Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton&#8217;s Senate campaign is launching a new television ad targeting Democratic challenger James Talarico&#8217;s record, accusing the state representative of attempting to reinvent himself for a statewide audience while hiding his leftist past.
The new ad, titled &#8220;Hypocrite,&#8221; will air during the Texas Democratic Convention in Corpus Christi, where the event is scheduled to take place from June 25 through the 27. The ad focuses on what the Paxton campaign describes as a growing disconnect between Talarico&#8217;s current messaging and his legislative record.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Paxton for Senate new ad “Hypocrite”" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MtR4fLsIXP4?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
&#8220;James Talarico is a hypocrite when it comes to fighting for families,&#8221; the narrator says in the ad. The commercial highlights several positions that Republicans believe could create vulnerabilities for Talarico in a statewide race, including his opposition to the Save Women&#8217;s Sports Act, criticism of the oil and gas industry, and votes against tax-cut legislation.
&#8220;Talarico wants to teach trans ideology in schools and let boys compete in girls&#8217; sports,&#8221; the ad states. &#8220;Talarico says it&#8217;s immoral to use the oil and gas that employs millions of Texans. Talarico wants higher taxes and policies that will raise prices on families.&#8221;
The ad concludes by labeling Talarico a &#8220;hypocrite&#8221; who &#8220;will do anything to push his radical agenda, even if it leaves families broke and jobless.&#8221;
The Paxton campaign says the ad is intended to push back against what it views as an effort by Talarico to moderate his image as he seeks to appeal to a broader Texas electorate. &#8220;We will not let Talarico continue to lie to Texans,&#8221; a Paxton campaign spokesman told The Daily Wire. &#8220;He can try to reinvent himself and hide behind the liberal media all he wants, but the truth remains: at every turn, Talarico has voted against Texas families to advance his radical progressive agenda.&#8221;
&#8220;He can scrub his website and try to deny it, but Texans deserve the truth, and we&#8217;re going to make sure they hear it,&#8221; the spokesperson added.
The new ad comes as Republicans continue scrutinizing Talarico&#8217;s past comments on religion, gender, and sexuality.
As previously reported by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/james-talarico-fanboys-for-trans-activist-theologian-who-pushes-bizarre-views-on-christianity?author=Drew+Berkemeyer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=8&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=James+Talarico+Fanboys+For+Trans+Activist+Theologian+Who+Pushes+Bizarre+Views+On+Christianity">The Daily Wire</a>, Talarico openly credited activist theologian, and transgender identifying woman, Robyn Henderson-Espinoza, as a major intellectual influence during a 2021 podcast appearance, describing himself as a &#8220;fan boy&#8221; of the theologian&#8217;s work and praising the author&#8217;s writings for helping shape his worldview.
At the time, Talarico told Henderson-Espinoza that books such as &#8220;Activist Theology&#8221; had helped expand his understanding of politics and faith, arguing that his own &#8220;whiteness&#8221; and &#8220;masculinity&#8221; limited his imagination.
The relationship has drawn attention because Henderson-Espinoza is not simply a “progressive Christian” scholar, but a self-described &#8220;TransQueer Latinx&#8221; activist theologian who has argued that even “progressive Christianity” does not go far enough in challenging traditional institutions, doctrine, and social norms.
Henderson-Espinoza has advocated for what was described as &#8220;transing religion,&#8221; opposed legislation preventing biological males from competing in girls&#8217; sports, and built an activist ministry centered on political organizing, social justice activism, and liberation theology.
Meanwhile, Talarico has spent months attempting to distance himself from some of his own past remarks, recently describing several previous statements as &#8220;cringey.&#8221; Those comments included claims that &#8220;God is non-binary,&#8221; suggestions that there are six biological sexes, and arguments that the Bible does not prohibit abortion.
The Paxton campaign appears determined to ensure those issues remain front and center as the Senate race intensifies.
With Democrats hoping Talarico can make the race competitive statewide, Republicans are betting that his past statements, votes, and ideological influences will make it difficult for him to successfully reposition himself as a mainstream Texas Democrat.

James Talarico/Ken Paxton

EXCLUSIVE: Ken Paxton Says ‘Texans Deserve The Truth’ About ‘Hypocrite’ Talarico

Ken Paxton

Texas

Texas Democrat Senate candidate James Talarico recently suggested that the November election will not be “free and fair.” But when in a position to improve election integrity in his state, Talarico said he hated the effort with “every fiber of my being.&#8221;
As a state lawmaker, Talarico was one of the Democrats who fled the state after a Republican-backed effort in 2021 to require proof of identity when voting by mail and increasing the oversight of poll watchers. After Democrats failed to block passage of the bill, Talarico called the election safeguards “voter suppression” and said he hated the proposal.
Five years later, Talarico says he is worried that he will have to overperform to beat Republican Ken Paxton in a critical Senate race because he does not think the election will be held under &#8220;free and fair&#8221; conditions. But he has historically fought measures that would ensure secure elections.
Talarico described the 2021 Texas election integrity bill that tightened up mail-in voting as “an immoral, anti-American, anti-Democratic bill,” adding that it was “one that I hate with every fiber of my being.&#8221; He also critiqued the bills provisions on poll watchers and added that he didn’t think that poll watchers “should be in the polling place at all.”
Those comments were made in 2023 during an appearance on the &#8220;Lone Star Left&#8221; show unearthed by The Daily Wire. 
“We flew to D.C. to really beg national Democrats, including Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and the leaders in the House and the Senate, to pass federal voting rights legislation, because that&#8217;s the only way that we were going to stop the voter suppression bill here in Texas,” Talarico said. 
After he and fellow state Democrats realized that the Senate would not void the filibuster to ram through a bill targeting state election integrity laws, they returned to Texas to weaken the proposal from Republicans. 
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Representative James Talarico Chats With Michelle About The 88th Legislature" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wdZaHmXrWE8?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
The <a href="https://capitol.texas.gov/BillLookup/Text.aspx?LegSess=871&amp;Bill=SB1">law</a> opposed by Talarico created uniform statewide voting hours, added a requirement for people to provide an ID number when voting by mail, ended drive-through voting, and enhanced the jurisdiction of poll watchers. 
Now running against Paxton, Talarico said he will have to overperform to get past “voter suppression” and other “shenanigans” during the November election. 
“We already have a lot of voter suppression in Texas. It&#8217;s baked into our laws. I fought fiercely against many of those laws when they were coming through the legislature,” Talarico <a href="https://x.com/BreitbartNews/status/2058891809917468884">said</a> recently. “We&#8217;re probably gonna have to win by a little more than we would normally have to in a completely free and fair election.”
Paxton has made a key plank of his campaign support for the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE) Act, which would require photo identification to vote in federal elections. He promised to drop out of the Texas GOP primary if the Senate passed the SAVE Act which did not happen before he defeated incumbent Senator John Cornyn.
Talarico, for his part, has said he opposes requiring ID to vote. 
“I oppose having to have a driver’s license to vote,” he <a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1939441220021051">said</a>. “I oppose voter ID. Currently it&#8217;s the law in Texas, but I opposed that law… there are a lot of Texans, currently hundreds of thousands who don’t have a driver’s license.” 
To get a driver’s license in Texas, a person must provide documentation to complete an application form, provide proof of citizenship or legal residency, proof of Texas residency, and pass a written and driving exam.
“James Talafreako is openly admitting his only path to victory in ruby red Texas is eliminating voter ID and allowing illegal aliens to vote,” GOP spokesman Zach Kraft told The Daily Wire. “MAGA Warrior Ken Paxton will slam the door on Democrats&#8217; election fraud nonsense by getting the SAVE America Act signed into law to ensure only Americans vote in our elections.”

Talarico watch party MLC 1031.jpg

Talarico Fears Election Won’t Be ‘Free And Fair.’ Here’s How He’s Fought Election Safeguards.

