The Daily Wire has exclusively obtained undercover video of Texas Democratic U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico admitting his views on transgender issues “haven’t changed” days after he told a national television audience he would oppose transgender athletes competing in girls’ sports if their participation threatened safety and fairness.
The Senate Democratic nominee told an individual posing as a supporter that his passionate support for transgender kids in the Texas Legislature will carry into the Senate. In the Sept. 13 recording, Talarico was meeting voters at Houston’s Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church when a woman asked the Democrat whether she could count on him to defend her “niece who is trans” and her ability to compete in women’s sports.
“Always,” Talarico responded. “The way I fought for trans kids in the legislature is how I will fight for them in the U.S. Senate. And my position hasn’t changed.”
Talarico then said he believes transgender sports policies should be decided locally and on a case-by-case basis.
“I still think these should be local decisions, sport by sport, athlete by athlete, and I think I have the most inclusive policy of any candidate who’s running. So I know things are getting clipped and stuff, but my views, my position hasn’t changed,” Talarico said. “And I’m gonna have your loved ones back.”
The footage was captured days after Talarico went on Fox News earlier this month to revisit his most extreme past positions, insisting he “missed the mark” as Republicans rallied in Dallas to boost Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton.
“Every sport has to be safe and fair. As a former public school teacher, I care a lot about our student athletes. And so, I will oppose trans athletes playing in girls’ sports if it risks safety or fairness,” Talarico told the outlet in a Sept. 9 interview.
On Fox News, Talarico emphasized potential restrictions on transgender athletes. Four days later, he assured a purported supporter that his position “hasn’t changed” and described his policy as the most “inclusive” of any Democrat running this cycle.
Talarico’s unearthed comments match his voting record. In 2021, he opposed Senate Bill 29 while serving on the Texas House Public Education Committee. The legislation sought to require public-school athletes to compete according to the biological sex listed on their birth certificates.
During the interview, Talarico also pledged to “absolutely” support a national ban on gender-transition surgeries for minors. In reality, Talarico voted against Senate Bill 14, the 2023 Texas legislation restricting certain sex-transition procedures for minors.
“James Talarico can’t outrun his own radical record, and this bombshell video proves it,” Madison Cercy, a Paxton campaign spokeswoman, said to The Daily Wire’s report. “He voted against protecting kids and voted against protecting girls’ sports. Now, even he admits his position ‘hasn’t changed.’ This video has finally exposed James Talarico for who he truly is: a hypocrite, rampant flip-flopper, and a liar.”
It’s not the first undercover video to raise questions about Talarico’s political posturing as he races to win over conservative-minded Texas moderates in a traditionally red state.
A lesbian minister at Talarico’s longtime Austin church, who doubts Jesus ever existed, suggested his media-driven shift is nothing more than a political stunt, according to undercover footage obtained by The Daily Wire.
Rev. Babs Miller of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church was caught agreeing with Talarico’s “God is nonbinary” declaration before saying he was receiving political advice from national party consultants to change his tune.
“I can guarantee you that once he gets elected, he’ll change his tune back to where he was,” Miller said.
When asked whether Talarico was “playing this game” to win, Miller agreed, saying his campaign had convinced him to back off his previous positions on LGBT issues leading up to the election.
“I think it’s bad advice personally, but if it helps him win, okay,” an exasperated Miller added.
The Daily Wire also published undercover footage of Jennifer Miranda, a manager with Texas Together and the Texas Democratic Party, shedding light on Talarico’s misleading shift.
Miranda said Talarico “does believe the things that he’s said before” and characterized his new approach as an effort to become more acceptable to Republican voters.
“I would say right now he’s trying to target a wider net, which unfortunately means being more palatable to Republicans here in Texas,” Miranda said in the footage. “He really needs to win those Texans over.”
“You talk to some Republicans, and they’re very Republican, especially here in Texas … very, very to the right,” she added.
The Talarico campaign did not respond to requests for comment.
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