Texas politics just took a turn for the literary—and the deeply bitter.
Following a stinging defeat in Tuesday’s Texas Senate Republican primary, outgoing Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) took to social media to share a message that has political observers buzzing.
On Friday morning, Cornyn posted the famous fable of the frog and the scorpion on X (formerly Twitter), adding only a brief, enigmatic caption: “An old but apt fable.”
For those unfamiliar with the tale, it tells the story of a scorpion that begs a frog to carry it across a river. The frog hesitates, fearing it will be stung, but the scorpion points out that if it stings the frog, both will drown. Mid-river, the scorpion stings anyway. As they both sink, the frog asks why. The scorpion replies: “It is in my nature.”
The timing of the post makes the subtext hard to ignore.
Just days earlier, Donald Trump effectively torpedoed Cornyn’s reelection campaign by throwing his powerful endorsement behind Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Backed by Trump’s MAGA base, Paxton cruised to a decisive victory, ending Cornyn’s long tenure in the Senate.
What makes the cryptic post sting even more is Cornyn’s history. The senator frequently touted his loyalty to the former president, boasting a record of voting aligned with Trump’s positions 99.3 percent of the time.
When reached for comment, Cornyn’s office declined to offer any clarification, and the senator has not walked back the post.
Left to fill in the blanks, analysts are widely interpreting the fable as a bitter parting shot at Trump—a coded warning about the inherent nature of a political ally who stings, even when it defies logic.
Sources:
- Social media posts and public statements via X (@JohnCornyn).
- Texas Republican Primary Election Results.
Austin’s 26th homicide investigation is underway after city employees discovered a body with “visible trauma” inside a trash can in South Austin on Saturday afternoon. The body was found around 12:26 p.m. while workers were emptying bins in the 4400 block of Pack Saddle Pass near Western Trails Road. (Austin Police Department)
Just after the discovery on Saturday, APD provided some details of the incident.
Austin police are still searching for a suspect in the shooting of a man on Burton Drive back in January.
Royal Blue Grocery said someone broke into both their East 6th Street and West 3rd Street locations last month, once on May 17 and again the very next day.
The Hays County Sheriff’s Office assisted the U.S. Marshals Service’s Lone Star Fugitive Task Force yesterday with a warrant service off of West Valley Springs Road in Wimberley.
Georgetown Police officers are investigating 20 vehicle burglaries that occurred over the weekend late at night in the Village, Fairhaven, Teravista, and Summercrest neighborhoods.
Austin firefighters say a malfunctioning refrigerator caused a fire at Bar Peached over the weekend.
(Photos: Eric Silverstein)
After nearly two months in detention and following a successful habeas corpus petition, a San Marcos man is being released from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody after a March traffic stop led to his arrest.
Gerardo Reyes was released shortly after 5 p.m. Monday from the T. Don Hutto ICE Detention Center. His release follows a judge’s ruling that questioned the legality of his detention and ordered ICE to free him while his immigration case proceeds.
New housing developments in San Marcos, Buda and Kyle…transportation updates… a company specializing in customizable soda drinks, non-soda beverages and energy drinks coming to Hutto…a bond-funded renovation at Round Rock High School…and more from Community Impact.
Meanwhile, Georgetown officials have broken ground on a new $36 million YMCA facility.
PODCAST
Have you encountered an e-moto on the streets of Austin? The high-speed electric bikes are capable of reaching motorcycle-like speeds, and the Austin City Council is looking at stricter regulations.
(Episode from June 1, 2026)
WEATHER
MONDAY’S HIGH / LOW TEMPERATURES
AUSTIN-BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
CAMP MABRY
5-DAY FORECAST / AUSTIN, TEXAS
Hurricane season officially began yesterday.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against the City of Denton and its officials over the planned June 7 “Big Gay Swim Day” event at a city-owned pool, claiming the event’s original advertising of “gender‑neutral changing rooms” violated Senate Bill 8, which requires public facilities to segregate restrooms and changing rooms by sex assigned at birth
Battleship Texas delivered a booming salute on Monday to celebrate the transformation of Galveston’s Gulf Copper shipyard into Davie Defense’s newest factory. The facility will construct icebreakers for the U.S. Coast Guard. Attending officials—including Gov. Greg Abbott, Sen. Ted Cruz, and Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday—emphasized that the launch cements the Texas Gulf Coast’s rising strategic importance in global defense.