James Talarico

Politics

Senate

When a Texas jury on Tuesday sentenced 19-year-old Karmelo Anthony to 35 years in prison for murdering 17-year-old Austin Metcalf, some Democrats in the state <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jasmine-crockett-downplays-white-teens-murder-after-karmelo-anthony-convicted?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=2&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=Crockett+Claims+Karmelo+Anthony%E2%80%99s+Knife+Was+Too+Small+To+Be+Considered+Deadly">raced</a> to decry the verdict, claiming the black teenager who stabbed Metcalf at a high school soccer game was a victim of racism.
But one Texas Democrat was surprisingly absent from the chattering crowds: Senate nominee James Talarico.
Talarico’s silence comes amid the candidate&#8217;s larger rebrand. It&#8217;s a different tact than both <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/beto-says-hell-yes-were-going-take-americans-guns-james-barrett">Beto O&#8217;Rourke</a> and <a href="https://freebeacon.com/elections/texas-voters-again-reject-wendy-davis/">Wendy Davis</a> before him, who latched on to every liberal issue as they cruised to crushing defeats in statewide Texas elections. As he heads into a general election fight against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Talarico is trying to convince voters he&#8217;s a moderate — and not the radical, pro-trans, anti-border security leftist that his opponents have painted him as.
Unfortunately for Talarico, his rebranding effort might fail. Because a radical leftist is precisely what he is.
Consider Talarico&#8217;s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0srbD2hn2vM&amp;t=683s">claim</a> just this week that he does not support transgender surgeries for kids. 
“I oppose gender reassignment surgeries for minors,” he said on Monday during an interview with lawyer Dan Cogdell, who asked him if he was “too liberal” for Texas. 
That stance would surprise the Talarico of just three years ago, who <a href="https://journals.house.texas.gov/HJRNL/88R/PDF/88RDAY63FINAL.PDF">voted</a> against a bill to ban transgender surgeries in Texas. The bill banned procedures like removing the breasts of girls who identify as boys.
&nbsp;
“What he&#8217;s doing right now with this change in his public position is he is telling the world that these surgeries are incredibly unpopular,” American Principles Project President Terry Schilling told The Daily Wire. “James Tallarico is one of the most progressive Democrats we have ever seen.”
The record from Talarico’s time in the legislature shows that during <a href="https://house.texas.gov/videos/11109">debate</a> on the measure protecting kids in the Texas state House, he claimed the proposal was about discrimination. 
“I think it&#8217;s clear that this is not about science or medicine, and certainly not about keeping kids safe,” he said on May 12, 2023. “I think this is about discriminating against people who are transgender.”
<div id="attachment_1113663" style="width: 1870px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1113663" class="size-full wp-image-1113663" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-10-at-11.58.07-AM.png" alt="" width="1860" height="924" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-10-at-11.58.07-AM.png 1860w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-10-at-11.58.07-AM-300x149.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-10-at-11.58.07-AM-1024x509.png 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-10-at-11.58.07-AM-768x382.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-10-at-11.58.07-AM-1536x763.png 1536w" sizes=" (max-width: 1860px) 100vw, 1860px" />Talarico attacks bill to protect kids from transgender procedures.</div>
At one point during that debate, Talarico pushed for Republican Rep. Tom Oliverson, who sponsored the legislation, to add an amendment to his proposal that would allow kids to get transgender procedures if two or three doctors signed off on the proposal. Talarico also <a href="https://journals.house.texas.gov/HJRNL/88R/PDF/88RDAY63FINAL.PDF">attempted</a> to add a provision to the bill that would “sunset” protections for children if “high-quality, long-term studies” could purport that transgender procedures were safe for kids. 
Talarico’s campaign now <a href="https://www.statesman.com/news/politics/state/article/ken-paxton-accuses-james-talarico-flip-flopping-22296649.php">claims</a> the candidate only opposed that bill because it “stripped critical healthcare away from Texas children suffering from rare genetic diseases that have nothing to do with being transgender.&#8221;
But in August 2023 — just months after voting against the bill — Talarico <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-james-talarico-says-he-loves-trans-children-in-unearthed-clip">said</a> on a podcast that the thing he loved most in the world apart from family or friends was “trans children.”
“I love, I’m just saying this because it’s all on my mind, the trans children who showed up yesterday at the state capitol to advocate for their humanity,&#8221; Talarico said in the footage, first unearthed by The Daily Wire. &#8220;They shouldn’t have to, but it was an inspiration to watch,” he said on the “A Superbloom” podcast.
Paxton, who helped negotiate a settlement with Texas Children’s Hospital to create the first ever &#8220;detransition&#8221; clinic, quickly attacked Talarico’s pivot on the issue. 
“In an attempt to make himself appear like less of a radical freak James Talarico is trying to walk back his position on child mutilation,” Paxton <a href="https://x.com/KenPaxtonTX/status/2064088208984686845">said</a> on Monday. “Texans remember.”
Political commentators have noted that Talarico’s rhetoric on the issue showed just how unpopular transgender procedures are with most Americans and how the electorate has shifted in recent years. 
Schilling, whose organization released ads targeting swing state voters on the issue of transgenderism during the 2024 election, said that the data showed most voters don&#8217;t support gender surgeries for kids. Even the Democrat Party&#8217;s own autopsy of the 2024 election acknowledged that President Donald Trump’s attack on Kamala Harris on the issue was effective. 
“For him to admit that this is a political vulnerability, should send a warning sign to every single Democrat that&#8217;s running in a competitive race this year,” Schilling said of Talarico. “He&#8217;s trying to win over these people in the middle and these Republicans, but I don&#8217;t think anyone&#8217;s going to buy it. He&#8217;s just been too much of a radical during his time in the Texas legislature.”
Schilling noted that Talarico’s comment left the door open for support for puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones, both of which can have permanent impacts on bone density, heart health, and fertility. 
Neeraja Deshpande, a commentator with the Independent Women’s Forum, told The Daily Wire that Talarico’s rhetorical shift reflected a broader cultural shift against transgender procedures for kids, which was in part triggered by detransitioners speaking out against the harmful procedures done on them as children. 
“I think it&#8217;s a permanent change on this issue,” she told The Daily Wire. “I think it was a blip that was, you know, predicated on emotional manipulation, and political manipulation, and a media environment that had really tight control.”
Deshpande noted that both the American Medical Association and American Society of Plastic Surgeons have publicly backed away from support for transgender procedures for kids. She added that Talarico’s shift was likely a cynical political move, but that it was good that support for transgender surgeries was now seen as a political liability. 
“I think there&#8217;s also just fewer Democrats willing to go to bat for all the like trans kids bulls***,” she said. “I think they recognize that it&#8217;s bulls**t.” 
Talarico is also attempting a moderate pivot on illegal immigration.
“I’m a border security Democrat,&#8221; Talarico said Monday. &#8220;I believe we&#8217;ve got to have a sane, orderly process to ensure that we know who&#8217;s coming into our country,” he said. “And I&#8217;m all for welcoming immigrants who want to work hard and live the American dream, who want to make us richer and stronger as immigrants have always done. But I also think we have to keep out folks who mean to do us harm. And public safety is the most important thing the government does.”
That&#8217;s a far cry from the Democrat&#8217;s previous <a href="https://x.com/RNCResearch/status/2015169671838695883?s=20&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=ncl_amplify&amp;utm_campaign=260609-james_talarico_fails_to_walk_back_his_far_left_record&amp;utm_content=ncl-fqjYFgn77p&amp;utm_term=&amp;_nlid=fqjYFgn77p&amp;_nhids=nclPXUQdWcLdpls">argument</a> for placing a “giant welcome mat” at the southern border and his <a href="https://x.com/jamestalarico/status/1149785576469618689">protesting</a> of immigration enforcement raids by the Trump administration. Just recently, Talarico told a group of religious leaders that there should be no mass deportations. 
“We have to ban ICE agents from wearing masks, from kidnapping people off our streets without a warrant,” he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/at-james-talaricos-church-its-offensive-to-respect-gods-pronouns-but-abortions-ok">said</a>. “We have to require them to identify themselves like any law enforcement official. And we have to end this policy of mass deportations that again is terrorizing our communities across Texas and across this country.”
Andrew Arthur, a resident in legal policy and law at the Center for Immigration Studies, told The Daily Wire there was a major disconnect between Talarico’s purported support for border security and his anti-ICE advocacy. 
“Border security is not sustainable without deportations,” he said. “Because there are no consequences for entering the United States illegally, people will continue to do it.”
Arthur noted that the Biden administration’s policies that resulted in the release of some 8 million illegal immigrants into the United States led to a major backlash against open border policies. He said the catch-and-release policies put in place by Biden had a huge negative impact on Democrats during the 2024 election. He <a href="https://cis.org/Arthur/Latest-HarvardHarris-Poll-Shows-Increasing-Support-Mass-Deportations">noted</a> that a recent Harvard/Harris poll found that a majority of Americans still say they support deporting all illegal immigrants and that Democrats are increasingly weary of open borders rhetoric. 
“It makes sense that Democrats like Mr. Talarico are now distancing themselves from the Biden administration&#8217;s policies, which were very unpopular nationwide,” he told The Daily Wire. “So James Talarico is simply singing from the same playbook that most congressional Democrats ended singing from ever since Trump&#8217;s election in 2024.”
Arthur noted that the impacts of Biden’s illegal immigrant surge were still being felt in border communities in Texas while the border had turned into a non-issue for much of the country because of Trump’s successful efforts to secure the border. 
Talarico’s political rebrand includes claiming to support the oil and gas industry and the Second Amendment despite his previous climate activism and gun control advocacy. But his pivot is not contained to political issues. It appears to be changing how he characterizes his religious beliefs as well. 
While his pastor and mentor Jim Rigby denies the historical resurrection of Jesus Christ and promotes using so-called inclusive language for God, Talarico <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/at-james-talaricos-church-its-offensive-to-respect-gods-pronouns-but-abortions-ok">recently</a> claimed to believe differently in an interview with the New York Times. 
Schilling said Talarico was attempting to mask his true beliefs in his efforts to turn Texas blue. 
“He&#8217;s a trans Texan, and people should see right through it,” he said. “ He does not have your best interest in heart.”

