Trump Tells Crowd Ken Paxton Is ‘A Pain in the A**’ Before Asking, ‘Is He Here, by the Way?’
At a rally for Paxton, Trump called him a “pain in the a**” and then praised him as a great attorney general.

SOURCE CHECK
TAP FOR WHYMediaite is an established digital news outlet with bylined reporting, though it is not a newspaper of record or major wire service. The article attributes remarks and polling analysis to named sources but provides limited reporting depth.
- Source type — An established national digital news outlet, but not a major wire service or newspaper of record.
- Editorial standards — The story attributes quotations and analysis to identifiable sources, but offers little independent context.
- Author attribution — The article identifies a reporter by name.
The short report includes direct quotations, attributes the newly obtained audio to The New York Times, and identifies a CNN analyst as the source of the favorability assessment. It gives little context for the figures or response from the candidates, so the reporting is useful but limited.
HOW WE SCORE ↗The story includes Trump’s praise and criticism of Paxton, Paxton’s reported private assessment of the convention, and polling analysis. It does not include responses from Paxton or Talarico or further context for the campaign figures.
- Source diversity — The article draws on rally remarks, a recording reported by The New York Times, and a CNN analyst.
- Counterarguments presented — No response from Paxton or Talarico is included.
- Omitted context — The polling figure is reported without details about the survey or its timing.
- Loaded language — The article quotes Trump’s insult but does not adopt it as its own characterization.
The report uses a colorful headline but mainly recounts Trump’s remarks and attributes the campaign and polling claims to their sources. The framing does not clearly favor a political side.
- Language tone — The headline repeats Trump’s profane phrase, but the article’s account is largely descriptive.
- Source selection — The story draws on Trump’s rally remarks, audio obtained by The New York Times, and a CNN analyst’s assessment.
- Framing — The report focuses on the exchange and campaign context without a clear partisan argument.
At a Texas rally, Donald Trump called Senate candidate Ken Paxton “a pain in the a**” while also praising him and urging support for his campaign. The story also reports newly obtained audio in which Paxton said a previous Trump event had hurt his campaign numbers.
Trump made the remarks during a rally in Denton, Texas, where he was supporting Paxton’s Senate campaign against James Talarico. Trump described Paxton as a longtime friend and loyal ally, then called him a “pain in the a**” before praising him as a great attorney general.
The article says audio obtained by The New York Times captured Paxton saying that a previous Dallas convention had lowered his campaign’s numbers. It also reports that CNN data analyst Harry Enten put Paxton’s net favorability at minus 16 points and described him as the least popular Texas Republican Senate nominee of the century.
Community verdict
9 VOTESPeople in this story
SWIPE →President who spoke at a rally supporting Paxton
Democratic Texas state representative running against Paxton
Part of a bigger story
2 OUTLETS- ARTICLES
- 2
- OUTLETS
- 2
- AVG CRED
- 72
Discussion · 0
Loading comments…


