Texas Senate candidate James Talarico is facing a backlash over an anti-meat clip
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A clip found in 2022 of Texas Senate candidate James Talarico urging voters to cut back on “meat consumption” went viral on Tuesday as many cheered on the Democratic star.
Talarico, who has already fired off 2020 tweets about the “virus of racism” and how White people are responsible for spreading it, was also a hot topic on social media when a GOP communications strategist posted an old photo of a masked Senate criticizing the consumption of meat in a state famous for its sauce.
“We’ve heard, I think we’ve heard more, the issues of animal welfare. I think, not only because it’s the right thing to do, and it’s the moral thing to do, but also… it’s necessary to fight climate change. Now there’s the fact that we’re trying to reduce our meat consumption, and that we’re trying to respect animals,” said Talarico during a fundraiser for laws against animal cruelty.
JAMES TALARICO IS THE NEWEST TEXAS DEMOCRAT MEDIA DARLING, BUT THE DREAMS OF ‘GOING BLUE’ STATE HAVE ALREADY COME TRUE
Texas state Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, a Democratic candidate for the US Senate, was mocked for his 2022 bill calling for a reduction in meat consumption. (Photo by Eric Gay/AP)
“I am proud to say that our campaign has officially become a non-meat campaign,” continued Talarico. “We only buy vegan products from our local businesses.”
Talarico, who is trying to become the first Democrat since 1988 to win a Senate election in Texas, will face the winner of the May Republican primary between Sen. John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Cornyn was among the Texas lovers of brisket, ribs, and sausage who quickly grilled the liberal politician.
“Vote Republican in November. The stakes couldn’t be higher,” Cornyn tweeted in response to a clip that was viewed a million times a day earlier.
“Talarico wants to represent Texas but is anti-meat, anti-gun, anti-oil, thinks white people are inherently racist, that God is ‘non-binary,’ and that the Bible allows abortion,” responded Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas.
TALARICO REPORTEDLY KNEW COLBERT’S INTERVIEW WOULD NOT BE SHOWN ON TV BEFORE HE LEFT TO TAKE IT OUT.
A 2022 clip of Texas Senate candidate James Talarico urging voters to cut back on “meat consumption” went viral on Tuesday. (Mark Felix/Getty Images)
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, responded, “This freak wants to BBQ. That’s not Texas.”
Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet predicted that the clip would hurt Talarico in the general election.
“Democrats are trying to trick Texans into believing that James Talarico is not a lib, but the clips keep coming,” Kolvet wrote.
Fox News political analyst Guy Benson added, “The fact that he’s making his ‘exist’ meatless, vegan-only announcement while still lurking in 2022 is just a nice touch.”
Many others took to social media to mock Talarico:
Talarico’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
‘GOD IS NOT NUMBERS’: TEXAS DEM CHOICE TALARICO’S FIRST WORDS ON ABORTION, RACE AND SEX
In a series of 2020 tweets, Talarico called racism a “virus” spread by all White people, regardless of whether they show “symptoms” of it.
Addressing the podcast post, Talarico noted that although he would have used different words in retrospect, he was ultimately talking about “the responsibility to fight racism.”
“[W]can i say it another way? Can I use a different metaphor? “Maybe, but I still believe that racism is wrong and I still believe that we all have a responsibility to fight it,” he said.
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Fox News Digital’s Peter Pinedo and Lindsay Kornick contributed to this report.
