Trump Says Talarico Unelectable in Texas Vegan Attack
President Donald Trump said talarico is unelectable because he is “a vegan in Texas.” He made the remark on Wednesday morning before boarding Air Force One, while predicting that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will win the state’s U.S. Senate race.
Trump said Paxton would beat a “very defective candidate that believes in six genders,” and added, “You can’t get elected as a vegan in Texas.” The comments extended his support for Paxton into a direct attack on James Talarico, who won the Democratic Senate nomination in Texas earlier this year.
Trump and Paxton
Trump told reporters that Paxton will win “very substantially” in the upcoming primary runoff against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. He predicted Paxton would then defeat Talarico in the general election, sharpening a messaging line that linked the race to a cultural attack on the Democrat.
Paxton is the Trump-endorsed candidate in the Texas Senate contest. Trump’s remarks came this week after that endorsement, putting the president’s backing and his comments about Talarico into the same campaign push.
Talarico’s 2022 speech
Trump’s attack referenced a 2022 clip in which Talarico described reducing meat consumption as “existential.” In that speech, he said it was “necessary to fight climate change” to reduce meat consumption and respect animals.
Talarico also said, “So, I am proud to say that our campaign has officially become a non-meat campaign,” and, “So, we are only buying vegan products from our local vegan businesses.” Conservatives have criticized those remarks, along with his comments that “God is non-binary” and “sex is a spectrum.”
Texas agriculture politics
The Republican attack landed in a state where beef cattle production is described as the largest agricultural segment and a multibillion-dollar industry. After Talarico’s resurfaced comments drew attention, the National Republican Senatorial Committee posted, “Who wants to tell him that cattle is the #1 commodity in Texas?”
For Talarico, the immediate challenge is that his strongest statewide launch has also become his easiest line of attack for Republicans. For Paxton and Trump, the race now carries a clear election message: tie the Democrat to a 2022 vegan speech and to positions conservatives have already turned into a campaign issue.
