Free Republic

Much has been made about Texas U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico’s version, or perversion, of “Christianity.”The Democrat nominee has called St. Andrews Presbyterian Church in Austin home since he was two years old, he says. It has been led for 35 years by Rev. Jim Rigby, whom Talarico calls a “mentor.” Rev. Babs Miller is “Minister to the Parish,” according to the progressive church’s website. So, one might conclude Miller knows a thing or two about St. Andrews’ congregants and their beliefs.“We still have people in this church who wish that the young man had not just nicked his ear,...

MAGA, Inc., the super PAC linked to President Donald Trump, has made its first major midterm buy with $10 million in ad spending to support Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in his Senate race, according to a new filing with the Federal Election Commission. Paxton and Democrat state Rep. James Talarico are locked in a tight race in which polls continually show the two candidates neck and neck. The race is one of roughly a dozen that will determine if the GOP holds its Senate majority in the midterms. The $10 million will go toward digital and TV ads...

Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico is set to travel to Los Angeles in September for a high-dollar fundraiser with Hollywood celebrities, according to a report. Politico reported that "Lost" co-creator Damon Lindelof and his wife, Heidi, will host a fundraiser for Talarico in Brentwood on Sept. 10. Tickets for the event start at $500 and go as high as $13,500, according to the outlet. This will be Talarico’s second Hollywood fundraiser in a few months. The first was held in June and was described by Page Six Hollywood as a "glitzy Dem fundraiser" at the home of Hollywood producer...

Democrat U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico spoke of “dismantling” capitalism while dismissing the future of Texas’ oil and gas industry during a 2020 climate forum, newly resurfaced video shows. The comments, first reported by CNN, came during a virtual candidate forum hosted by the Austin Sierra Club while Talarico was serving his first term in the Texas House. During the forum, Talarico was asked what lawmakers could do to address the effects of climate change on minority communities. “I am so thankful that you asked this question, and also thankful that young activists have really drawn the link between climate...

Senate Democratic nominee James Talarico appears ready to bring a touch of Trotsky to Texas. In a video from a climate forum, Talarico is shown declaring capitalism an "oppressive system" linked with White supremacy and saying that it must be "dismantled" to achieve a better world. It is reminiscent of Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky, who denounced the "fundamental evil of the capitalist system" and called on citizens to free themselves from its oppression. The Democratic Socialists of America and radical sites have long called "to dismantle the capitalist state." As a state representative, Talarico addressed the 2020 climate conference by...

Months after losing the Republican U.S. Senate runoff to Attorney General Ken Paxton, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn is still trashing his former opponent—and apparently has no plans to help him raise the money Republicans say is needed to win in November. Cornyn, who lost to Paxton by nearly 30 points in May, went to the liberal Texas Tribune late last week to continue his months-long critique of the candidate who will be at the top of the ballot. “Paxton’s a poor campaigner,” Cornyn said, who lost to Paxton by nearly 30 points in May. “He’s lazy and doesn’t raise money....

A 25-year-old Austin man returned to the United States from Mexico over the weekend after being deported despite telling federal immigration officials he was a U.S. citizen, according to his attorneys. Brian José Morales García was deported in April after a traffic stop in Fredericksburg. Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and Gillespie County sheriff's deputies who pulled over his work vehicle did not believe him when he said he was a U.S. citizen and contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Federal immigration officials disputed that Morales García was a U.S. citizen and accused him of entering the country illegally,...

Indivisible Dallas, which hosted an event for state Rep. James Talarico (D-District 50), the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, is helping organize a march against the Republican National Committee’s midterm convention as part of a coalition whose promotional materials feature the logos of communist and socialist organizations. Indivisible Dallas hosted a virtual forum titled “Meet The Candidate with James Talarico” on January 15. “In this electrifying Texas primary race, join Indivisible Dallas and Indivisible groups all across Texas in a virtual conversation with U.S. Senate candidate: TX STATE REP. JAMES TALARICO,” the event page stated. “Folks will have the opportunity...

Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) said she will focus on “campaigning down ballot” in Texas, suggesting that she won’t campaign with Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico after he defeated her in the party’s primary. “We’ve seen the turnout that you can produce. Talarico might very well need that magnetism. Will you campaign with him?” CNN’s Laura Coates asked the congresswoman on Thursday. “I will be campaigning down ballot,” Crockett said. “Because when we’re looking at a state like Texas, we’ve tried this, where we’ve got one amazing candidate that’s running at the top of the ticket,” Crockett said, when asked why...

An unearthed clip of Democrat candidate James Talarico from an appearance on the Higher Learning podcast in 2025 showed that the progressive agreed with the assessment that Christians are the "villains" of American society. In an episode published on August 5, Van Lathan Jr., host of Higher Learning, went on an extensive rant proclaiming that American Christians nationwide are “villains” and “mean people” who he expected to see “saying something wild,” all while Talarico laughed and nodded in agreement. Talarico then told Lathan Jr. that he didn’t believe that Christianity as “defining someone as a good person” was dead, but...

