Talarico’s counter – Democratic state Rep. James Talarico shared a video after Texas AG Ken Paxton won the GOP primary on May 26, and as Paxton’s campaign elevates insults about masculinity. Talarico counters with a campaign message grounded in his adoptive father’s example of res
When Democratic state Rep. James Talarico stepped into the spotlight after Texas AG Ken Paxton became his opponent for the November election, the attack wasn’t about policy — it was about manhood.
Talarico, 37, shared a video to social media Tuesday night reacting to Paxton’s nomination for the U.S. Senate, according to the account of his response. Since Paxton and the Republican party won the GOP primary on May 26, the fight has increasingly turned to name-calling and masculinity.
Talarico’s opponents have leaned into mockery aimed at his personal identity and appearance. drawing attention well beyond the usual lines of a Senate race. He has been dubbed “Tofu Talarico” and “Low-T Talarico.” White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller wrote on social media that “The Democrats made history in Texas by nominating their first transgender senate candidate.” Conservative commentator Todd Starnes suggested Talarico might have an affinity for “frilly underpants.” Fox News host Jesse Watters falsely suggested Talarico is gay. And President Donald Trump compared Talarico’s looks to MAD magazine’s illustrated cover boy Alfred E. Neuman.
In the video and remarks that followed, Talarico pushed back hard on the idea that cruelty or cruelty-by-nickname is what makes a man.
At a campaign event in Plano. Texas. on June 1. Talarico acknowledged that “There’s been a lot of talk in this campaign about what it means to be a real man.” He then turned the argument toward his adoptive father. describing a routine of responsibility that didn’t need an audience. “Every Saturday morning, my dad would mow our lawn. And then. without anyone asking him. he would go next door and mow our neighbor’s lawn. because she was elderly and a widow. He never talked about it. He just did it, because that’s what a man does. Call me old-fashioned. but a man takes responsibility. he upholds his commitments to his family and his neighbors. and he does what’s right even when no one is watching.”.
A similar thread ran through remarks Talarico made on May 28, when he said: “Nowadays our culture tells young men that greatness is tearing other people down, is trolling and owning and dominating. But my dad showed me what real greatness looks like.”
The contrast is sharp: the campaign’s critics have tried to define masculinity through insults and aggression, while Talarico repeatedly ties it to responsibility and service.
The sequence of facts around the race — Paxton’s nomination after the May 26 primary. the emphasis on masculinity attacks. and Talarico’s return to his father’s example of mowing a neighbor’s lawn — places the fight over identity squarely next to a fight over character. The question hanging over the race is whether voters are meant to see that difference as substance or as a distraction.
In Talarico’s framing, childish taunts and punching down don’t make someone strong. Many critics will say his approach is soft, but Talarico’s message leaves little room for that label, arguing instead that toughness looks like doing the right thing when no one is watching.
He closes that gap with one demand: critics who mock him shouldn’t just sneer — they should show the courage to rethink what manhood is supposed to mean. And in the final stretch. he casts the exchange not as a schoolyard duel. but as a test of whether grown men can keep their behavior in line with their stated values.
James Talarico Ken Paxton masculinity attacks GOP primary May 26 Plano campaign June 1 Stephen Miller Todd Starnes Jesse Watters Donald Trump U.S. Senate race Texas politics