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MADISON, Wis. — Gov. Greg Abbott and Sen. Ted Cruz will be among the Texas Republicans who will address the Republican National Convention beginning Monday in Milwaukee, the Republican National Committee announced Saturday.
The list of speakers also includes U.S. Reps. Ronny Jackson of Amarillo, Monica De La Cruz of Edinburg and Wesley Hunt of Houston. All three are vocal supporters of former President Donald Trump, who will receive the party’s formal presidential nomination at the convention. Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, who defected from the Democratic Party to become a Republican last year, will also be on the main stage.
Abbott and Cruz were both floated as potential presidential candidates early in the cycle, though they never launched their own bids.
The last time Cruz spoke from the convention mainstage was in 2016, when he declined to endorse Trump after coming short in that year’s Republican primaries. Cruz has since become a vocal Trump supporter.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick will not attend the convention, even though he is the chair of Trump’s reelection efforts in Texas. He canceled his appearance in the wake of Hurricane Beryl, which killed at least 10 people. Much of the Houston area was without power for days. An estimated 700,000 customers remained without electricity Saturday afternoon.
“My first priority is not the Republican National Convention; it’s pushing CenterPoint and other utility companies in damaged areas to get power back and ensure our state continues to deliver what citizens need,” Patrick said on social media Friday.
Patrick’s statement was in response to a call from the Texas Democratic Party for him, Cruz and Abbott to stay in Texas rather than attend the convention. Abbott drew criticisms for going on a pre-scheduled business trip to Asia.
“Our state’s leaders should not be jetting off to applaud Donald Trump while Texans are still suffering,” Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement Friday night. “The Texas Democratic Party calls upon Greg Abbott, Dan Patrick and Ted Cruz to skip the Republican National Convention, and prioritize mitigating Beryl’s aftermath.”
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Cruz stayed in the Houston area for much of last week, missing votes in the U.S. Senate, to survey the damage and speak with those impacted by the storm. He and other lawmakers from Houston from both parties pushed the Biden administration to quickly approve disaster aid for the state.
Cruz’s 2021 trip to Cancun during a winter storm drew ridicule from Democrats, who are hoping to unseat him this year with U.S. Rep. Colin Allred. Cruz said the trip was a mistake and returned to Texas. Allred’s campaign has continued to refer back to the trip in its messaging.
Cruz’s campaign shot back that Allred was in Washington with the rest of the U.S. House last week.
“It took Can’t Comment Colin five days to visit Houston. Texas Dems should check their own nominee before they try to be relevant,” a Cruz spokesperson said in a statement.
Allred’s campaign said Cruz’s actions during Winter Storm Uri is what voters will remember this fall.
“No matter what Cancun Cruz says or does, Texans will never forget he abandoned them during the deadly freeze in 2021. Come November, Texans will elect a Senator they can count on,” Allred’s campaign said in response.
Jackson and Hunt are among Trump’s most fervent supporters on Capitol Hill. Jackson served as the White House physician to President Barack Obama and Trump and has remained a loyal Trump supporter since. Hunt has hosted outreach programs to court more Black voters to support Trump.
De La Cruz won her Rio Grande Valley seat in 2022 after national Republicans poured millions of dollars into the race. Her race was a litmus test for GOP efforts to court Hispanic voters in Texas. Her race for reelection this year is Democrats’ top U.S. House target in Texas and the most competitive congressional seat in the state.
“It is truly the honor of a lifetime and my story is the American Dream come true,” De La Cruz said in a statement. “I look forward to making the case for why we need President Donald Trump to fix our economy and restore law and order at the southern border.”
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Big news: director and screenwriter Richard Linklater; NPR President and CEO Katherine Maher; U.S. Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-California; and Luci Baines Johnson will take the stage at The Texas Tribune Festival, Sept. 5–7 in downtown Austin. Buy tickets today!