Democratic Senate Candidate James Talarico Holds Rally Day After GOP Primary

James Talarico Wants To Rebrand As A Moderate. But We Have The Receipts.

border security

transgender surgery

U.S. Politics

For many self-described religious Democrats, squaring their support for abortion and radical gender ideology with their faith is a challenge. But at Texas Democrat James Talarico&#8217;s church, supporting abortions is part of the congregation&#8217;s &#8220;goals for the world.&#8221;
At the Texas church where the Democrat senate hopeful preaches sermons on the need for abortion in the “trans community,” church funds are sent not only to abortion giant Planned Parenthood, but also to radical organizations that pay to help facilitate out-of-state travel for women to kill their unborn babies, and an organization that runs a summer camp for transgender-identifying kids as young as 11. 
St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, the woke Austin church attended by Talarico, <a href="https://www.staopen.org/benevolences">lists</a> Planned Parenthood, which ends the lives of hundreds of thousands of unborn babies every year, as one of the organizations that shares its “vision and goals for the world.”
The church, which The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-book-is-gay-read-the-sexually-explicit-volumes-james-talaricos-church-gives-kids?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=8&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=‘God+Is+Queer’%3A+See+The+Sexually+Explicit+Books+James+Talarico’s+Church+Gives+Kids">reported</a> last week stocks sexually explicit books aimed at young people in its library, sets aside money every year for Planned Parenthood, according to its website. It also describes itself as a “Reproductive Freedom Congregation,” <a href="https://justtx.org/rfc/">meaning</a> it believes that “abortion is a blessing.&#8221;
Donating to Planned Parenthood is not the only way that St. Andrew&#8217;s promotes abortion. 
Through its Social Justice Committee, the church <a href="https://www.staopen.org/social-justice">backs</a> a project called “Field of Hope.” The project was created as a memorial for the AIDs epidemic, but now <a href="https://fieldofhopeaustin.org/gender-reproductive-justice.html">promotes</a> a variety of other activist organizations. One such organization is the Lilith Fund, which <a href="https://www.lilithfund.org/get-help/">provides</a> money for Texans to travel out of state to kill their unborn babies. 
It also promotes a <a href="https://janesdueprocess.org/about/">similar organization</a> called Jane’s Due Process, which says it provides “abortion and practical support funding for young people under 18 traveling out of Texas for abortion care.” This means it openly funds teenagers looking to leave Texas for abortions. 
The church&#8217;s position on abortion is in line with Talarico’s own <a href="https://jamestalarico.com/issue/health-care/">suppor</a>t for codifying Roe v. Wade into federal law to create a so-called right to an abortion. Talarico grounds his support for abortion in the biblical account of an angel visiting the Virgin Mary and telling her that she would miraculously conceive and give birth to Jesus Christ. 
&#8220;I say all this in the context of abortion, because before God comes over Mary, and we have the incarnation, God asks for Mary’s consent,” he said during an appearance on the Joe Rogan podcast. “You cannot force someone to create… so that’s how I come down on that side of the issue.”
Talarico’s opponent, Paxton, has gone after leftist activists that ship abortion pills into Texas during his time as attorney general. Much of his attacks on Talarico have focused in on the Democrat’s leftist statements on religion, abortion, and transgenderism.
&nbsp;
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-1104853" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/Screenshot-2026-05-29-at-12.11.46-PM.png" alt="" width="2430" height="967" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/Screenshot-2026-05-29-at-12.11.46-PM.png 2430w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/Screenshot-2026-05-29-at-12.11.46-PM-300x119.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/Screenshot-2026-05-29-at-12.11.46-PM-1024x407.png 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/Screenshot-2026-05-29-at-12.11.46-PM-768x306.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/Screenshot-2026-05-29-at-12.11.46-PM-1536x611.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/Screenshot-2026-05-29-at-12.11.46-PM-2048x815.png 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 2430px) 100vw, 2430px" /></div>
&nbsp;
The radical pro-abortion groups are just a sliver of the liberal causes supported by the church. Other organizations St. Andrew’s lists on its donation page included Out Youth Austin, the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, Evergreen Action, and the Carbon180. 
Out Youth Austin <a href="https://www.outyouth.org/about/mission">describes</a> itself as a group that provides “a safe space for LGBTQ+ youth to come together, receive support, and make friends who understand who they are.” One of the programs it offers is a summer camp for kids between the ages of 11-17 who identify as gay or transgender. 
The organization says that recent actions in Texas have “caused distress” for “trans and non-binary youth” and points to a number of radical groups that support transgender procedures on kids. For people 18 and older, Out Youth Austin will help them <a href="https://www.outyouth.org/resources/social-services">obtain</a> the “necessary letters” for “this important step in your transition.”
The U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights is an anti-Israel organization that says it is <a href="https://uscpr.org/about-us/#team">focused</a> on “collective liberation” opposed to “all forms of bigotry” which it defines as “Zionism, racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, sexism, queerphobia, transphobia, classism, and ableism.”
Evergreen Action is <a href="https://www.evergreenaction.com/about/">focused</a> on the fight to “defeat climate change” founded by staffers who used to work for Washington Democrat Governor Jay Inslee. Carbon180 <a href="https://carbon180.org/our-approach/">wants</a> to “bring carbon removal solutions to gigaton scale” by shaping federal policy.
The latest <a href="https://www.realclearpolling.com/polls/senate/general/2026/texas/talarico-vs-paxton">polling</a> between Talarico and Paxton has the race virtually tied. Democrats haven&#8217;t won a U.S. Senate seat in Texas since 1988.