Republicans are setting sights on Democrat Senate candidate James Talarico’s questionable response to efforts from Chinese nationals to buy vast swaths of land across the state. Republican candidate Ken Paxton hosted an event outside of Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph in Universal City, Texas on Tuesday morning to shed light on Talarico’s poor record. Paxton claimed that Talarico’s votes in the Texas House aided China in their efforts to “steal Texas land.” Talarico is noted to have voted against SB 17, which restricted property purchases in the state from foreign nationals from adversarial countries, and SB 667, to prevent state agencies...

President Trump vowed to spend “a lot of time in Texas” to help his candidate Ken Paxton defeat Democrat James Talarico, who the president bestowed with a new nickname: “Tele-a-freak-o.” “We have a very good candidate, Ken Paxton, and he’s running against Tel-a-freak-o, they call him, because he is a little freaky,” the president told reporters in the Oval Office. Trump has blasted the Democratic contender with numerous insults and repeatedly accused Talarico of being a vegan (which he denies) in a state known for its beef and barbeque. Both parties are heavily invested in the Texas Senate race, seeing...

With under nine weeks to go until early voting begins in Texas’ U.S. Senate race, both Ken Paxton and James Talarico have been campaigning around the state, meeting voters everywhere from restaurants to music halls as they’ve pitched their political visions. But on television, Texans have only seen one of them. Talarico, an Austin state representative, has spent over $25 million on advertising since the general election began in late May, according to ad tracking firm AdImpact — with nearly $10.7 million deployed on broadcast and an additional $8.4 million on streaming devices. (The rest has gone to a combination...

🚨SHOCKING SURGE: Ken Paxton's odds of winning the Texas Senate race have increased SIGNIFICANTLY against James Talarico. Texas - 2026 Senate (odds) 🟥Ken Paxton 53% (+6) 🟦James Talarico 47% Odds via @Kalshi.

Texas Senate hopeful James Talarico took heat Thursday for suggesting teen killer Karmelo Anthony’s murder conviction was unjust because there were no black jurors at his trial. Talarico — who is seeking to become the first Democrat elected to the Senate from Texas since 1988 — was asked about the high-profile case during an appearance on “The Breakfast Club” radio show earlier this month and seemingly argued that Anthony’s conviction was proof the justice system “is not working for black Texans.” “Well, I’ve done a lot of work in the state house on justice reform, and right now we’ve got...

Texas Senate hopeful James Talarico once delivered a sermon titled “God is not a Christian” as part of a fiery rebuke of conservatives whom the Democrat accused of trying to transform America into a theocracy. Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian and Texas state rep., admitted in his 2023 sermon that he is sometimes reluctant to share his faith, while warning, “There is a cancer on our religion.” “God is so much bigger than our human categories. God is not a Presbyterian. God is not a Christian. God is not a noun at all. God is a verb. God is not a...

The Democrat Party’s youth movement appears to be in complete shambles as the DemocracySummit 2026, what was slated to be a “a powerful day of organizing, learning, and civic renewal,” had absolutely abysmal attendance in Austin, Texas. Despite boasting a star-studded slate of progressive speakers like former Vice President Kamala Harris, Sens. Mark Kelly and Chris Murphy, Texas Senate candidate James Talarico, and Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin, the venue appeared to be completely empty. Footage uploaded to social media by Turning Point executive Tyler Bowyer showed a near-empty room during remarks delivered by Democrat Mark Kelly, who many...

Texas State Rep. James Talarico (D) has hired a top staffer from the office of the Senate Republican he hopes to replace, a move political commentators viewed as strategically savvy to help him win over independent and crossover GOP voters. The incumbent Republican, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), lost a viciously contentious primary to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who scored President Donald Trump's endorsement but is widely viewed as a weaker candidate in the general election due to a series of scandals, lawsuits, a messy and contentious divorce, and other controversies. Talarico, the Democratic nominee, has had a slight lead...

A longtime aide to Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) has joined Democrat James Talarico’s Senate campaign as he tries to defeat Republican nominee Ken Paxton in Texas. Jacob Smith, who spent five years working for Cornyn as a deputy legislative director and policy adviser, is now serving as Talarico’s deputy policy director, according to NOTUS. “I’ve worked for Republicans like Senator Cornyn my entire career, but this year I’m proud to be joining James Talarico’s campaign,” Smith said in a statement released by the campaign. Smith said Talarico focuses on issues affecting working Texans rather than partisan politics and argued the...

Merchandise promoting the left-wing terror group Antifa were given out for free at Democrat Senate candidate James Talarico’s latest rally, according to Current Revolt. Some of the stickers and buttons read “Anti Fascist Social Club” and “Auntifa,” while others printed the word “Antifa” onto a graphic. Additional merchandise portrayed President Donald Trump as Marie Antoniette, the Queen Consort of France who was executed during the French Revolution, while another ominously read “He’s on the List.” A final sticker read “It’s Okay to Punch Nazis,” sparking reminders to the language used on Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson’s ammunition that conservatives have...