President Donald Trump turned a rally into an unexpected body review of two key Republican Senate candidates. The president’s comments about Jon Husted and Ken Paxton at a Lubbock, Texas, event ranged from flattering to brutally blunt.
Donald Trump compares Ken Paxton with Jon Husted during October 27 remarks
President Donald Trump commented on Texas Senate candidate Ken Paxton’s physical appearance during an October 27 rally in Lubbock, Texas, according to The Daily Beast. Trump made the remarks shortly after praising Ohio Sen. Jon Husted’s physique at the same event. The president suggested Paxton’s body would not measure up to the same scrutiny.
“Maybe I should do that with Ken Paxton, but I’m not sure your body is gonna qualify,” Trump told the rally crowd. He had just finished describing his fascination with Husted’s build at length. “So I’m studying him, and I made the mistake of saying that I started off by studying his a–,” Trump said of Husted. He then praised the former college football player’s hands, shoulders and feet.
Trump noted that his public admiration of Husted had helped the Ohio senator in the polls. “He went up 12 points that day. He went from being down to being up,” Trump claimed. Most polls currently show Husted and Democratic challenger Sherrod Brown in a tight race.
The Lubbock remarks followed a pattern of Trump publicly mocking Paxton’s appearance. At a Rose Garden dinner on September 2, Trump told attendees they might not like how Paxton looks. “You might not love his look. You might not love his television interviews,” he said. At the Republican Midterm Convention in Dallas roughly a week later, Trump repeated similar sentiments. “He may not dress right. He may not talk exactly perfectly, and he may not be the best-looking guy I’ve ever seen,” Trump said.
Despite the repeated jabs, Trump has consistently endorsed Paxton for the Texas Senate seat. He has called Paxton “the greatest attorney general in America” and praised his loyalty. A recent Emerson College poll shows Democrat James Talarico leading Paxton among likely Texas voters, 48 percent to 46 percent.