The Vox Media Podcast Stage At SXSW – Day 2

Abortions, Trans Summer Camps… See What Else James Talarico’s Church Bankrolls

As the great Ella Langley once <a href="https://youtu.be/hLOheGDwD_0?si=xqXiZQc1dig3-s1X">said</a>, &#8220;He&#8217;s choosin&#8217; Texas, I can tell by the way he&#8217;s two-steppin&#8217; &#8217;round the room. And judgin&#8217; by the smile she&#8217;s putting on his face, there&#8217;s nothing I can do.&#8221;
A perfect song. A perfect melody. A perfect metaphor.
Will Texas choose Texas? The tried and true, the Texas they know and love, the Texas they always fall back on because she&#8217;s stable, shares the same values, and abides by the same laws of the land?
In the song, both Texas and Tennessee were great options. In this scenario, however, Attorney General Ken Paxton is Texas. And State Representative James Talarico is Tennessee, with a whole lot more estrogen than Ella Langley and a whole lot fewer attractive characteristics.
Actually, that would be doing an injustice to Tennessee. He&#8217;s more like Seattle, Washington.
Democrats are trying for the millionth time to &#8220;take Texas,&#8221; but they continue to forget who actually lives there and keep putting up candidates who represent the opposite of the Lone Star State. Texas ain&#8217;t choosin&#8217; Talarico, and here&#8217;s why.
This week, Texans chose their fighters for November. Trump-backed Attorney General Ken Paxton decisively beat incumbent Senator John Cornyn for the Republican ticket. In March, on the Democrat side, State Representative James Talarico, to our chagrin, beat the lovely Representative Jasmine Crockett, who would&#8217;ve been quite entertaining to watch flail about.
But Talarico is already getting dragged through the media, and not without good reason. He&#8217;s a nutcase. He&#8217;s everything wrong with the woke religious Left jammed into a small, feminine <a href="https://x.com/realBrandonGill/status/2059624531837231475">body</a>.
His latest blemish, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-book-is-gay-read-the-sexually-explicit-volumes-james-talaricos-church-gives-kids?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=undefined&amp;elementPosition=29&amp;row=3&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+News&amp;rowType=Vertical+Carousel&amp;title=%E2%80%98God+Is+Queer%E2%80%99%3A+See+The+Sexually+Explicit+Books+James+Talarico%E2%80%99s+Church+Gives+Kids">reported</a> exclusively by the Daily Wire, is that the church the former pastor preached at is pushing radical gender ideology on children through libraries stocked with &#8220;banned books&#8221; containing descriptions of anal rape, incest, and oral sex.
He was asked on a podcast to name something he loved that wasn&#8217;t family or friends. He answered, &#8220;trans children.&#8221; He thinks the Bible is pro-abortion. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/no-the-bible-still-doesnt-advocate-for-abortion">It’s not.</a> He believes God is &#8220;non-binary.&#8221; He declared Jesus a &#8220;radical feminist.&#8221; He said atheists are &#8220;more Christ-like&#8221; than Christians. He thinks illegal aliens are &#8220;more patriotic&#8221; than Americans. He believes there are six biological sexes. He called America&#8217;s border a &#8220;giant welcome mat.&#8221; He posts guidelines for evading ICE. He wants to abolish prisons.
In an ominous sign of what we&#8217;re seeing now, he announced in 2022 (and resurfaced in 2026) that his campaign, in one of the biggest cattle-ranching states in America, had &#8220;officially become a non-meat campaign&#8221; to combat climate change.
This, among a myriad of other reasons, including that Talarico is fully on board with red-flag gun confiscation laws and killing constitutional carry in the state where the Second Amendment isn&#8217;t just a right but damn near a religion, is precisely why real Texas is going to cattle-stomp this guy come November.
Texas is the conservative stronghold of beef, barbecue, border security, family, fossil fuels, cowboys, firearms, patriotism, and unapologetic faith. Not Seattle soy-boy progressivism wrapped in a fake clerical collar.
James Talarico doesn&#8217;t just disagree with Texas values. He is the walking, talking rejection of everything that makes this state the envy of the country.
That&#8217;s exactly why it&#8217;s so insulting and alarming that Democrats would even try to run him. At least when they tried this last time with Robert &#8220;Beto&#8221; O&#8217;Rourke (say that with a surfer-dude accent for maximum impact), he was slightly less feminine and slightly less woke. Still a slap in the face to Texans, and he was crushed in rural Texas and conservative strongholds where the margins are simply too big to overcome. Republicans carried Texas statewide by double digits in 2022, and no Democrat has won a statewide race here since 1994. That wall hasn&#8217;t moved. It&#8217;s gotten taller.
Here&#8217;s what the radical Left isn&#8217;t doing a good job of hiding: Talarico isn&#8217;t a miscalculation. He&#8217;s a business decision. Democrats know he can&#8217;t win Texas. They&#8217;re running him to light up coastal donors and build a progressive media presence, using the Lone Star State as a stage rather than a target. Which is actually more cynical than simply being wrong about the electorate. They&#8217;re not trying to represent Texans. They&#8217;re performing for people who&#8217;ve never been there.
The vehicle they&#8217;ve chosen for this performance is faith. Democrats are deliberately propping up progressive &#8220;Christian&#8221; voices to launder their most extreme agenda through the language of the pulpit. It&#8217;s the same playbook that turned mainline Protestant churches into rainbow-flag social-justice factories. They know they can&#8217;t sell open borders, child gender mutilation, and abolishing prisons on the merits, so they&#8217;re hijacking Jesus Himself to move the product. This isn&#8217;t tolerance; it&#8217;s ideological conquest dressed up in piety. If they can ever flip the biggest, baddest red state in America with this not-so-Trojan horse, the GOP will have a massive problem on its hands.
Ken Paxton, on the other hand, is from Texas. You can tell.
Tuesday night, the Trump-backed AG didn&#8217;t just win a primary. He toppled John Cornyn, the Senate&#8217;s number-two Republican and the living definition of the establishment old guard, which tells you exactly where the Texas GOP actually stands. Paxton earned it. He&#8217;s spent years suing the Biden administration to lock down the border, defend the unborn, protect the Second Amendment, and beat back woke indoctrination in schools and courts, winning more than three out of every four of those lawsuits. He&#8217;s a battle-tested bulldog who stands for beef, borders, Bibles, and bold Lone Star independence. The exact opposite of what Democrats are trying to peddle.
Texas isn&#8217;t just choosing a senator in November. They&#8217;re choosing between two entirely different theories of what Texans are. Talarico&#8217;s entire platform is built on the premise that Texans need to be managed, corrected, and guided toward someone else&#8217;s values. Paxton&#8217;s is built on the premise that they don&#8217;t. That&#8217;s the whole election in one sentence.
Conservatives are a simple folk who don&#8217;t require much. Stay out of our way. Protect our private property. Cut the regulations so we can flourish, and stop taxing away the money we work hard for. Small government. Big families. A listening ear, not a lecture.
Talarico is just too much. We&#8217;ve gotten the ick.
So choose right, Texas. Choose Texas. Choose Paxton. You know the way you&#8217;re leaning. I can tell by the way you&#8217;re two-stepping.

