CORPUS CHRISTI — President Donald Trump on Tuesday touted the arrival of 1 million barrels of Venezuelan oil to be refined in Texas as he swung through the state on another round of campaign stops for Ken Paxton and other Republicans.
Speaking at the Port of Corpus Christi, the president said the shipment was a sign of an upswing for Americans as many face stiflingly high gas prices and have grown weary of the war in Iran.
The U.S. “is making an absolute fortune because of the situation in the Middle East,” Trump said. He reiterated his promise that the war, now eight months underway, would “end very soon.” And he defended his decision this year to depose Venezuela’s leader, Nicholas Maduro, which opened the door for a sweeping oil agreement with the South American country.
“Jobs are happening in Venezuela that nobody would have thought even possible,” Trump said, adding, “Who knows? Maybe someday soon it will become a prosperous 51st state.”
The visit was the president’s third to Texas since September, and comes as national Republicans appear increasingly nervous about the party’s chances in next week’s midterm elections. Paxton, who is facing James Talarico in the state’s U.S. Senate matchup, has trailed in nearly every recent poll, and several Texas Republican congressional candidates find themselves in unusually tight contests.
U.S. oil companies, including Texas-based Chevron and ExxonMobil, have reported massive profits as the price of crude has shot up from the Iran war. Trump’s personal holdings in oil and gas have also doubled, from between $12.6 million to $46 million at the end of last year to $22.5 million and $81.6 million, according to a new report by Democrats on the Congressional Joint Economic Committee.
During his speech, Trump said voters have a “two-week lifespan of memory,” and that he wanted to talk about the border before his reelection.
“My professionals say, ‘Sir, you’ve solved that problem. Nobody wants to talk about the border,’” Trump said. “I say, ‘Please, I want to talk. I did such a good job.’”
He also defended his tariffs, which have driven up the cost of some goods, saying someday they will be appreciated.
Trump then promised to free up more federal emergency relief funds to address the damage caused from last year’s deadly Hill Country floods. The Federal Emergency Management Agency recently denied a request for individual assistance. Trump didn’t specify what more relief would be coming or when, but he said it was at the behest of Paxton, who is the state’s attorney general, and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz.
The president reupped his support for Republican U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz and former federal prosecutor Eric Flores, who are both in tight U.S. House races and spoke on Tuesday. Paxton also took the stage, blasting Talarico for his past support of the transgender community.
While some Republicans have distanced themselves from Trump amid his sinking popularity, Paxton has leaned into his ties to the president.
“Would you agree that President Trump knows how to pack a crowd?” Paxton asked the crowd of supporters, receiving cheers. “Would you agree that he’s the greatest president in your lifetime? Would you agree that he’s the best president in modern times to make America great again?”
The president was also joined by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, attorney general nominee Mayes Middleton and, briefly, Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Gov. Greg Abbott was campaigning up the coast and did not make an appearance.
In an interview, Flores said he was grateful for the influx of Republican help this late in the cycle. Asked about Democrats’ strong polling in Texas and nationally amid inflation and economic insecurities, he said, “There is only so much the candidate controls.”
“The rest of it is in the environment,” Flores said. He added: “But what is so good for us is that we have such a terrible member of Congress.” Flores is facing U.S. Rep. Vincente Gonzalez. He referenced Gonzalez’s record of missing 222 out of 5,097 roll call votes since he took office in 2017.
De La Cruz, who has recently called herself an underdog in her reelection bid, used her speech to go after her opponent, Tejano music star Bobby Pulido. She referenced his family’s political influence in South Texas and said she was a political outsider “with no famous last name.”
She also returned to previous attacks about a former bandmate of Pulido’s, who was a registered sex offender for a 2014 conviction of indecency with a child by contact. Pulido has said he didn’t know about the conviction when he was still working with the bandmate, Frankie Caballero.
“He looked the other way,” De La Cruz said. “That’s who Bobby Pulido is: a corrupt liberal creep who will make your life harder.”
Haajrah Gilani, Staff writer, San Antonio Express News
