Paxton Says Iran War and Fuel Costs Hurt Senate Campaign

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton told donors and lobbyists that the Iran war, fuel prices and affordability concerns were hurting his U.S. Senate campaign, according to a leaked recording from a September gathering in Washington. Paxton described affordability as the campaign’s biggest problem and said diesel prices above $6 a gallon were pinching people and contributing to higher food and household costs. In the audio, Paxton said the problem was not tariffs but the war, gasoline and diesel prices. He also said he did not make decisions about the war or control fuel costs, and that many factors in a federal campaign were beyond his control. Reports differ on the gathering’s precise date, placing it at various points in September; the date has not been established by the available accounts. The recording has emerged as Paxton, the Republican nominee, campaigns against Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in the November Senate election. It is one of several reported audio leaks involving private remarks by Paxton.