Woman Wearing Cowboy Hat Riding Running Horse While Holding Large Texas Flag In Grassy Field With Cloudy Sky

Everything Texans Love, This Candidate Seems To Hate

DW Opinion

Texas Elections

Understandably, Democratic Senate hopeful James Talarico is working overtime to try to deny any “vegan” label as he runs for office in Texas. However, a resurfaced video of the Democrat bragging about his all-vegan campaign is throwing a wrench in that mission. 
Talarico, while running for re-election to the Texas House of Representatives in 2022, suggested eating meat was morally wrong, in part because of the “existential&#8221; threat of climate change. That’s why, he boasted, that his campaign was going completely “non-meat” and ordering from vegan restaurants. 
“Not just because it’s the right thing to do, and the moral thing to do, but also, as all of you know, it’s necessary to fight climate change,” Talarico says in the video. &#8220;It is now existential that we try to reduce our meat consumption and that we try to respect animals in all aspects of society.” 
“I am proud to say that our campaign has officially become a non-meat campaign,” he announced. “We are only buying vegan products from our local vegan businesses.”
“The point is, all of us, not just policymakers, but everyone has to take personal responsibility in this effort,” he added. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
James Talarico: &#8220;I am proud to say that our campaign has officially become a non-meat campaign. We are only buying vegan products from our local vegan businesses.&#8221; <a href="https://x.com/hashtag/TXsen?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TXsen</a><a href="https://t.co/SkZZ05IXMj">pic.twitter.com/SkZZ05IXMj</a>
— Lone Star Liberty PAC (@LoneStar_PAC) <a href="https://x.com/LoneStar_PAC/status/2059466997633605735?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2026</a></blockquote>
Republicans have made fun of Talarico for being a vegan in Texas, where barbecue is part of the culture. Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is running against Talarico for the Senate seat, has called him “Tofu Talarico.&#8221; And President Donald Trump recently quipped, “You can’t get elected as a vegan in Texas.” 
In the wake of the criticism, Democrats and Talarico himself have been denying any association with veganism. On Wednesday, the official X account for the Democratic National Committee posted a photo of Talarico eating barbecue.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
November, here we come. <a href="https://t.co/ux1w1WzGNO">pic.twitter.com/ux1w1WzGNO</a>
— Democrats (@TheDemocrats) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheDemocrats/status/2059661179790696699?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2026</a></blockquote>
And earlier this week, the Democrat <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/27/politics/james-talarico-vegan-policy-positions">said</a> he’s “been eating barbecue since before Ken Paxton’s first indictment.”
Criticism of Talarico doesn’t stop at his diet. Christians have called out the Democrat for his strong, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-james-talarico-is-trying-to-rewrite-the-bible-on-abortion?author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=How+James+Talarico+Is+Trying+To+Rewrite+The+Bible+On+Abortion">supposedly Bible-backed abortion-on-demand push</a>. Talarico is also a strong supporter of “trans kids,” backing highly controversial and often irreversible trans surgeries for minors.
<div class="xdj266r x14z9mp xat24cr x1lziwak x1vvkbs x126k92a">
<div dir="auto">&#8220;James Talarico supports trans surgeries for kids,&#8221; Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TomCottonAR/posts/james-talarico-supports-trans-surgeries-for-kids-talarico-said-god-is-non-binary/1522819315881054/">posted</a> on Wednesday. &#8220;Talarico said God is &#8216;non-binary,&#8217; he believes there are six genders, and he wants taxpayers to fund abortion. He has no business serving in the Senate. Ken Paxton will make a fantastic Senator for Texas and he has my full support.&#8221;</div>
</div>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-james-talarico-is-trying-to-rewrite-the-bible-on-abortion?author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=How+James+Talarico+Is+Trying+To+Rewrite+The+Bible+On+Abortion">How James Talarico Is Trying To Rewrite The Bible On Abortion</a>

James Talarico Keeps Denying The Vegan Label. Video Suggests Otherwise.

James Talarico Keeps Is Denying The Vegan Label. This Video Suggests Otherwise.

Democrats

Veganism

Republican voters made a Texas-sized gamble last night in the Lone Star state, betting that even with the baggage he carries into a general election, Trump loyalist Attorney General Ken Paxton will be able to handle the threat from a strongly backed Democratic effort behind State Rep. James Talarico. We&#8217;ve heard the left’s dreams of turning Texas blue for decades, but even with his defects as a candidate and fundraiser, Paxton still enters the final contest as the favored candidate. The larger question is whether that gamble will cost Texans and Republicans in other races around the country.
As successful as he&#8217;s been politically — with a knack for surviving challenges, lawsuits, and even an impeachment — Paxton has never been an effective individual fundraiser. The biggest gap between him and incumbent Senator John Cornyn isn&#8217;t ideology or even loyalty to the president — it&#8217;s their capability to raise money in a state marketplace that demands it.
Cornyn&#8217;s campaign doomed his effort to hold on this cycle by squandering that money on television ads, poor staffing choices, and adopting a general Washington insider tone in a cycle of voter frustration — but they had plenty of money to dump into the effort. National Republicans are pissed off about the whole situation, understanding that they may now have to push money into a contest that wouldn&#8217;t have needed it if voters had decided differently. If their reluctance to spend big on yet another contest in a critical cycle holds and Paxton&#8217;s past is prologue, he&#8217;ll have to get a leg up from Texas donors called upon to grin and bear it about a candidate they&#8217;ve been reluctant to fund.
The concern among Texas Republican politicos is less about Talarico&#8217;s potential for victory, given his lengthy history of far-Left comments about everything under the sun, and more about the newly drawn redistricted map potentially netting fewer GOP victories than hoped for, given Paxton&#8217;s electoral appeal. While Cornyn and fellow Senator Ted Cruz have consistently held the line among Hispanic voters (in his Senate race, Cruz won Hispanic voters by 6 points over Colin Allred two years ago), Paxton has lagged. The latest polling has Talarico winning Hispanics in the state by almost 30 points, and such turnout from those voters in November could be a major drag on Republican congressional candidates down-ticket.
The fear in Washington is that Texas will now draw resources necessary to hold seats in Maine, North Carolina, and Ohio — potentially detracting from the strong GOP hopes of taking Senate seats in Michigan and Georgia. If Senate Majority Leader John Thune and National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Tim Scott decide to keep their focus on those five contests, Texas may be left on its own to get Paxton across the finish line.
The unpredictable element here is how much the national media will play in this contest. In the past, we&#8217;ve seen the national glow-ups for candidates like Beto O&#8217;Rourke totally backfire, turning a fairly middle-of-the-road El Paso Democrat into a progressive wet dream, the skateboard-riding bass player that made Austin swoon but who ultimately had no path to victory statewide. Will Talarico get the same treatment? He already is, though every interview he does betrays that his version of non-binary six gender abortion-loving Christianity is anathema in the Valley.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Texas state Rep. and Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico responded to GOP attacks over his past remark that God is “non-binary,” telling <a href="https://twitter.com/edokeefe?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@edokeefe</a> that some of his previous comments “missed the mark.”
“There are some statements that I’ve made that I certainly regret,”… <a href="https://t.co/VRsEXHo6ir">pic.twitter.com/VRsEXHo6ir</a>
— CBS News (@CBSNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/CBSNews/status/2059668066741445059?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Paxton is still the odds-on favorite. To a certain extent, the lengthy catalog of his failings is largely known to voters, while Talarico is still a fresh face who hasn&#8217;t confronted the scrutiny of running statewide in an old-school Texas knife fight. For Republicans who care about holding the Senate against a blue wave, they have hope that Paxton&#8217;s sins are already baked in, and that Talarico&#8217;s approach to running continues to look more like prep for his ideal next job — co-hosting a religion podcast for The New York Times.

