Watching Texas state Rep. James Talarico at CNN and Jubilee's Oct. 14 town hall, I thought: His performative pandering is what you'd get if you told a teacher and seminarian-turned-politician that Texans really need a Democrat as smooth as former President Barack Obama.
It's to Talarico's credit that he sat for the 90-minute town hall. But save for a few questioners who openly challenged the man running neck and neck with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for the U.S. Senate, it was mostly round after round of soft pitches from a sympathetic moderator, in a venue that seemed staged for Democratic applause.
Talarico hit a few home runs and drew a few cheers. But to extend the baseball analogy, he was playing on easy mode: swinging at simulated
pitches in a video game, not facing 100-mph heat at Dodger Stadium. Even so, he came off as cloying and phony, dodging, obfuscating and placating his way through the easiest pitching he'll ever see.
James Talarico's best pitch? Charm
Paxton hasn't debated Talarico and may not, though he should. Paxton comes across as aggressive and gruff in interviews. Talarico, like Obama, is the opposite: His strength, such as it is in politics, is charm. I'll admit it: Talarico is affable and quick to smile, and he didn't shy away from the few tough questions he got.
He told the audience of Democrats, Republicans and independents that on energy policy, he'd stand up to both “my own party” and “the other party.” He even criticized “extremism” in both parties on immigration – a bold stance in Texas, which has spent more than $11 billion on border security since 2021.
Still, wedged into Talarico's campaign minispeeches – and he didn't hesitate to give them – were many stock Democratic positions that don't square with most Texans' values. He said he wants to go back to “OG capitalism,” but he also said billionaires are destructive to America. Where have I heard that before? He still supports gender-affirming surgeries, which most conservatives oppose. And on immigration, he proposed what amounts to amnesty: a “pathway to citizenship” for undocumented immigrants who have “been here for years and decades,” provided they pay a fine and back taxes.
Talarico is trying to con Texans
I don't support most traditional Democratic positions, but at least they're usually clear. Talarico's worst offense was his evasiveness on important issues.
Take abortion. Jodi Hunt, an orthodox Catholic and Texas voter who disagreed with Talarico, asked how he could protect all Texans if he couldn't support policies that “protect the most innocent among us, who is the unborn child.” After a long riff on finding common ground, Talarico said, “We're both Christians, and the Bible is silent on the issue of abortion.”
The Bible doesn't use the word “abortion,” but in Jeremiah 1:5, God tells the prophet, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.” And the Bible is hardly silent on murder, or on the duty Christians have to protect innocent life.
Talarico’s evasiveness on such a fundamental issue reminded me of Obama at pastor Rick Warren's Saddleback Church forum in Southern California in 2008. Asked when a baby gets human rights, Obama said answering that “with specificity” was “above my pay grade.”
Talarico also said he favors “fair voter ID.” But asked whether he supports the SAVE America Act, he “dodged a voter's question,” as CNN's own website put it, saying he'd have to "read the final version of that bill."
Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, the bill's lead author, posted on Xthat “Talarico lied to this man's face. He's on the record fully aware of the bill and called voter ID efforts racist.”
In a recent interview, Talarico knew all about the bill and opposed it, saying it would “rob” Black Americans of their right to vote.
None of this surprises me. Talarico built his record in the Texas House as a progressive Democrat, then pivoted toward the middle once he started running statewide for the U.S. Senate. Like Obama, he sells unity over values. Plenty of conservatives who wanted to believe Obama learned that unity was just a line. His words were smooth, but his politics were firmly rooted on the left.
Talarico may have drawn applause at CNN's town hall, but the slick grin couldn't hide his real positions.
The midterm elections are just 18 days away, and Texans have seen enough of Talarico's opportunistic posturing. He may have looked like a major-league hitter on CNN, but he still struck out. The real game is Nov. 3.
Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist with USA TODAY. She lives in Texas with her four kids. Sign up for her newsletter, The Right Track, and get it delivered to your inbox.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Texas, don't let James Talarico's charm fool you | Opinion
