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| Texas AG amd U.S. Senate nominee Ken Paxton speaks at Texas GOP Convention in Houston on June 12 |
Abbott Elephant that Wasn't Potty Trained
Makes Ken Paxton Speech Anti-Climactic
Capitol Inside
June 12, 2026
HOUSTON - Governor Greg Abbott appeared to be warming up for a presidential bid on Friday when he turned the Texas GOP Convention into a circus with a speech on unity that ended with a special guest appearance by an elephant who wasn't housebroken.
The governor's publicity stunt had the effect of upstaging Ken Paxton - the Texas party's U.S. Senate nominee - who received a reception from the audience that was lukewarm compared to the cheering and applause that Abbott's speech generated in the monstrous convention hall. Hundreds of delegates remained seated when Paxton inspired standing ovations among a majority of the delegates - an apparent sign of lingering bitterness in the wake of his ouster of incumbent solon John Cornyn late last month in a primary runoff that degenerated into an all-time bloodbath.
Abbott's appearance on the stage on the second day of the biennial gathering at the George R. Brown Convention Center marked the first time that he'd spoken directly to delegates in person since his second of four re-election races eight years ago.
With an eye on the White House, the governor reeled off a litany of accomplishments on issues from school choice to teacher pay hikes to border security with a state wall on the banks of the Rio Grande complete with buoys in the waters and a busing scheme that transported migrants to New York City, Chicago and Washington D.C. where they were dumped at Democrat Kamala Harris' house when she was the vice president.
Abbott bragged about the efforts he's taken to keep dangerous Muslims and Sharia law out of the state. Abbott told delegates that he'd shut down Muslim-only developments like Epic City and designated groups like CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist organizations. The governor didn't mention a bungled attempt on Thursday by far-right forces to expel two delegates who are Muslim based on baseless speculation about possible links to CAIR.
Abbott cited a crackdown that he announced this week on a proliferation of data centers in Texas. Abbott said he'd warned tech firms that plans to build or to expand data centers that are already in operation here that they will have to be responsible for providing their own electricity and water. The governor stepped up a push for the abolition of property taxes that raise funds for public schools - and he said he also wanted to see a sharp reduction in local spending and tax increases that voters haven't proved and appraisal rates that he blamed as the chief culprit for the Legislature's inability to keep taxes on homesteads in check.
But Abbott ran the risk of offending Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick - who's led the charge for keeping property taxes from soaring more with boosts in homestead exemptions during the past four years. The governor took a shot at district attorneys that he says have gone rogue - and he proposed the creation of a state prosecutor to go after them. Abbott sparked some of the loudest cheers when he pledged to sign legislation next year that banned the use of local tax dollars to pay lobbyists. Patrick has guided prohibitions on taxpayer-funded lobbying in every recent regular session only to watch helplessly as the measures died in the House,
Abbott and Paxton both mocked James Talarico - the Texas House member from Austin who's the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate. Paxton used the audience to test out nicknames that he's floated for the Democratic opponent such as Tofu Talarico, Six Sexes Jimmy and Talafreako.
"James Talarico is a threat to everything we hold dear in Texas," Paxton warned the audience. The AG said Talarico had proposed to have welcome mats for illegal immigrants at the border, claimed that God is non-binary, believes in six separate genders, loves transgender children and would attack the Texas energy industry at every opportunity if elected to the Senate.
Paxton said he'd emerged as the Democrats' top target in the nation in a race that could determine which party has the majority in 2027. "If we lose Texas - more than any other state - we lose America," Paxton warned,
But Democrats ended up with last laugh - however - amid reports on the female elephant that handlers for Abbott paraded through the convention hall left an ocean of urine in her path. The animal may have lost control of the bladder as a result of thousands of people who were surrounding it for selfies as it lumbered down an aisle in the convention hall before being whisked out at the back.
"Governor Abbott closed out his speech at the Texas GOP convention with a live elephant," the Texas Democratic Party noted in a post on X on Friday night. It then peed on the floor as it left the room. The perfect metaphor for the Texas Republican Party."
more to come ...
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