 percent of likely Republican primary voters have a favorable opinion of Paxton, versus only 61 percent for Cornyn. Meanwhile, 55 percent of likely Republican voters said they would be more likely to vote for the Trump-backed candidate should the president endorse one.
Polls suggest Cornyn would fare better against both Democratic candidates than Paxton in November, which could put pressure on Trump to endorse Cornyn.
“The primary calculus for why he would endorse would be that he believes that there’s a credible threat that Democrats could flip this seat in November if Ken Paxton is the nominee,” Jones told TMD. “That’s the thing that I think at the end of the day will determine whether he endorses Cornyn or remains probably silent and endorses neither, which would be a passive endorsement of Ken Paxton.”
Cornyn or Paxton will face James Talarico, 36, who has served in the Texas House since 2018, and before that worked as a public school teacher. He has emphasized the role of religion in his life—and has a Master of Divinity degree from the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary—but has voiced concerns about what he described as a right-wing migration toward Christian nationalism. Talarico first gained national attention when he spoke out against a Texas bill that would have required the 10 Commandments to be displayed in every classroom—a moment striking enough that Joe Rogan invited him on his podcast. “You need to run for president,” the podcaster told Talarico last year. “We need someone who’s actually a good person.”
Against the combative campaign of Rep. Jasmine Crockett—who expelled The Atlantic’s Elaine Godfrey from a campaign event last week and then lied about doing so—Talarico sold himself as a temperate politician, motivated by a progressive view of both politics and Christian theology.
“What’s interesting here is perhaps the battle within the Democratic Party … in terms of where the party is going to go,” University of Houston political science professor Jeronimo Cortina said. Talarico will need to win over independent voters to flip Texas, and Cortina told TMD that Talarico’s playbook is to embrace “being progressive, but also being mindful that you need to have more independence in your winning coalition,” instead of prioritizing driving out the party base, as Crockett’s general election strategy likely would have been.
No Democrat has won statewide since 1994, but the party approaches the 2026 midterms with a decade of incremental gains. Trump carried Texas by a far smaller margin in 2016 than Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s 15.8-point rout in 2012, and in 2020, Trump’s margin over Joe Biden was only 5.6 points. In 2018, Ted Cruz held onto his Senate seat with just 50.9 percent of the vote. With Trump’s approval rating slipping and a split GOP, Democrats are more optimistic than they have been in years.
“I think that whoever the Republicans end up with, and I think it’s going to be Paxton, they’re going to be in for a really, really tough fight with a Democrat, and this is a better atmosphere politically for Democrats in some time,” Matt Angle—the founder and director of the Lone Star Project, a political action committee that backs Democratic candidates—told TMD. Still, “Make no mistake, it is an uphill fight the whole way, and Democrats have to be prepared to not take anything for granted on any day.”
Today’s Must-Read
When Hamas launched its October 7, 2023, attacks, killing more than 1,200 people and taking 254 hostages to Gaza, the terrorist group didn’t just threaten the lives of Jews in Israel—it endangered the lives of the people of Gaza for its ideological goals. In his first piece as a Dispatch contributing writer, John Aziz tells the story of Kareem Jouda, a 29-year-old Palestinian aid worker who has lived his whole life in Gaza. “Jouda was taking a risk to speak to me openly, under his real name,” Aziz writes. “But he has chosen to speak out because of his fervent desire for change in the situation for people in Gaza.” Jouda is looking for a better future for Gazans. Put simply, he wants “Hamas gone and wants his people to live—two truths that should be easy to hold together, and yet for many are not.”
In Other News
- Trump said the U.S. would “cut off all trade” with Spain after the European nation refused to provide the U.S. access to its military bases.
- Congressional Democrats said they will not rescind their demands that Homeland Security Department funding come attached with immigration enforcement reforms.
- The chief of staff and deputy chief of staff to Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer were forced to resign following an internal probe into possible misconduct.
- The Justice Department indicated that it intended to renew its legal defense of Trump-issued executive orders targeting specific law firms, one day after the Trump administration initially moved to dismiss the cases.
- Federal officials charged two men who allegedly shot and wounded nine people in Cincinnati this weekend with federal firearm violations.
- The U.S. placed new sanctions on Rwanda after stating that the country provided support for M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in violation of a U.S.-brokered peace deal.
- Pakistani and Taliban-led Afghan forces exchanged attacks along their shared border. At least 42 civilians have been killed in the last six days during the skirmish, according to the United Nations.
- Sudan’s Foreign Ministry accused Ethiopia of intervening in the country’s civil war and allowing military drones to be launched from within Ethiopian territory since last month.
- The Trump administration has reportedly been preparing an indictment against acting Venezuelan leader Delcy Rodriguez regarding corruption and money laundering violations, which it intends to use as leverage over her government.
- Cuba charged six U.S.-based Cuban nationals with terrorism, accusing them of packing a speedboat full of weapons with the intent to carry out violent acts in Cuba.
- Two senior Chinese officials—including the country’s highest-ranking general and the Chinese Communist Party leader in the western region of Xinjiang—did not attend the opening ceremony of a 23-member leadership event.
- Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr said during an interview that he expected Paramount Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery to be approved “pretty quickly” by the agency.
- OpenAI reworked its agreement with the Defense Department to add additional restrictions on its use for possible surveillance activities.
- According to the American Automobile Association, the average daily price of gas in the U.S. increased overnight on Monday from $3.00 to $3.11.
- “It’s the Troll vs. the Bore in the G.O.P. Texas Senate Runoff” by The Dispatch’s Kevin Williamson (New York Times)
- Andrew Miller on America’s railway infrastructure, and why it’s better equipped to transport cargo instead of commercial passengers. (American Affairs)
- Michael Hill on the hurdle that even the most optimistic communist reformers failed to overcome: inflation. (Works in Progress)
- Nate Silver explores what historical U.S. wars and conflicts can tell us about what may lie ahead for Iran. (Silver Bulletin)
- Graeme Wood profiles former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and explores his options ahead of the 2028 election cycle. (The Atlantic)
- Joseph Howlett on Georg Cantor, the 19th-century German mathematician behind the discovery that there are different sizes of infinity, and new letters that cast doubt on the originality of his work. (Quanta Magazine)
NPR: Prediction Market Trader ‘Magamyman’ Made $553,000 on Death of Iran’s Supreme Leader
Financial Times: Iceland [the British frozen food chain] Freezes Decade-Long Legal Battle With Iceland [the country]
New York Times: Chimpanzees Are Really Into Crystals
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