Sen. John Cornyn supports school choice but won't condemn Texas Republicans against it

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, this week affirmed his support for school choice, but shied away from condemning any Republican in the Legislature for voting against Gov. Greg Abbott's signature education savings accounts proposal, which would have created the controversial program.

School choice, also known as vouchers or education savings accounts, uses public money to help pay for students' private schooling. Rural Republicans have joined Democrats in the Texas House in stopping school choice from passing, saying the proposal would drain much-needed funding from public schools. Proponents argue the program would help parents pick the right schools for their children, and sometimes those academic institutions are private.

School choice has pitted Republicans in Texas against members of their party, with top state GOP officials blasting colleagues in the House who have come out against it. Abbott — who has threatened to support candidates in GOP primary races who challenge lawmakers who voted against school choice proposals — on Monday published a list of 58 House Republicans he was endorsing for reelection in 2024, all of whom have supported education savings accounts. None of the Republicans who have voted against such proposals were endorsed on his list.

Abbott also endorsed former President Donald Trump on Sunday.

When Cornyn was asked if he would be endorsing any presidential candidates, the senator said his backing likely wouldn't sway voters, and, in his experience, "endorsing in the primary is not a particularly good idea." He did not mention endorsements for local races, but said he is against intraparty fighting.

More: Sen. John Cornyn volunteers at Texas food bank, talks food insecurity

“I'm part of the politics of addition, not subtraction," Cornyn told reporters at a news conference Tuesday morning after passing out Thanksgiving meals at a Central Texas Food Bank distribution event. "Internal fights among Republicans is not particularly helpful to our party maintaining its majority status.”

Though he believes school choice is a good proposal ― pointing to government-funded Pell Grants for higher education as a “pretty good model” ― Cornyn said he understands the arguments from both sides.

The school choice fight in Texas

On Nov. 17, 21 House Republicans joined Democrats in likely killing school choice from advancing in the Legislature's fourth special session this year, after voting to remove the education savings account portion of a comprehensive $7.6 billion education funding bill that would have also increased per-student spending in public schools and raised teacher pay. After the education savings accounts were removed, the House sent the bill back to the Education Committee, whose chairman said he would not be calling the measure up for reconsideration.

Abbott — who has spent the last year advocating for school choice, even calling on religious leaders to push for the program from the pulpit — said last week he wasn't done fighting for "parent empowerment" and vowed to continue the battle in the Legislature and at the ballot box. Abbott has threatened to call lawmakers back for successive special sessions until school choice is passed.

More: Did the Texas House kill school choice? How Gov. Greg Abbott says he'll keep fighting.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Tuesday put out a charged statement about the House rejecting the school choice proposal, and he particularly called out House Speaker Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, and the 21 Republicans who joined Democrats in voting to strip school choice from the education funding bill.

"Speaker Dade Phelan didn’t help either. Phelan abstained from voting on school choice. Talk about a lack of leadership," Patrick said. "It's hard to pass school choice when the Speaker is too cowardly to vote for it himself."

House speakers generally refrain from voting.

The rift between Phelan and Patrick, who presides over the Texas Senate, has been acrimonious and widening throughout the year, with the legislative chambers fighting each other on several issues, including tax relief proposals — which was ultimately settled during this year's second special session — school choice and the impeachment of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

In late May, the House overwhelmingly voted to impeach Paxton on 20 charges, including for bribery and abuse of office. Ultimately, Paxton was acquitted on all charges in September after a trial in the Texas Senate.

More: As districts, parents seek better education outcomes, Texas lawmakers weigh school choice

Since his acquittal, Paxton has been vocal about his desire to prop up GOP primary challengers against those who voted for his impeachment.

On Monday, when Rep. Andrew Murr, who chairs the House Investigating Committee that advanced the impeachment against Paxton, announced he would not seek reelection after a decade on the job, the attorney general posted on X, formerly Twitter: “One down and many more to go!”

American-Statesman reporter Hogan Gore contributed to this report.

Editor's note: This article was updated to clarify that U.S. Sen. John Cornyn said he would not endorse a candidate for the presidential elections.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Cornyn supports school choice but understands Republicans against it