{"id":867,"date":"2026-06-03T11:13:22","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T11:13:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867"},"modified":"2026-06-03T11:13:22","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T11:13:22","slug":"as-us-midterms-near-talarico-tries-to-fend-off-culture-war-attacks-in-texas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867","title":{"rendered":"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><div><div><ul><li>Summary<\/li><\/ul><\/div><div><\/div><\/div><div>June 3 (Reuters) &#8211; Even before all the votes had been counted in last week&#8217;s Republican Senate primary in Texas, party members began rolling out attacks on the Democratic candidate, James Talarico.<\/div><div>Talarico \u201cwants to trans your kids,\u201d Texas congressman Brandon Gill wrote<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span>on May 22 on X. Days later, \u200bWhite House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller falsely claimed<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span> Talarico himself was \u201ctransgender.\u201d Attack ads circulated online<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span> highlighting controversial old quotes from the state representative and seminarian and dismissing him as \u200ca \u201cwoke weirdo.\u201d<\/div><div>With Republicans increasingly on the defensive over high gas prices and an unpopular war in Iran, they are returning to safer ideological terrain ahead of the November midterm elections \u2013 homing in on gender identity and other cultural wedge issues in a race that will help determine whether they retain control of the U.S. Congress.<\/div><div>Some of the attacks are specific to Talarico, 37, a rising star in the Democratic Party who speaks frequently about how his progressive policy positions are rooted in his Christian faith. Others are tailored \u200bto Texas, which hasn\u2019t sent a Democrat to the Senate since 1988.<\/div><div>But political operatives say the strategy comes from a broader Republican playbook that helped the party make nationwide gains in the 2024 \u200belection cycle, and which they hope will allow them to weather headwinds across the country in 2026.<\/div><div>The stakes are enormous: Democrats face a narrow and difficult \u2060path to reclaiming the Senate, but a win in Texas would likely give them a real shot. And Democratic strategists view the Republican candidate, state Attorney General Ken Paxton, as an unusually weak candidate saddled with \u200bthe baggage of corruption scandals and marital infidelities.<\/div><div>A poll<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span> released on Friday by Texas Public Opinion Research showed the two candidates locked in a tight race, with Talarico leading Paxton 47% to 44% among likely voters.<\/div><div>Strategists say Talarico\u2019s \u200bcampaign is an early test for Democrats of how to navigate a familiar dilemma: responding to culturally charged attacks without being defined by them, or alienating key constituencies.<\/div><div>\u201cRepublicans need to mobilize voters,\u201d said Daron Shaw, a professor of politics at the University of Texas at Austin and a member of the bipartisan Fox News polling team. \u201cPainting Talarico as just unacceptable to Texas voters,\u201d isn\u2019t simply a play for the base, he said, but will be \u201ctargeted at non-MAGA Republicans and independents.\u201d<\/div><h2>RELITIGATING THE PAST<\/h2><div>So far, Talarico has \u200bemphasized economic issues and accused Republicans of trying to relitigate \u201cold, tired culture war fights.\u201d He acknowledged in an interview with CBS<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span> that some past remarks \u201cmissed the mark,\u201d including a 2021 statement that \u201cGod is nonbinary.\u201d But his campaign \u200bhas also leaned into the criticism, selling \u201cI\u2019m a Talafreako\u201d T-shirts to supporters.<\/div><div>\u201cThis is how puppet politicians like Ken Paxton stay in power,\u201d Talarico told Reuters, when asked about the attacks at a campaign stop in San Antonio on Friday. &#8220;They divide \u200cus by party, \u2060by race, by gender, by religion, by culture &#8230; And I think Texans are done being divided.\u201d<\/div><div>The Paxton campaign did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. Samantha Cantrell, a spokeswoman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the party\u2019s Senate campaign arm, said it was important for Texans to know Talarico&#8217;s position on issues.<\/div><div>\u201cSaying that God is non-binary is a very, very radical leftist viewpoint,\u201d she said.<\/div><div>Yemisi Egbewole, a Democratic strategist and former adviser to President Joe Biden, praised Talarico for his direct approach to countering the attacks.<\/div><div>&#8220;He just addressed straight to camera across multiple outlets that his comments were cringe, and characterized himself as being a bit provocative,\u201d she said. \u201cI think you&#8217;ve \u200bjust got to knock it out of the way, \u200bright away.\u201d<\/div><div>Other Democratic candidates should take note, Egbewole \u2060and other strategists said, as Republicans seek to shift the conversation away from pocketbook issues. Polls show a clear majority of Americans are dissatisfied with President Donald Trump\u2019s handling of the economy, usually an area of strength for him and his party.<\/div><h2>&#8216;WHAT DO YOU STAND FOR?&#8217;<\/h2><div>The appeal to cultural traditionalism is especially resonant in Texas, \u200ba deeply religious state and a cradle of the U.S. conservative movement. \u201cJames Talarico is a threat to our values, our way of life, and the future \u200bof Texas,\u201d Paxton posted on X<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span> \u2060on Saturday.<\/div><div>\u201cThis is a fight about: Is Talarico a nontraditional Democrat who would be acceptable to God-fearing people in East Texas?\u201d Shaw said. \u201cOr is he the kind of left-wing, progressive, mask-wearing, vegan wannabe who appeals to Austin intellectuals?