Masculinity attacks feature in Texas Senate race as Paxton targets Talarico
The Story
After winning the Texas Republican Senate primary, state Attorney General Ken Paxton unleashed a series of insults against his general election opponent, Democratic state Rep. James Talarico, focusing on Talarico’s masculinity. Paxton called Talarico “tofu Talarico,” “six-gender Jimmy,” “James Talafreako,” and “Low-T Talarico,” and released an ad ending with the words “Radical Talarico: too low-T for Texas.” Other conservative figures, including White House advisor Stephen Miller, a Florida congressional candidate, and a Fox host, quickly joined the gendered attacks.
Key Facts
- Ken Paxton won the Texas Republican Senate primary and then insulted Democratic opponent James Talarico.
- Paxton referred to Talarico as “tofu Talarico,” “six-gender Jimmy,” “James Talafreako,” and “Low-T Talarico.”
- Paxton released an ad that ends with an image of Talarico next to “Radical Talarico: too low-T for Texas.”
- White House advisor Stephen Miller told Fox News that Talarico is the Democrats’ “first transgender Senate candidate,” which is false. Miller also said “soy milk comes out” when Talarico gets a blood test.
- Florida Republican congressional candidate Dan Weldon questioned Talarico’s masculinity by saying he “couldn’t name a single obscure wide receiver from the early 2000s.”
- Fox host Jesse Watters called Talarico a “gay vegan” but added that Talarico is “not gay and not vegan, for the record.”
- Talarico has said he eats meat and referenced Paxton’s 2015 securities fraud indictment.
- “Six-gender Jimmy” refers to a 2021 comment where Talarico said “modern science acknowledges six biological variations based on chromosomes.”
- Talarico told CBS News he knows there are two sexes but believes people with chromosomal abnormalities deserve dignity.
- Texas Republican strategist Brendan Steinhauser said the masculinity appeals might help in a conservative state where many value “traditional masculinity.”
- Progressive strategist Cliff Walker said voters may not care about Talarico’s meat consumption when prices are high and thinks Paxton is trying to distract from his scandals.
- Both the Talarico and Paxton campaigns declined to comment on the record.
- The article notes that President Trump’s political style has influenced such gendered attacks.
Conflicting Reports
No conflicting reports identified in the source article.
Still Unclear
It is unclear how successful Paxton’s masculinity attacks will be. The article does not provide polling or voter reaction data regarding the effectiveness of this messaging.
Misconceptions
No widespread misconceptions addressed in the source article.
Key Figures
- Ken Paxton, Texas Attorney General and Republican Senate candidate
- James Talarico, Democratic Texas state representative and Senate candidate
- Stephen Miller, White House advisor
- Dan Weldon, Florida Republican congressional candidate
- Jesse Watters, Fox host
- Brendan Steinhauser, Texas Republican strategist
- Cliff Walker, Texas progressive strategy firm employee
- Dan Cassino, political scientist at Fairleigh Dickinson University
- President Trump (mentioned in context)
Sources: NPR
