Resurfaced Talarico tape draws Republican fire as Fox News poll shows him leading Paxton in Texas Senate race

A June 2023 video clip of Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico is in focus for the Texas Senate race after Fox News Digital resurfaced it. The clip shows him laughing as he describes his church housing an undocumented mother and son who were close to being deported by ICE, and he says "Christianity is just another word for causing trouble." A recent Fox News poll has Talarico leading Republican opponent Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, in a seat both parties regard as critical.

The tape

The clip is from Texas Impact's "Weekly Witness" show, recorded in June 2023. Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian and Democratic state representative, credited his church's history for drawing him into politics. He described three episodes: LGBTQ rights advocacy in the 1990s, admitting an atheist member in the 2000s, and in the 2010s housing the undocumented family facing deportation. He connected that tradition to his decision to teach public school students on the west side of San Antonio, then run an education nonprofit, then seek office.

In the same interview, Talarico attacked what he called "Christo-fascism," saying those forces use faith to exercise "raw political, social and economic power." He cited five Texas laws as examples: the public school Ten Commandments display requirement, a provision allowing chaplains to replace guidance counselors, the state's school voucher program, bans on sex-change surgeries and treatments for minors, and Texas' abortion ban. He said these "stem from this Christo-fascism movement" and called it "dangerous" to those who are "marginalized and oppressed" in Texas.

Party responses

RNC spokesman Zach Kraft called Talarico "a dangerous man" in comments to Fox News Digital, accusing him of seeking to dismantle border security, defund police, and abolish prisons. Campaign spokesperson JT Ennis called those characterizations "flat out lies," saying Talarico "opposes defunding the police and supports stronger border security and immigration enforcement" and has voted to fund law enforcement and called for more border patrol agents. The Democratic National Committee did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

Paxton campaign spokeswoman Madison Cercy was sharper: "James Talarico hates Christianity, and he's said it."

What to watch

Paxton, who came through a primary runoff against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, told Fox News Digital after a Houston rally that his campaign was "three months behind" following that runoff and that he is "still three months out." He expects the race to shift once voters see what he called "the real James Talarico." Republicans have separately tried to surface prior Talarico statements, including his claims that "God is nonbinary" and that there are six sexes. The current Fox News poll showing Talarico ahead is the last public read on the race.

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