Texas always provides Capitol Hill with some of its finest Republicans. In the Senate, it has been no different. Ted Cruz makes headlines almost every week, and other Senator John Cornyn quietly goes about his business, and has done so for the last 22 years.
Cornyn has served as the majority whip, and minority whip, to add to his resume. But there has been plenty of gripe from Republicans in the past about him not being 'Republican enough.' Some have even gone to the point of calling him a Republican in Name Only (RINO).
But editor of the Texas Conservative Review Gary Polland says all in all, Cornyn is not a bad option.
"If you look at the role a leader plays...they are generally not a loudmouth, they are working behind the scenes...they have to work with other senators. You need to have the personality to bring people together...and Cornyn fits that," he says.
Of course, Cornyn has played roles in some fairly anti-Republican legislation. He spearheaded an anti-gun bill after the Uvalde school shooting and has supported legislation that would ultimately make illegal immigration slightly easier.
But when it comes down to it, he falls in line with the Right.
"Even his strong critics will find they agree with him on 80 to 90 percent of the issues," he says.
The Republican party is possibly more divided than it has been in its lifespan. There are different factions of hard Right, medium Right, and somewhat Right. Falling in the hard or medium Right column would be Cornyn's counterpart Ted Cruz.
Plenty of hardline conservatives would surely want a Cruz candidacy for the leader seat. Those same hardliners would also prefer Cornyn to exit from the party altogether. Therein lies the problem for the Republican party.
"The question becomes what you can get done...what is happening now is nothing is getting done. That is because 'compromise' has become a bad word," he says. "The problem we have...politicians who want to excise people from the party because they do not agree...they are ensuring we will lose down the line."
While on paper it adds up, many voters do not necessarily agree. Cornyn's approval rating is hovering around a dismal 24 percent.
Cornyn has one opponent for the job thus far, which is South Dakota Senator John Thune.
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