Rep. Ken Paxton, and U.S. Senate candidate watch party

Voters Make A Texas-Sized Gamble On Ken Paxton

John Cornyn

The Texas church where Democrat James Talarico has delivered his radical sermons is pushing radical gender ideology on children, featuring books filled with sexually explicit content and transgender ideology.
Talarico, the Democrat nominee for the crucial Senate election in November, attends St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Austin. There, children have access to a library stocked with “banned books” that promote ideas rejected by most Christians, including books that contain descriptions of anal rape, incest, and oral sex, according to a Daily Wire review of its offerings.
Books found in the St. Andrew’s catalog include the book “Gender Queer,” which includes illustrations of oral sex and masturbation, and the book “All Boys Aren’t Blue,” which discusses anal rape and incest.
“This Book Is Gay,” <a href="https://www.amazon.com/This-Book-Gay-Juno-Dawson/dp/1492617830" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has</a> a chapter on the “ins and outs of gay sex,” while the book “Becoming Nicole” tells the story of a gender-confused teen boy who identifies as girl with the support of his family. In “The Courage to Be Queer,” the author <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/eEmUCgAAQBAJ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claims</a> that “God is queer.”
Other books in the church catalog include “Trans Kids, Our Kids: Stories and Resources from the Frontlines of the Movement for Transgender Youth,” “Called OUT: The Voices and Gifts of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered Presbyterians,&#8221; and “Becoming Nicole: The Transformation of an American Family.”
Talarico, looking to flip a Senate seat in a state President Donald Trump won by 14 points in 2024, has faced criticism over comments he made on transgender ideology. It will likely be a central theme in the campaign against him — in his first speech as the official Republican nominee on Tuesday night, Republican Ken Paxton referred to Talarico as both &#8220;Six-Gender Jimmy&#8221; and &#8220;James Tala-FREAKO.&#8221;
Republican congressman Brandon Gill on the same stage went after Talarico over the Daily Wire report earlier this year on the time he said the thing he loved most in the world was &#8220;trans children.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-james-talarico-says-he-loves-trans-children-in-unearthed-clip">WATCH: James Talarico Says He Loves ‘Trans Children’ In Unearthed Clip</a>
St. Andrew’s, the church where Talarico <a href="https://x.com/greg_price11/status/2029210425879892253?s=20">delivered</a> his sermon that asserted that &#8220;our trans community needs abortion care too,&#8221; <a href="https://www.staopen.org/banned-books" target="_blank" rel="noopener">says</a> it offers banned books so that children can find “affirmation in the books they read.&#8221; It boasts that the books “shift our perspective, develop empathy, and see more clearly the call to justice among all people.&#8221;
“We are a safe haven for controversial narratives right in the heart of Texas, the state that takes the top prize in challenged books. Take a moment to browse our collection of banned books and see what you notice &#8230; common themes … particular experiences and identities being censored,” the church says of its banned books collection.
Talarico has voted in the state legislature against keeping men out of women&#8217;s sports and claimed it was “abusive” and “destructive” if parents did not accept their child&#8217;s alleged gender identity.
He has also stated his belief that &#8220;god is nonbinary,&#8221; and that Jesus was a &#8220;radical feminist.&#8221;
St. Andrew’s is <a href="https://www.staopen.org/about-us" target="_blank" rel="noopener">part</a> of the Presbyterian Church (USA), generally known as a liberal denomination with unorthodox views on gender and sexuality. Talarico&#8217;s church refers to itself as a “Reproductive Freedom Congregation,” <a href="https://justtx.org/rfc/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">meaning</a> it believes “abortion is a blessing.&#8221; The Democrat candidate himself has argued that the Bible doesn&#8217;t oppose abortion.
The church <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/it-turns-out-james-talaricos-church-is-as-weird-as-he-is" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recently</a> held a training linked to the anti-Trump “No Kings” protest movement.

Featured Session: State Of Being: How To Care in 2024 with Ilana Glazer, Danny Brown, State & Local Politicians, and the ACLU – Conference – SXSW 2024 Conference and Festivals

‘God Is Queer’: See The Sexually Explicit Books James Talarico’s Church Gives Kids

Special Reporting

Transgender

Texas voters on Tuesday voted overwhelmingly to move on from longtime incumbent senator John Cornyn (R-TX), handing the longtime incumbent a devastating defeat and delivering a sharp rebuke to the Republican establishment in Washington.
The race was called for Ken Paxton, who went into election day with the backing of President Donald Trump, immediately as the polls closed in Texas. Paxton, the state&#8217;s current attorney general, was ahead by 25 percentage points.
Paxton&#8217;s landslide victory deals a major blow to the Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), who repeatedly urged Trump to back Cornyn, a four-term senator and longtime fixture in GOP leadership. Cornyn previously chaired the National Republican Senatorial Committee and served as Senate Majority Whip. 
“Sen. Cornyn is a principled conservative. He is a very effective senator for the state of Texas, but none of us control what the president does,” Thune said of Trump’s 11th-hour endorsement. “That doesn’t change the way I feel.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Q: &#8220;How personally disappointed or frustrated are you with the president&#8217;s decision to endorse Ken Paxton today?&#8221;
.<a href="https://twitter.com/LeaderJohnThune?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LeaderJohnThune</a>: &#8220;Sen. Cornyn is a principled conservative. He is a very effective senator for the state of Texas…None of us control what the president does.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/5QglYxRp1V">pic.twitter.com/5QglYxRp1V</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/2056805960895590901?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
Cornyn is the latest incumbent — and second senator to fall — amid Trump’s campaign to purge Republicans he views as disloyal to his agenda. In recent weeks, the Trump endorsement has led to losses by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and a handful of Indiana Republicans who bucked the president’s redistricting effort.
Paxton has emerged as a fierce MAGA firebrand on a range of issues, using his office to protect <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-texas-ag-investigating-school-officials-who-said-theyd-break-the-law?row=0&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Tim+Rice&amp;title=EXCLUSIVE%3A+Texas+AG+Launches+Probe+Into+Schools+Scheming+To+Get+Boys+Onto+Girl+Sports+Teams&amp;category=News">women’s sports,</a> defend Texas A&amp;M’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-texas-ag-to-defend-texas-am-over-decision-to-ban-campus-drag-shows?row=0&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;title=EXCLUSIVE%3A+Texas+AG+To+Defend+Texas+A%26M+Over+Decision+To+Ban+Campus+Drag+Shows&amp;category=News">decision</a> to ban a campus drag show, and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/texas-arrests-48-year-old-woman-for-performing-illegal-abortions-operating-fake-clinics?row=0&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;title=Texas+Arrests+48-Year-Old+Woman+For+Performing+Illegal+Abortions%2C+Operating+Fake+Clinics&amp;category=News">prosecute</a> a woman who performed illegal abortions.
With all eyes on Texas, Trump ended months of suspense last Tuesday and threw his political clout behind Paxton. 
“Ken is a true MAGA Warrior who has ALWAYS delivered for Texas, and will continue to do so in the United States Senate,” Trump said on <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116602192066577324">Truth Social</a>. 
“John Cornyn is a good man, and I worked well with him, but he was not supportive of me when times were tough,” he added.
On the campaign trail, Paxton seized the moment. 
“I am so honored to have President Trump’s endorsement,” Paxton said. “When he endorses, it has a tremendous impact…I think it creates a slight bit of momentum, don’t you?”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Texas AG &amp; U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton (R) speaks after receiving President Trump&#8217;s endorsement: &#8220;When he endorses, it has a tremendous impact…I think it creates a slight bit of momentum, don&#8217;t you?&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/cGFSrteLV4">pic.twitter.com/cGFSrteLV4</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/2056783591925842382?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
When neither Paxton nor Cornyn surpassed the 50% threshold in the initial vote — triggering a runoff — both campaigns stepped up an intense jockeying for Trump’s support.
Paxton raised eyebrows for <a href="https://x.com/KenPaxtonTX/status/2029607496395239546?s=20">saying</a> he would consider dropping out of the race if the Senate passed the SAVE America Act.
&#8220;John Cornyn is a coward who has refused to support abolishing the filibuster to pass this bill,&#8221; Paxton said.
<a href="https://nypost.com/2026/03/11/opinion/sen-cornyn-why-the-save-act-matters-more-than-the-filibuster/">Cornyn wrote in a op-ed</a> that he had previously backed the “60-vote threshold to protect the country,” but said that “when the reality on the ground changes, leaders must take stock and adapt.”
The Senate’s failure to pass the SAVE America Act appeared to sway Trump.
“I know Ken well, have seen him tested at the highest and most difficult levels, and he is a WINNER! Ken is a Strong Supporter of TERMINATING THE FILIBUSTER and, very importantly, THE SAVE AMERICA ACT, something which polls at 87%, including Dumocrats, and yet can’t seem to get approved,” Trump said in his endorsement. “Perhaps Ken can help move these important elements of Government forward…”
Turning Point Action backed Paxton, and the National Republican Senatorial Committee spent millions supporting Cornyn.
Some party leaders worry Paxton — who was nearly convicted on <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/texas-senate-votes-to-acquit-attorney-general-ken-paxton-of-all-charges">corruption-related impeachment charges</a> — could put a reliably Republican seat at risk. His wife filed for divorce in 2025, citing <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/10/angela-paxton-divorce-texas-attorney-general-ken/">adultery on &#8220;biblical grounds.&#8221;</a>
In November, Paxton will face off against Democratic candidate James Talarico, whom Trump recently ripped into as “weird.”
“I’ll tell you what I do think — I think the Democrats have a weird, a weird candidate. Six genders, a real hit on Jesus,” <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-roasts-texas-democrat-over-six-genders-and-vegan-flip-flop">Trump told reporters on Air Force One.</a> “I mean, this guy is bad news with his mask from relatively recently, and he’s a vegan. He’s a vegan. All of a sudden, he’s not a vegan. He was a vegan, now all of a sudden he’s not.”
“Texas doesn’t like vegans. I do believe either one of them will easily win the race. I think the candidate the Democrats have in Texas is a very flawed, very weak, very — I think he’s a pathetic candidate, especially for Texas,” the president added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
NEW AD:
Low T Talarico is too WEAK and WEIRD for Texas. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TXsen?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TXsen</a> <a href="https://t.co/B6wL7pto4S">pic.twitter.com/B6wL7pto4S</a>
— Lone Star Liberty PAC (@LoneStar_PAC) <a href="https://twitter.com/LoneStar_PAC/status/2057531828085350738?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 21, 2026</a></blockquote>
Further down the Texas runoff ballot, Chip Roy, another Republican incumbent opposed by Donald Trump, was also defeated in his run for attorney general. Trump allies had blasted Roy in the final days of the campaign as &#8220;one of the most anti-Trump congressmen in the country.&#8221;
The winner, Mayes Middleton, had branded himself &#8220;MAGA Mayes&#8221; on the campaign trail and ran pledging to fight for Trump&#8217;s agenda if elected.
And in a final cherry on top for Trump from Tuesday night&#8217;s results, Democrat Al Green, who notably was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/deported-dem-rep-al-green-booted-from-trump-address-to-congress">removed from the chamber</a> for shouting down Trump&#8217;s State of the Union address, also fell to a primary challenge.

