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It’s too soon to tell what may happen in November’s general election race for the U.S. Senate in Texas, but President Trump is rooting for Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton against Democrat candidate and State Rep. James Talarico.
“I think he’ll go on to defeat a very defective candidate,” the president told reporters on Thursday, discussing Paxton’s chances of winning.
President Trump slammed Talarico for believing in “six genders” and taking “hits at Jesus Christ, he’s wearing a mask six months ago – anybody wearing a mask six months ago doesn’t get it.”
To make matters worse in President Trump’s mind, Talarico is a self-proclaimed vegan.
“He’s a VEGAN! He’s a vegan in Texas, and you can’t get elected as a vegan in Texas,” the president said.
Talarico is known for melding Christian theology with wildly progressive ideology. For example, in 2021, he said on the Texas House floor that “God is nonbinary.”
According to Fox News, he has used the Bible to defend the practice of abortion, and he has suggested that Jesus Christ was a “radical feminist.” And, as noted by President Trump, Talarico has made the comment in the past that there are “six” biological sexes, per the outlet.
By contrast, President Trump’s recently-endorsed Senate candidate pick, AG Ken Paxton, is known to be a staunch conservative and longtime ally of the president.
“I know Ken well, have seen him tested at the highest and most difficult levels, and he is a WINNER!” President Trump wrote in his endorsement of Paxton this week, ahead of a primary runoff election, where Paxton will face off against Republican Sen. John Cornyn (Texas).
If Paxton or Cornyn wins the runoff, it’s too soon to say how they would face off against Talarico. A new and very early survey from the Barbara Jordan Public Policy Research and Survey Center found that with Paxton as the potential nominee in November, 45 percent of likely voters would pick Paxton, and another 45 percent would pick Talarico, putting them at a statistical dead heat.
