Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico doubles down on God being "beyond gender" comments
Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico recalled "provocative" remarks he previously made about God during a Thursday appearance on "The Bulwark" podcast, where he later defended the comment as both political and theological.
"I know that I was being provocative with that comment," Talarico said.
The Democrat Senate nominee acknowledged that he made the statement during a 2021 speech in the Texas legislature, where he said that "God is nonbinary" in a rebuke of Republican legislation focused on youth sports and transgender children.
"While it's maybe provocative politically, I don’t think it’s controversial theologically. Most Christians believe that God is beyond gender," Talarico said during the podcast.
"In Christ, there is neither male nor female," he added, citing the Apostle Paul. "So, if you have a problem with what I said, don’t take it up with me, take it up with the Apostle Paul."
The exchange came during a segment of the interview where host, Tim Miller, referenced "God's sausage."
"I made it on the floor of the house when the extremists in the Texas legislature were trying to pick on kids who were different," Talarico said to Miller.
The comment came as Talarico ramps up his U.S. Senate campaign in Texas following his primary victory over Rep. Jasmine Crockett. Talarico, 36, will now try to become the first Democrat in nearly four decades to win a Senate election in Texas, as he faces off against the winner of a bruising Republican primary runoff between longtime incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
During the podcast, Talarico also took aim at Paxton and Cornyn.
"And so Ken Paxton was impeached for using his public office to enrich his donors," Talarico said. "And that's exactly what John Cornyn does at the biggest scale."
"I just believe that neither John Cornyn nor Ken Paxton deserve the honor of representing this great state in the United States Senate," he later added.
The race for the Republican Senate nomination in Texas is heading to a high-stakes runoff between Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton scheduled for May 26, after neither candidate cleared the 50% threshold in the primary election.
Talarico advocated to abolish the Senate filibuster during the interview as well, saying he agreed with Cornyn's stance.
"I think we should abolish the filibuster so that we can actually govern in this country," Talarico noted. "People… want to see the results of that vote."
The offices of Paxton and Cornyn didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
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Talarico was also pressed on how he had planned to reach Black voters in the general election, as Miller raised concerns about whether enthusiasm and turnout within the voting bloc could ultimately reshape the race's outcome.
"I’m going to be doing the work to earn the trust and the respect and the support of every Black Texan," Talarico said.
He pointed to Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., as a model for his campaign.
"I’m deeply inspired by Reverend Raphael Warnock… he knows how to flip a red state," and added that Texas Democrats plan to "follow the same playbook" to win statewide.