Ken Paxton’s Wife Files for Divorce ‘on Biblical Grounds’

Welcome back to Barf Bag.

Well, the Texas Senate primary just got a lot more interesting. On Thursday, state Senator Angela Paxton announced that she had filed for divorce from her husband, Attorney General Ken Paxton. AG Paxton, you’ll recall, is a big anti-abortion freak.

Angela wrote on social media that she was seeking a divorce “on biblical grounds.” She added, “I believe marriage is a sacred covenant and I have earnestly pursued reconciliation. But in light of recent discoveries, I do not believe that it honors God or is loving to myself, my children, or Ken to remain in the marriage.” Ope!

Austin NPR affiliate KUT reports that Angela’s divorce petition accuses Ken of adultery and claims the couple stopped living together in June 2024. KUT also notes that cheating accusations aren’t new: “The attorney general has long been dogged with allegations of infidelity, including during impeachment proceedings in 2023 that ended in his acquittal. He was accused of securing a job for the woman with whom he was having an alleged affair.” Angela attended the trial as an elected official but did not vote.

Angela’s unique word choice did at least lead to some good jokes online.

today, after 38 years of marriage, I filed for divorce on biblical grounds (she ate an apple)

— Tequila Mockingbird (@xanindigo.bsky.social) 2025-07-11T01:50:26.496Z

As for Ken’s own statement on the matter, he wrote: “After facing the pressures of countless political attacks and public scrutiny, Angela and I have decided to start a new chapter in our lives. I could not be any more proud or grateful for the incredible family that God has blessed us with, and I remain committed to supporting our amazing children and grandchildren. I ask for your prayers and privacy at this time.”

The duo used to be ride or dies, with Angela helping Ken drive a getaway car to help him dodge a subpoena in 2022. When a process server tried to serve Ken at their home with a subpoena to testify in an abortion case, Angela drove them both away in a truck.

Now onto the 2026 Senate primary. Paxton is running against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn. Establishment GOP folks want Cornyn to win, while MAGA types favor Paxton—and he is leading in the polls by double digits.

Notably, the GOP campaign arm for the upper chamber, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, took a big swipe at Paxton after the news broke. NRSC communications director Joanna Rodriguez wrote on Twitter that Paxton’s actions were “truly repulsive and disgusting.” (Uh, now I’m left wondering if this was a garden-variety affair or not.) The group, which generally supports incumbents, has already endorsed Cornyn, but the statement is still notable given Paxton’s apparent popularity.

What Ken Paxton has put his family through is truly repulsive and disgusting.

No one should have to endure what Angela Paxton has, and we pray for her as she chooses to stand up for herself and her family during this difficult time. https://t.co/OiEtOlKRVL

— Joanna Rodriguez (@joannamrod) July 10, 2025

Aides to Donald Trump have reportedly said the president won’t get involved in the race until he sees if Cornyn can close his polling gap. Both campaigns believe a Trump endorsement will make or break them, so now we get to wait and see who Trump blesses.

Former Rep. Colin Allred is again running for the Democratic nomination, and some believe that Paxton would be a weak enough candidate for the state to flip blue, but I’m not holding my breath.

Trump-related barf:

• The Department of Defense will no longer provide satellite weather data, which will leave hurricane forecasters without crucial information ahead of hurricane season. [NPR]
• The Justice Department has subpoenaed more than 20 doctors and hospitals that provide gender-affirming care to minors and is demanding confidential patient information [New York Times]
• The Trump administration used the pro-Israel doxxing website Canary Mission to target pro-Palestinian academics for deportation, according to court records. [Politico]
• Immigration and Customs Enforcement now has access to a database of health and car insurance claims that it’s using to track down people it wants to deport. [404 Media]
• Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins claimed that, after the administration deports a bunch of farm workers, there are millions of “able bodied” people with Medicaid who can take their place. [Bluesky]
• The Department of Health and Human Services declared that undocumented immigrants will no longer be eligible for federally funded preschool program Head Start, or for federal programs for mental health and substance use. [Associated Press/HHS]
• Headline: “Foreign medical residents fill critical positions at US hospitals, but are running into visa issues.” [Associated Press]
• The Federal Bureau of Investigation is giving lie-detector tests to employees to see if they have said anything bad about FBI director Kash Patel. [New York Times]
• Vice President JD Vance has a question about New York City’s Democratic nominee for mayor, Zohran Mamdani: “I wonder, has he ever read the letters from boy soldiers in the Union Army to parents and sweethearts that they’d never see again?” [Talking Points Memo]
• After Elon Musk said he’s launching a political party, Tesla lost $68 billion in value. [CNBC]
• Speaking of that party, Musk has reported been chatting with far-right supporter of America having a dictator, Curtis Yarvin, and failed presidential candidate Andrew Yang. [New York Times/Politico]
• Alina Habba, Trump’s pick for U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, has been under an ethics investigation for more than a year for legal advice she gave to an employee at one of Trump’s golf clubs, and her law license is at risk. [NOTUS]
• Trump’s dumb social media company Truth Social is launching a streaming service in partnership with Newsmax called Truth+. [Reuters]

This has been your weekly Barf Bag, thanks for reading!