Untitled design (12)

Trump-Backed Paxton Blows Out Cornyn In Texas Senate Showdown

Elections

News

politicxs

With midterm primaries in the news, the left-wing media has been focusing a lot of its attention on Republican candidates. For instance, the New York Times, a former newspaper, recently ran an article with the headline, “Bad Trump Ruins Everything,” in which columnist Nicholas Kristof speculated that the primary defeat of anti-Israel congressman Thomas Massie may have been due to an attack by Israeli rape dogs, imaginary animals whom Kristof claims have been trained to sexually assault antisemites. Kristof’s article was about to go on to examine the power of Trump’s endorsements, when he suddenly emitted a high-pitched scream, after which the article fell ominously silent.
In another Times article, this one headlined, “Trump Bad, Everything Ruined,” the author speculated that Trump’s endorsement of Ken Paxton for Senate may turn deep red Texas into a blue state, if Republicans are unable to vote because they’re too busy laughing at this article. A third Times article, headlined, “Trump Trump Trump Bad Bad Bad Ruin Ruin Ruin,” merely contained those words repeated at random for several pages.
Now, of course, it’s always important to hear what the left-wing media is saying. In the same sense, it’s always important to hit yourself in the groin with a hammer. But for a change of pace, we here at the Daily Wire have decided to take a closer look at candidates on the Democrat side, because we’ve just come from watching the monkeys at the zoo throwing dung at random passersby, and we want the fun to continue.
In Texas, the Democrat Senate candidate is James Talarico, a Christian theologian who argues that the role of the Virgin Mary in giving birth to Jesus proves that God is in favor of crushing the heads of unborn children, then tearing their bodies apart limb from limb. A spokeswoman for the Queen of Heaven says that the Virgin Mary will not be responding to Talarico’s comments because she can’t use the words that would properly convey her opinions, because she’s the Virgin Mary.
Socialist Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez not only won her primary but is jockeying to position herself as a 2028 presidential candidate. AOC, who studied economics at Sister Ignoramuses School for Wayward Girls, explains her socialist economic theory this way:
<blockquote>
“There’s this big pile of money that comes from somewhere. Then, just as we’re about to share it out equally, Elon Musk suddenly rushes in and steals so much of it, there’s not even enough left for me to pay off my psychiatrist with taxpayer dollars. This is why I’ve said repeatedly that Elon Musk is stupid, because if I could see a psychiatrist, I wouldn’t be talking like this.” 
</blockquote>
Unfortunately, Elon Musk was unable to respond to being called stupid because he’d just flown to Mars in his new electric space-car, but had not yet installed the final communications satellite link that would allow him to call Earth from the offices of the new terraforming company he’s built on the Red Planet. AOC reacted to this by saying, “Now you see what I mean. If Elon Musk is so smart, how come his crappy Mars phone doesn’t work?”
Another possible Democrat presidential candidate is California Governor Gavin Newsom, who lists his achievements as: causing the weather to be consistently good in Santa Barbara, looking very concerned as Los Angeles burned to the ground, and receiving a hundred billion dollars for Medicare and a high-speed train, both of which he plans to provide as soon as he finds out what happened to the hundred billion dollars. Newsom says he also proved himself a great leader during the Chinese Flu pandemic, because he never let himself despair like some of those idiots who stayed home all the time wearing useless masks.
In Maine, Democrats are running Graham Platner for Senate. Platner sports a Totenkopf, or death’s head tattoo, favored by Nazi SS officers. But in his memoir, entitled Maine Kampf, Platner explains that the tattoo does not mean he sympathizes with Nazis, but simply refers to his wish to slaughter every Jew on earth and then take over Europe. Platner does admit that, if his plans are carried out, he’s sort of going to miss those hot rape dogs.