\u201d<\/div><div>One repeated line of attack from Republicans &#8211; including Paxton and Trump &#8211; has been to falsely claim Talarico is vegan, in a bid to cast him as un-Texan. Talarico has hit back saying he has been eating barbecue since before Paxton&#8217;s first \u2060indictment.<\/div><div>Exploiting cultural issues, \u200bespecially the debate over transgender rights, worked for Republicans in 2024. One of the most effective attack ads included the line: &#8220;Kamala \u200bis for they\/them, President Trump is for you,&#8221; highlighting remarks by Democratic nominee Kamala Harris about support for tax-funded gender-affirming care for prisoners.<\/div><div>\u201cThose are frankly the things that stick the most with voters,\u201d said Egbewole, saying Democrats need to do a better job of communicating \u200btheir own values to ordinary voters. \u201cThey just want to know: What do you stand for?\u201d<\/div><div><address><div><div><noscript>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"120\" height=\"120\" alt=\"Helen Coster\" class=\"wp-image-866\" src=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/9f0c11f18693448c03137777121381d4.avif\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/noscript><\/div><div>Helen Coster<\/div><\/div><div><ul><li><span><div><svg><title>Email<\/title><\/svg><\/div><\/span><\/li><li><span><div><svg><title>X<\/title><\/svg><\/div><\/span><\/li><li><span><div><svg><title>Linkedin<\/title><\/svg><\/div><\/span><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/address><\/div><\/div><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=864\">Guilty verdict against Andrew Left to shake up activist short-selling playbook<\/a><\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=862\">UK interior minister condemns violent reaction to handcuffed student\u2019s murder<\/a><\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=860\">Fire in Delhi hotel kills at least 21, police say<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Republicans have launched culture-focused attacks on the Texas Senate candidate.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":865,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[16,14,17],"class_list":["post-867","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-civil-rights","tag-government","tag-public-policy"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas - Reliable Moving Crews<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas - Reliable Moving Crews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Republicans have launched culture-focused attacks on the Texas Senate candidate.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Reliable Moving Crews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-03T11:13:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/34f02a869ba60b78ae3d994f205e0d24\"},\"headline\":\"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-03T11:13:22+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867\"},\"wordCount\":960,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/55c74edcc3f21509a969683ba38bd558.avif\",\"keywords\":[\"Civil Rights\",\"Government\",\"Public Policy\"],\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867\",\"name\":\"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas - Reliable Moving Crews\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/55c74edcc3f21509a969683ba38bd558.avif\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-03T11:13:22+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/34f02a869ba60b78ae3d994f205e0d24\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/55c74edcc3f21509a969683ba38bd558.avif\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/55c74edcc3f21509a969683ba38bd558.avif\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1005},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?p=867#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Reliable Moving Crews\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/34f02a869ba60b78ae3d994f205e0d24\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reliablemovingcrews.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas - Reliable Moving Crews","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas - Reliable Moving Crews","og_description":"Republicans have launched culture-focused attacks on the Texas Senate candidate.","og_url":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867","og_site_name":"Reliable Moving Crews","article_published_time":"2026-06-03T11:13:22+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/34f02a869ba60b78ae3d994f205e0d24"},"headline":"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas","datePublished":"2026-06-03T11:13:22+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867"},"wordCount":960,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/55c74edcc3f21509a969683ba38bd558.avif","keywords":["Civil Rights","Government","Public Policy"],"articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867","url":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867","name":"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas - Reliable Moving Crews","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/55c74edcc3f21509a969683ba38bd558.avif","datePublished":"2026-06-03T11:13:22+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/34f02a869ba60b78ae3d994f205e0d24"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/55c74edcc3f21509a969683ba38bd558.avif","contentUrl":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/55c74edcc3f21509a969683ba38bd558.avif","width":1920,"height":1005},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=867#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"As US midterms near, Talarico tries to fend off culture war attacks in Texas"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/","name":"Reliable Moving Crews","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/34f02a869ba60b78ae3d994f205e0d24","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com"],"url":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/867","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=867"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/867\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}