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WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump reached into a grab bag of insults and attacks on Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico but remained noncommittal on which Republican candidate he supports in the state's upcoming GOP runoff election."I think the Democrats have a weird, a weird candidate," Trump told reporters May 15 on Air Force One as he returned to Washington From China. "Six genders. A real hit on Jesus. I mean, this guy is bad news. His masking from relatively recently. And he's a vegan. He's a vegan. All of a sudden he's not a vegan."Texas doesn't like vegans," Trump added.Trump's remarks echoed some of the attacks he made against Talarico in a March 22 post on Truth Social after the 36-year-old state Texas representative secured the Democratic nomination for Texas' U.S. Senate race earlier that month.Yet Trump wasn't asked by reporters about Talarico when he gave his latest comments. A reporter asked the president whether he supports Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn or his challenger, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, in the May 26 Republican primary runoff."I don't want to say that. I'm looking at it very strongly. I like them both," Trump said, before tearing into Talarico.Trump has held off on endorsing Cornyn in the primary even though polls show Talarico performing slightly better in a hypothetical matchup against Paxton, who was impeached on bribery charges by the Texas House in 2023 and more recently accused of infidelity by his wife. Paxton is widely seen as more popular among Trump's MAGA base.The Talarico campaign did not respond to a request for comment.Republicans have worked to paint Talarico as a radical liberal who leans too far to the left to represent Texas.Trump's "six genders" comments was in reference to remarks Talarico made in a Texas House committee meeting during discussion on a bill that sought to require student athletes play in sports that correspond with the sex on their birth certificates. "Modern science obviously recognizes that there are many more than two biological sexes. In fact, there are six, which honestly, Rep. Hefner, surprised me, too," Talarico said.Republicans have accused Talarico of being a vegan in a state known for its barbecue brisket ‒ an attack that stemmed from Talarico pledging to animal rights activist during his 2022 House reelection bid that he was running a "non-meat campaign and buying only vegan products. Talarico has denied the accusation, responding in March by releasing a photo of himself eating a giant turkey leg.Trump's "Jesus" remark was perhaps a reference to how Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian, has made his Christian faith and values central to his political identity.Talarico, who this week got a boost from former President Barack Obama on the campaign trail, would be positioned to become one of Democrats' biggest young stars nationally if he achieves what many have tried but failed to pull off: turn Texas blue in the Senate. No Democrat has won a statewide race in Texas since 1994.A poll conducted April 17-20 by the nonpartisan Texas Public Opinion Research found Talarico ahead against both Republicans: a 44%-41% advantage over Cornyn and a wider 46%-41% lead over Paxton.Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.
