Dan Crenshaw

Representative Dan Crenshaw, a Texas Republican, warned the GOP that trying to combat the "smears and conspiracies" that voters believe may prove ultimately futile, blaming them for his primary loss that happened earlier this month.

"The lesson to be learned is...you've got to get the truth out," Crenshaw told CBS News' Face the Nation host Margaret Brennan on Sunday. "You gotta try. But ultimately, this is a question for the American people. Are you going to believe everything you read online or that's sent to you in your mail?"

Why It Matters

Crenshaw lost his primary on March 3 after failing to secure President Donald Trump's endorsement, marking a second high-profile Republican who will now exit Congress following Marjorie Taylor Greene's departure earlier this year. Greene and Crenshaw have clashed with MAGA voters on a number of issues in recent years, with them even mocking Crenshaw as a "RINO"—or a "Republican in Name Only" after his loss.

Crenshaw was the only sitting Texas House Republican on the ballot without the president's endorsement, according to the Associated Press , underscoring the political liability of lacking Trump's backing among GOP voters.

The result highlights a power struggle inside the Texas GOP where loyalty tests to Trump and hard-right policy litmus became central, even as Trump withheld an endorsement in the race.

What To Know

On Sunday, Brennan discussed the primary results with Crenshaw, who lay the blame for his loss to state Representative Steve Toth on "smears" that were ultimately "debunked" but that he still believed weighed on voters' minds at the ballot box.

"I've been the target of online smears and conspiracies for a very long time," the congressman said. "My election was basically a product of that."

He added: "First of all, you have about 20 percent of Republican voters bothering to even vote at a primary, and then you have dozens of online smears and conspiracies that people were going into the voting booth actually believing that I was worth millions of dollars from insider trading. Doesn't matter how many times we thought we had debunked that, or that other people, and influencers, and what not, have debunked it, all of these things, people still went in believing it."

"Democrats spent almost a million dollars also pushing these smears on television," he added. "So Republican voters are going to the voting booth, believing what a Democrat told them on TV, based on a smear headline written by a liberal reporter in D.C. So that's the lesson, and it's not just for Republican politicians, it's a lesson for Republican voters."

In 2024, Crenshaw slammed a proposal calling for a ban on congressional members trading on the stock market, branding accusations of insider trading as "bull***** headlines."

Speaking to The Free Press, he hit back at allegations that he used his position in Congress to "beat" the stock market, addressing claims made by Fox News anchor Jesse Watters about his finances.

When asked if he supported a ban on members of Congress participating in the stock market, Crenshaw responded: "This is number 1,000 on my priority list of things to care about."

"This is one of those stupid things that I've been dragged through the mud on," the congressman said at the time. "Do you know how much f****** money I've ever had in the stock market? About $20,000, yet I've been dragged through the mud on this as if there's some insider trading."

He added that he also sent Fox News a letter from his lawyers "threatening them with defamation" since Watters "had basically insinuated that I was insider trading. Of course, it's not true—you'd be more surprised by how little information we have."

What People Are Saying

MAGA influencer Nick Sortor in a post on X earlier this month: "Dan Crenshaw, also known as Eyepatch McCain, has LOST HIS SEAT in Texas' 2nd Congressional District to Steve Toth YES! THANK YOU TEXAS! Crenshaw has been in a NON-STOP spiral in the past year, threatening to KlLL Tucker Carlson, and even being banned from Congressional trips for a period due to allegedly drunkenly harassing foreign counterparts. Enjoy unemployment, Crenshaw!"

Texas state Representative Steve Toth, a Republican, said in a victory statement: "This campaign has been a referendum on representatives who campaign one way and govern another, and the people have spoken."

What Happens Next

Given the district’s strong Republican tilt, Toth will likely be favored to win the general election in November, positioning him to join the next Congress.

In Congress, Toth will likely emphasize alignment with conservative priorities he campaigned on, while Texas Republicans assess whether the primary outcome will encourage additional challenges to incumbents seen as out of step with the party’s base.

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