With the November 3 midterm elections nearly upon us, is this one really and truly, as the common refrain goes, the most important election in our lifetime? Well, it just might be. And Texas has a huge role in what happens next.
Democrats have long viewed Texas as the crown jewel in their effort to become the dominant political party in the U.S. The last time a Democrat won a statewide office in Texas was Ann Richards winning as governor in 1990, only to lose her reelection bid in 1994 to George W. Bush. Before that it was Lloyd Bentsen winning a Senate seat in 1988.
This year, like years in the past, Democrats have invested hundreds of millions of dollars trying to end that drought. Talarico’s campaign for the Senate, including the primaries and general election, has reportedly raised about $150 million. Attorney General Ken Paxton has only raised about $35 million, but Elon Musk, whose Tesla is headquartered in Austin, has given nearly $200 million to help Paxton get elected.
Paxton’s main problem comes from the bloody primary battle with John Cornyn, because there is a large number of Republican Texans who will never vote for Paxton, citing corruption and impeachment charges against him, as well as his lackluster campaign for the office.
Democrats believe that if they could win this seat in Texas, and replant their flag there in a statewide race, that they could block Republicans from winning the presidency again for a long time, as those 40 Texas electoral votes in the Democrats’ column, representing an 80 electoral vote swing, would make it very difficult for a Republican to win nationally.
Texas of course plays a huge role in the U.S.’ energy dominance that Trump has secured in his two terms in office. It means high paying jobs, great revenues to the state government so it still doesn’t have to contemplate a state income tax.
The third big issue is border security, with Texas having had the task of being the front line of defense in blocking the open border policy of former President Joe Biden, along with his border czar and Vice President Kamala Harris. While Texas has done an excellent job working with the Trump administration to stop the bleeding, another round of open borders and tens of millions more people coming through the Texas-Mexico border is possibly one presidential election away.
In addition, Texas’s Latino population is more in line with the values of other conservatives in Texas when it comes to their faith, their work ethic, and rejecting the wave of socialism that has become a major part of the Democratic Party.
But when it comes to comparing America and the world under Trump versus a return to the way things were under former President Joe Biden, or the new wave of socialists, democratic or otherwise, the choice really shouldn’t be that hard.
If the Democrats win either the House or Senate, they won’t be able to advance a legislative or regulatory agenda, but they will most likely be able to grind the Trump and Republican agenda to a halt. There will be subpoenas flying, hearings and investigations daily, and if the Democrats control the House, there will definitely be more impeachments of Donald Trump. Probably two more.
What seems to be scaring the left is that there are a whole lot of people out there who would not admit to their friends or family that, while they may not like Trump’s manners, style, or personality, they really like what he is doing for this country, especially by comparison to the Biden administration, and probably plan to vote for Republican representative or senator who would plan to continue the Trump agenda.
They also can’t believe that the Democrats are really okay with all these causes and laws they purport to support, you know, like open borders, including all the related crime, fentanyl, sex trafficking, and violence; sanctuary cities; men participating in girls’ and women’s sports; shutting down our oil and gas production; abolishing ICE; defunding police departments; cashless bail for repeat offenders; transgender mutilation and indoctrination; and a complete federal government takeover of our healthcare system. And that’s just for starters.
In terms of policy, here is a sampling of other choices the country is facing. While gas prices are up, lots of other things have been happening as well. The One Big Beautiful Bill prevented what would have been one of, if not the largest, tax hikes ever. Trump Accounts are starting many people off on a path to being young capitalist investors. Already there are 70 million Americans with those accounts.
More than 10 trillion dollars have been committed to being invested in the U.S. economy, largely as a result of deals Trump has struck using tariffs as a negotiating tool. He secured a deal with Greenland and Denmark that is great for all three countries, and is a national security boon to the world, blocking out Russia and China from being able to threaten dominance in that region.
Plus Trump has unleashed a sleeping economy through deregulation, drill baby drill, securing the border and all that goes along with it, which may mean voters will surprise the pollsters in the midterms. They may say no to democratic socialism, open borders, sanctuary cities, DEI, men competing in women’s sports, the government paying $300 a night for hotel rooms in Times Square for people who came in the country illegally or through some sham process, and the unthinkable release of violent repeat offenders back onto the streets.
Comparing Joe Biden’s four years with Donald Trump’s second term is less a contest of personalities than a test of governing philosophy. Twenty-one months into the second term, the record on the economy, opportunity, immigration, public safety, education, religious liberty, border security, fentanyl, and jobs offers conservatives substantial vindication, along with one stubborn exception.
The Biden years produced the worst inflation in four decades: the consumer price index peaked at a 9.1 percent annual rate in June 2022, and over his full four-year term prices rose 21.5 percent.
Trump’s term has not repealed inflation, which cooled off early on, reaching 2.3 percent in April 2025, before energy prices pushed the annual rate back to 3.7 percent this September, with prices up about 5.4 percent.
Public Safety
The murder rate stood at 6.6 per 100,000 as recently as 2022, But in 2025, the FBI estimated that violent-crime offenses fell 9.3 percent and murder offenses fell 18.1 percent, while the murder rate reached 4.1 per 100,000. For conservatives, sustaining these gains means backing lawful policing and effective prosecution.
Education
Biden’s signature education initiative was a plan to cancel more than $400 billion in student loans by executive action, struck down 6-3 by the Supreme Court. Trump has moved the other way. He signed the Educational Choice for Children Act on July 4, 2025. Executive Order 14191 directed agencies to steer federal funds toward K-12 scholarship programs, including for military and Native American families.
Biden’s Justice Department prosecuted pro-life demonstrators under the FACE Act; Trump pardoned nearly two dozen of those convicted. He established the White House Faith Office, the Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias, and the Religious Liberty Commission; directed federal agencies to protect prayer in public schools; and strengthened conscience protections for health workers who object to abortion and assisted suicide. Faith is no longer something citizens must check at the government’s door.
The choice? It is yours to make.
This column was published at Texas Latino Conservatives
The views expressed in CCNS member articles are not necessarily the views or positions of the entire CCNS. They are the views of the authors, who are members of the CCNS.
