2 Texas incumbents face primary test

Two longtime members of the U.S. House, a Democrat and a Republican representing districts at opposite ends of Texas, are fighting for their political lives as the Tuesday primaries approach.

In South Texas, Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Laredo is being challenged from the left by 26-year-old attorney Jessica Cisneros, recruited by the progressive group Justice Democrats, in what is being seen as a national test over the future of the Democratic Party.

In North Texas, Republican Rep. Kay Granger of Fort Worth, is being challenged from the right by Chris Putnam, a retired businessman and former local official who has questioned Granger's fealty to President Donald Trump.

The bitter primary battles come as Democrats and Republicans nationally grapple with forces that are shifting the priorities and identities of both parties.

"Both Cuellar and Granger are victims of perfection movements within their respective parties," said Mark Jones, professor of political science at Rice University. "This is the first real electoral test they've had since they became established."

The incumbents represent districts drawn to favor their parties, so Tuesday's winners are all but guaranteed to prevail in the November general election. Granger was first elected to Congress in 1996, Cuellar in 2004.

Advocacy groups have been pouring millions of dollars into the races in the last few weeks on both sides of the contests. And Republican and Democratic party officials, respectively, have moved in to protect the incumbents, who both have seniority on the powerful House Appropriations Committee.

The Congressional Leadership Fund, the top House GOP super PAC, has spent more than $1.2 million since Jan. 30 in support of Granger.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., traveled to Laredo last weekend in a show of force for Cuellar. "We assume that Henry will win, but we don't take anything for granted," Pelosi said at an event.

And the usually pro-Republican U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a Koch-funded super PAC recently made independent expenditures to support Cuellar after his strong backing for the recently-enacted trade pact with Mexico and Canada.

"We were concerned that a Justice Democrat candidate could give him a run for his money," said Scott Reed, senior political strategist at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which is supporting Cuellar with $200,000 in ads. "We felt Cuellar needed a boost."

Cuellar's race in the 28th congressional district, which stretches from the Texas-Mexico border to the San Antonio suburbs, has drawn national media attention since well before Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., endorsed Cisneros in February.

Democratic presidential candidates Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren also have endorsed Cisneros, and Sanders' surge in Texas, according to recent polling, may help Cisneros if Latinos vote for Sanders in large numbers as they did in helping him win the Nevada caucuses. The 28th District is 78.5% Latino.

Cisneros has gotten support from liberal groups such as Texas Forward, a super PAC affiliated with Emily's List, which supports pro-abortion rights Democratic women candidates, spending $1.2 million.

But Cuellar, who has opposed a Democratic proposal to ban fracking and also has received donations from oil and gas interests, has $2 million in cash on hand compared to Cisneros' nearly $300,000 according to federal campaign finance filings.

"Henry doesn't worry," Cuellar campaign spokesman Colin Strother said. "Henry works."

Cuellar has been campaigning for a year, Strother said, in what is the first close campaign the congressman has faced since his first congressional election when Cuellar himself challenged an incumbent Democrat.

Last weekend, Cisneros attempted to engage Cuellar at a parade, asking him why he wouldn't debate her. "Why would he?" said Strother, who said Cuellar ignored her. "She's not a serious candidate. The only people who think she is are people who follow her on Twitter."

On the other side of the partisan coin, the GOP establishment is defending the incumbent against the challenger in the 12th Congressional District that stretches westward from Fort Worth.

Putnam, Granger's opponent, is a former tech executive and former member of the Colleyville City Council, who is challenging her on three main issues: her belated support for Trump, her earlier pro-abortion rights stance, and a project in downtown Fort Worth funded largely by federal monies which has been spearheaded by her son.

"We need strong conservative leadership in Washington," Putnam told the American-Statesman. "This race is the choice between a pro-Trump, pro-life conservative fighter and a 24-year incumbent who's attacked the president and always stood in the way of Republican priorities like securing the border."

In campaign ads, Putnam contrasts his support for Trump with Granger's initial opposition to him, highlighting Granger's call for Trump to step down as the GOP nominee in October 2016 after the "Access Hollywood" tape surfaced of Trump making lewd comments about women.

But Trump endorsed Granger in December, saying in a tweet, "Kay has my Complete and Total Endorsement!"

Asked how he could reconcile that for voters, Putnam claimed his values aligned closer to Trump's. "Republicans are figuring it out," he said. "They don't want someone who is loyal to the president only out of convenience."

Club for Growth, a conservative activist group focused on limiting government spending and economic issues, has spent $1.5 million supporting Putnam and anticipates spending another $500,000 by Tuesday.

"Kay's position on appropriations as the Republican head of the committee has been to sign off on all these budgets with higher and higher deficits," said Dave McIntosh, president of the Club for Growth.

The group also is hitting Granger hard over the stalled Panther Island flood control and economic development project which has ballooned to $1.2 billion and raised questions about her son's role running the project.

An ad sponsored by the group likens the issue to then-Vice President Joe Biden's son landing a position on the board of a Ukrainian energy company. Republicans said during the impeachment trial that Trump was justified in pursuing an investigation into the company because of the possibility of corruption.

"Politicians cashing in," a voice says in the ad. "The Bidens. And the Grangers. With little experience, Kay Granger's son got a $200,000 job on a project Granger pushed to fund with your taxes."

Granger also is getting support from the business community, especially North Texas' defense industries.

Rebecca Deen, chairwoman and associate professor at University of Texas at Arlington's political science department, said, "What might get under the skin of many voters is the Panther Island project. It's glaringly not finished. There's dirt under the half-finished bridges instead of water. It's a very powerful symbol to voters."

Jim Riddlesperger, political science professor at Texas Christian University said, "Granger has been unchallenged since the day she was (first) elected to Congress."

Could Putnam win?

"I think the answer is yes," Riddlesperger said.

Granger has a little over $700,000 in cash on hand while Putnam has almost $300,000.

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