Talarico says he 'hates Christianity' in unearthed interview with transgender 'Latinx' theologian
A prominent Democrat running for a critical U.S. Senate seat in Texas told a self-identified transgender, queer, "Latinx" podcast host that he "hates Christianity" in a 2021 interview.
In a recently resurfaced episode of the "Activist Theology Podcast," James Talarico, a Democratic state lawmaker now running for the Senate, confided that "I always think of myself as a Christian who hates Christianity."
He went on to say, "I always get drawn back into it because nowhere else, in no other political philosophy and no other economic theory do I find anything nearly as truly radical or revolutionary as the teachings of that barefoot Rabbi." Moments later, he told the podcast hosts that he believed the teachings of Christ are similar to "the teachings of the Buddha and other mystical traditions."
Democrats are hopeful that Talarico will flip one of Texas’ Senate seats blue for the first time in decades, which would be devastating for the GOP’s odds of retaining its upper chamber majority. He is running against Republican Ken Paxton, who currently serves as Texas attorney general.
Though Talarico has touted his ability to draw both Democrats and moderate Republicans, his history of controversial statements has cast doubt on his bipartisan appeal. While identifying as a Presbyterian seminarian, Talarico has caused consternation by claiming "God is nonbinary" and that there are six genders. He also raised eyebrows in a resurfaced clip in which he called reducing meat consumption "existential" to fighting climate change.
The latest comments to resurface come from Talarico’s interview with Roberto Che Espinoza, a transgender-identifying author, and Rev. Anna Golladay, a progressive minister currently running for Congress in Tennessee as a Democrat.
During the interview, Talarico said he has been inspired by Espinoza’s writings, saying, "I couldn’t contain my inner fanboy because I had read your book last year, and it continues to inspire me, and y’all’s work continues to inspire me."
Talarico explained that his upbringing was influenced by what he described as a "Christian anarchist tradition." He described himself as a "boring, cis-white man" and quipped, "I added Presbyterian to spice it up."
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He added that "my imagination is also just limited by my own background and identity, my whiteness, my masculinity, all those things limit my imagination about what’s possible. So, I have to continually press against that to try to expand the limits of what I’m dreaming of for our community. And that’s where, you know, Dr. Robyn [Espinoza], your book helps me do that and podcasts like this help me do that."
He later accused his Republican colleagues who don't support transgender bathrooms of "threatening the existence" of people he loves, referring to them as "monsters."
"I have to work with people who have passed these policies that threaten the existence of people that I love," he said. "Now they don’t threaten my existence, for the most part, but they threaten the existence of my friends and my loved ones. When I got elected, I went searching for those monsters, right? I got elected to the state house, and I was like, ‘I’m ready to find the monstrous people who passed these, you know, the show me your papers legislation, the bathroom bill."
However, he said, "I didn't find monsters," instead, "I found people who loved their kids, who loved their partners, who loved their colleagues, their immediate neighbors.
"That was, like, a big — something that I struggled with my first term — like, how they could, you know, vote this way on the floor and then turn around and be so personally decent."
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Commenting on the latest resurfaced statements, Zach Kraft, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee, told Fox News Digital, "You have to be either crazy or stupid to run for Senate in Texas openly hating Christianity and BBQ but 'loving' transgender kids."
"James Talarico is a wolf in sheep's clothing, who has made it clear he intends to destroy Texans' way of life and replace it with his woke socialist utopia where there are six genders, a Green New Deal, and a non-binary God," he added.
In response, JT Ennis, a spokesperson for Talarico’s campaign, told Fox News Digital that "the Christian seminarian who’s dedicated his life to the teachings of Jesus Christ obviously doesn’t hate Christianity."
"James is a devout Christian who fights religious and political corruption when he sees it — because there’s nothing Christ-like about powerful people twisting the teachings of Jesus to justify hate, violence, and greed," added Ennis.
"While billionaire-bought politicians like Ken Paxton attack James for his faith — he will continue encouraging Texans across the political spectrum to come together by loving their neighbors as themselves," he said.
Madison Cercy, a spokeswoman for Paxton's campaign, responded by telling Fox News Digital, "Every time one of these comments resurfaces, James Talarico claims it's being taken out of context or written off as another ‘cringey comment.’ But after years of saying the same things, Texans can see the pattern."
Cercy said that Talarico's "record is a long history of fighting for the most progressive causes in the name of Christianity," adding, "The truth is he uses it as a shield to justify his crazy ideas."