John Cornyn to back Roy Moore for Senate

Cornyn, the No. 2-ranking Senate Republican, said he hopes Moore, who will face off with Democrat Doug Jones in December, follows in the “footsteps” of Sessions, who served for 20 years in the upper chamber before leaving to join the Trump administration in February.

“Alabamians will soon elect a new U.S. Senator and I hope they will vote for the candidate who will follow in former Senator Sessions’ footsteps as a tireless advocate led by principle rather than politics,” Cornyn said in a statement. “That is why I am proud to offer my support to Judge Roy Moore for U.S. Senate. I look forward to working with him to pass legislation that will effect meaningful change for all Americans.”

The endorsement is an about-face for the Texas Republican, who had been a top supporter of Sen. Luther Strange, R-Ala., ahead of the primary runoff in late September. He’s the fourth GOP senator to back Moore since last Monday, as Sens. Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, and Mike Lee all jumped on board with endorsements as well.

At one point, Cornyn criticized Moore for being kicked off the state’s Supreme Court twice as chief justice and argued he would not be a team player within the GOP conference.

“Getting thrown off the Supreme Court of your state twice, I don’t think, is a credential that commends you for membership in the United States Senate,” Cornyn told reporters ahead of the primary.

Cornyn is also a top ally of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who led the charge against Moore in the primary. The Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC run by McConnell allies, spent $9 million in support of Strange and in opposition to Moore ahead of the runoff.

The general election contest between Moore and Jones is set for Dec. 12. Moore currently holds a slight polling advantage over the Democratic opponent in the deep-red state, leading by 6 points according to the latest RealClearPolitics average of polls.