At least 248 data centers are planned to be built in Texas. Of those, nearly half will be built in unincorporated areas, where county officials are limited in their ability to regulate development, according to a Texas Tribune analysis. (Texas Tribune)
Environmental activist Erin Brockovich has a new mission: Bringing more transparency to data center construction and the impact those data centers have on nearby communities.
Brockovich — who was famously played by Julia Roberts in a film dramatizing her legal case against Pacific Gas & Electric — recently launched a website with a map of data centers across the United States.
Texas’ SB 2420, the App Store Accountability Act, is now temporarily enforceable after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stayed a federal injunction, allowing age verification and parental consent rules for minors’ app downloads and purchases to proceed while the legal challenge continues. (KETK-TV)
Democrat James Talarico drew the largest crowd yet of his campaign for the U.S. Senate in Plano Monday night during his “The People vs. Ken Paxton Tour.”
Jim Rigby, a pastor who rarely uses the word “God,” is a key to understanding the Senate candidate trying to pull off something unusual in Texas. (New York Times)
SpaceX, Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite maker, is set to go public and begin selling shares as soon as next week.
Ryan Mac, who reports on business, explains the plan for the company’s expected record-shattering debut on the stock market, and how it is changing the rules for investing.
(Episode from June 1, 2026)
Congressman Greg Casar wants to tax artificial intelligence companies. But to do so, he’s drawing inspiration from the Great Depression and the 1930s.
The first-degree murder trial of Karmelo Anthony just got underway in North Texas, with jury selection officially beginning at the Collin County Courthouse in McKinney.
The case stems from the fatal stabbing of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf on April 2, 2025, during a high school track meet at Kuykendall Stadium in Frisco. Both Anthony (who attended Centennial High) and Metcalf (who attended Memorial High) were 17 at the time.
Texas State Parks issues a warning about keeping aware of snakes when outdoors.
SPORTS
COLLEGE SOFTBALL: Going into Monday, the Texas Longhorns had their backs against the wall, needing two consecutive wins over a formidable Tennessee squad just to survive.
By Monday evening, they had completely dominated the diamond.
Fueled by a Citlaly Gutierrez gem in game one and a spectacular 10-strikeout, two-hit shutout by Teagan Kavan in the winner-take-all finale, Texas blanked the Lady Vols to advance to the WCWS Finals.
After the second game, tensions were high.
Up next for the resilient Longhorns: a historic championship series rematch against Texas Tech, marking the first time in WCWS history that the exact same two programs will battle for the title in back-to-back years.
The Red Raiders are coming off some controversy of their own.
MLB: If the Texas Rangers really want to make a run for the AL West title, they need to start stringing some wins together and have a strong month of June.
They seem to be responding.
Jacob deGrom tossed five scoreless innings to earn his 100th career win and Ezequiel Duran had three hits as the Texas Rangers beat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-1 on Monday night. (Associated Press)
Game 2 of the series is tonight.
The Houston Astros had Monday off. They’re back home tonight hosting the Pittsburgh Pirates to begin a midweek series.
GYMNASTICS: On Monday, Texas State announced it would officially launch the first NCAA Division I women’s gymnastics program in Texas, with a newly formed team ready to compete in spring 2028. The move correlates with the Bobcats’ transition to the Pac-12 Conference, which officially begins July 1.
The City of Austin is planning for public safety and health as it hosts Saudi Arabia for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
NBA FINALS: With the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks squaring off in the NBA Finals, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott went completely rogue and dropped a digital war crime on New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s timeline.
Governor Hochul responded…
In other NBA-related news…
This week, we’re sharing some old Texas Country Reporter stories from beloved businesses that are no longer in operation. Though their doors may be closed, the impact they left on us is strong. We hope this collection encourages viewers like you to stop by local restaurants and shops to support the fine folks strengthening communities all over this state.
