Usually, when you think of Texas U.S. Senators, we default to thinking of the unlikeable Ted Cruz.

We have another though, and his name is John Cornyn. 

Cornyn’s been carrying water for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and the ideological right-wing for nearly two decades. Here are 10 things you should know about this fairly unknown, dangerous Senator. 

10. Cornyn’s first act as a Senate Subcommittee Chair was to remove the words “civil rights and human rights” from the subcommittee’s name.

The old saying “actions speak louder than words” rings true in his action to remove the last five words from the U.S. Senate subcommittee formerly known as “Constitution, Civil Rights, and Human Rights.” 

9. Cornyn says he believes in climate change, but voted for an EPA administrator who spent his career undermining the agency. 

Cornyn talks a good game on climate, but that doesn’t matter much when he votes in line with all of the other climate deniers in Congress. He approved former Oklahoma Attorney General and known climate-denier Scott Pruitt as head of the Environmental Protection Agency. 

“It does very little good for some members of their party to claim they accept climate change as a reality, if they keep voting like it's a big hoax,” said Michael A. Lindenberger in a Dallas Morning News editorial. 

And now, because of Cornyn’s vote, Pruitt’s climate change denials are official EPA talking points.

8. When Republicans leaders were distancing themselves from disgraced Alabama Senate nominee Roy Moore, Cornyn stuck with him.

We could tell you more, but the Dallas Morning News Editorial Board put it best:

“Sen. John Cornyn’s endorsement this week of Roy Moore for the U.S. Senate from Alabama is a new low not just for the former jurist and ex-Texas attorney general, but for the party he claims to love.

We had hoped, as many have, that Cornyn would stand against the tide of populist, nativist and exclusionary politics that have come to dominate the Republican Party in Texas and elsewhere. That hope has now been all but extinguished.”

7. When Cornyn’s office was flooded with phone calls in opposition to Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education, he said it was “Establishment Conspiracy!”

Yep, he really said it. Apparently, Cornyn isn’t used to getting these kinds of calls, which were so numerous that they crashed his office’s phone system.

6. Cornyn denied confirmation of a Supreme Court justice for an entire year.

After the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, President Barack Obama nominated Merrick Garland to the court. 

Yet, Cornyn was one of the people who promoted an unprecedented year-long effort to deny a sitting president a Supreme Court Justice nomination, despite most Texans supporting hearings. 

5. Cornyn accepts large donations from the NRA and insists that gun violence is not a problem.

Cornyn is consistently among the top earners of Texas elected officials getting big bucks from the NRA. While gun violence continues to negatively impact our communities, schools, and religious places, Cornyn is more likely to side with special interests than protect the lives of Texans. 

4.  Cornyn is consistently against net neutrality. 

Talk about siding with corporations! 

Cornyn joined his Texas counterpart Ted Cruz in 2017 to co-sponsor a bill called the “Restoring Internet Freedom Act,” which would have allowed Internet Service Providers and companies to block, throttle, or favor websites and apps in exchange for money. 

3. Cornyn would not acknowledge a DREAMer from Texas. 

To not make space for constituents, to not listen to real concerns, shows Cornyn’s true colors. 

He’s not fighting for us. He’s fighting to keep the power he’s had for far too long, and hurting Texans in the process.

2. Cornyn’s against the Affordable Care Act and has no alternative to it.

Texas has the largest population of people without health insurance, yet Cornyn has stood firmly against the Affordable Care Act since it’s inception. Even with his numerous votes to repeal, we’ve yet to see any sort of plan to replace health insurance for Texans.

Maybe it’s because he doesn’t care, and maybe that’s why his numbers indicate the voters are due to repeal his time in office. Stay tuned…

1. Cornyn is a Trump enabler.

Cornyn’s biggest flaw is his unwavering support for Trump. 

Even when Texans’ health care is at risk, even when our immigrant neighbors and friends are being attacked, even when our votes are being taken away, and even when our rights are being trampled, Cornyn. Does. Nothing. 

Cornyn is complacent and active in the extremist Republican party, and he does not represent Texans. He’s got to go. 

Just like you spoke out against Ted Cruz, join us in speaking out against John Cornyn. Sign up for action alerts from Progress Texas.