Kristof Risograph

Trump Panic Drives The New York Times To Wag The Antisemitic Dog

antisemitism

graham platner

Nicholas Kristof

The New York Times

President Trump on Tuesday endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to replace incumbent Republican Senator John Cornyn, boosting the MAGA firebrand ahead of the contentious May 26 runoff.
&#8220;Ken is a true MAGA Warrior who has ALWAYS delivered for Texas, and will continue to do so in the United States Senate. He will tirelessly fight to continue the Great Growth of our Economy, Cut Taxes and Regulations (I just delivered the Largest Tax and Regulation Cuts in American History!), and Advance MADE IN THE U.S.A., Unleash American Energy DOMINANCE, Champion Texas Oil &amp; Gas, Advocate for our Amazing Farmers and Ranchers, Promote School Choice, Keep our Border SECURE, Stop Migrant Crime, Support our Incredible Military/Veterans, Safeguard our Elections, and Protect our always under siege Second Amendment,&#8221; <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116602192066577324">Trump said on Truth Social. </a>
“John Cornyn is a good man, and I worked well with him, but he was not supportive of me when times were tough…” he added.
Paxton, speaking to supporters, took a victory lap. 
“I am so honored to have President Trump’s endorsement,” Paxton said. “When he endorses, it has a tremendous impact…I think it creates a slight bit of momentum, don&#8217;t you?&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Texas AG &amp; U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton (R) speaks after receiving President Trump&#8217;s endorsement: &#8220;When he endorses, it has a tremendous impact…I think it creates a slight bit of momentum, don&#8217;t you?&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/cGFSrteLV4">pic.twitter.com/cGFSrteLV4</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/2056783591925842382?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
Trump teased the endorsement while taking questions from reporters at the White House. 
“I think MAGA has never been more together, actually. I’m going to be making an endorsement today in Texas,” <a href="https://x.com/cspan/status/2056755698948530671?s=20">Trump said.</a> “I love Texas. I’m going to be making an endorsement at about 12:30, 1 p.m. for the big race — the Senate race in Texas.”
&#8220;There are those that say whoever I endorse is going to win. I don’t know if that’s true. Historically, that’s absolutely true. I just don&#8217;t like to say it because I don&#8217;t like to brag,” Trump added. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
President Trump: &#8220;I&#8217;m going to be making an endorsement today in Texas — I won Texas all six times meaning primaries and the race. &#8221; <a href="https://t.co/baANOzSD3y">pic.twitter.com/baANOzSD3y</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/2056755698948530671?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
The 11th-hour endorsement comes after the Cornyn campaign appeared to have given up on securing the president’s support. 
“I think that ship has finally sailed,” <a href="https://x.com/JohnnieMo/status/2056412787748847981?s=20">Cornyn said to reporters after voting in Austin, Texas.</a>
He was right. 
&#8220;I have worked closely with President Trump through both of his Presidential terms and voted with him more than 99% of the time. He has consistently called me a friend in this race,&#8221; Cornyn said, reacting to the Paxton endorsement. &#8220;It is now time for Texas Republican voters to decide if they want a strong nominee to help our GOP candidates down ballot and defeat Talarico in November, or a weak nominee who jeopardizes everything we care about. I trust the Republican voters of Texas.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
I have worked closely with President Trump through both of his Presidential terms and voted with him more than 99% of the time. He has consistently called me a friend in this race. It is now time for Texas Republican voters to decide if they want a strong nominee to help our GOP…
— Senator John Cornyn (@JohnCornyn) <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnCornyn/status/2056781893681467545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
When neither Paxton nor Cornyn surpassed the 50% threshold in the initial vote — triggering a runoff — both campaigns stepped up jockeying for Trump’s support.
Paxton raised eyebrows for saying he would consider dropping out of the race if the Senate passed the SAVE America Act.
“I would consider dropping out of this race if Senate Leadership agrees to lift the filibuster and passes the SAVE America Act,” <a href="https://x.com/KenPaxtonTX/status/2029607496395239546?s=20">Paxton</a> wrote.
<a href="https://nypost.com/2026/03/11/opinion/sen-cornyn-why-the-save-act-matters-more-than-the-filibuster/">Cornyn wrote in the op-ed</a> that he had previously backed the “60-vote threshold to protect the country,” but said that “when the reality on the ground changes, leaders must take stock and adapt.”
The SAVE America Act push appeared to sway Trump.
&#8220;I know Ken well, have seen him tested at the highest and most difficult levels, and he is a WINNER! Ken is a Strong Supporter of TERMINATING THE FILIBUSTER and, very importantly, THE SAVE AMERICA ACT, something which polls at 87%, including Dumocrats, and yet can’t seem to get approved,&#8221; Trump said in his Truth Social endorsement. &#8220;Perhaps Ken can help move these important elements of Government forward&#8230;&#8221;
Turning Point Action backs Paxton, and the National Republican Senatorial Committee backs Cornyn.
“The runoff electorate is gonna naturally favor Paxton, because these are conservatives, these are people that are enthusiastic to turn out and support a strong attorney general and President Trump,” <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-holds-cards-in-texas-showdown-as-one-move-could-clear-the-field">a Republican consultant previously told The Daily Wire</a>.
Whoever wins the Republican nomination will face off against Democratic candidate James Talarico, whom Trump recently ripped into as “weird.”
“I’ll tell you what I do think — I think the Democrats have a weird, a weird candidate. Six genders, a real hit on Jesus,” <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-roasts-texas-democrat-over-six-genders-and-vegan-flip-flop">Trump told reporters on Air Force One.</a> “I mean, this guy is bad news with his mask from relatively recently, and he’s a vegan. He’s a vegan. All of a sudden, he’s not a vegan. He was a vegan, now all of a sudden he’s not.”
“Texas doesn’t like vegans. I do believe either one of them will easily win the race. I think the candidate the Democrats have in Texas is a very flawed, very weak, very — I think he’s a pathetic candidate, especially for Texas,” the president added.
John Thune, the Republican Senate Majority Leader, expressed disagreement with the decision.
“Sen. Cornyn is a principled conservative. He is a very effective senator for the state of Texas, but none of us control what the president does,” Thune said. “That doesn’t change the way I feel.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Q: &#8220;How personally disappointed or frustrated are you with the president&#8217;s decision to endorse Ken Paxton today?&#8221;
.<a href="https://twitter.com/LeaderJohnThune?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LeaderJohnThune</a>: &#8220;Sen. Cornyn is a principled conservative. He is a very effective senator for the state of Texas…None of us control what the president does.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/5QglYxRp1V">pic.twitter.com/5QglYxRp1V</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/2056805960895590901?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2026</a></blockquote>

texas_senate_montage

Trump Makes Late Endorsement In Heated Texas Primary

Trump

A Texas hospital that once promoted transgender procedures on kids will create the first-ever “detransition clinic” for those who were subjected to gender procedures, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Friday. 
The detransition clinic will be created as part of a settlement negotiated between Texas Children’s Hospital, Attorney General Ken Paxton, and the Justice Department. Texas Children’s Hospital will additionally pay a $10 million fine and fire five doctors who “performed harmful medical interventions on Texans,” Paxton said. 
“Today is a monumental day in the fight to stop the radical transgender movement. This historic settlement reflects an institutional and fundamental cultural shift away from radical ‘gender’ ideology,” said Paxton. “I applaud Texas Children’s Hospital for changing course and committing to being a part of the solution by agreeing to form a first-of-its-kind Detransition Clinic that will help provide free care to those who have been victimized by twisted, morally bankrupt transgender ideology.”
The detransition care will be paid for by Texas Children’s Hospital for the first five years and will seek to reverse previous transgender procedures performed on patients. Detransitioners like Chloe Cole, who was put on cross-sex hormones and had her breasts removed as a teen, have pushed for there to be more resources for those pushed into gender confusion as children. 
Paxton said the $10 million monetary settlement was due to the hospital billing Texas Medicaid for illegal gender procedures. The hospital has denied those accusations. 
“Under my watch, I will investigate and bring the full force of the law against any Texas hospital that abuses children with harmful medical interventions to ‘transition’ kids,” Paxton said. 
The settlement will additionally require the hospital to no longer provide “gender-transition” services and take additional steps to ensure compliance with Texas law protecting kids from transgender procedures. 
In a statement to The Daily Wire, the hospital insisted that it had always been in compliance with the law and accused Paxton and the Justice Department of an “unconscionable campaign of mistruths and mischaracterizations related to gender affirming care.”
“Today, we made the difficult decision to settle with the Texas Attorney General and the Department of Justice, closing a chapter that has been wrought with falsehoods and distractions,” the hospital said. “To be clear — we are settling to protect our resources from endless and costly litigation. This settlement will allow us to redirect those precious resources to focus on the life-saving care and groundbreaking discoveries of our exceptional clinicians and scientists.”
Texas Children’s Hospital is still being <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-elon-musk-funds-suit-against-texas-childrens-for-malicious-prosecution-of-eithan-haim">sued</a> by Dr. Eithan Haim, a whistleblower who released documents appearing to show its transgender medical program was still active and performing attempted transition procedures on children as young as 11.

Supreme Court Considers Tennessee’s Ban On Treatments For Transgender Minors

‘A Monumental Day’: Hospital To Create First-Ever Detransition Clinic

Texas Hospital To Create First-Ever 'Detransition Clinic'

detransitioner

Menu