Photo via New York Post

Texas Dem James Talarico takes LGBTQ group’s cash — after vowing to ban trans surgeries for kids

Read the original at New York Post ↗
Cite

Calder, R. (2026, October 4). Texas Dem James Talarico takes LGBTQ group’s cash — after vowing to ban trans surgeries for kids. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/10/03/us-news/texas-democratic-senate-hopeful-james-talarico-takes-lgbtq-groups-cash/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

New York Post · collected 2026-10-04 · by Rich Calder

Quick Summary

James Talarico, a Democratic candidate running for U.S. Senate in Texas, held a fundraiser in New York City hosted by leaders from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), an LGBTQ advocacy group supporting gender-affirming care for minors. Despite previously stating on Fox News that he would vote to ban gender surgeries for minors if elected, Talarico attended this event where HRC advocates for such procedures and transition drugs for adolescents. The fundraiser featured hosts including Morgan Cox, Andrew Solomon, and James Costos, who serve on the HRC’s boards. Critics argue that Talarico's attendance at the fundraiser contradicts his public stance against gender surgeries for minors, suggesting he is inconsistent with his political positions.
Written by AI on 2026-10-04, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

James Talarico, a Democratic state legislator from Texas running for US Senate against Republican Ken Paxton, recently held a fundraiser in New York City. Hosts of this event included members of the board of directors and foundation boards of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), an organization that supports access to gender-affirming care for transgender minors. However, just weeks earlier, Talarico had stated on Fox News that he would support a national ban on gender surgery for minors if elected to the Senate. The HRC guide mentions puberty-blocking drugs and notes that some trans youth may benefit from gender-affirming surgeries, which are rarely an option under 17 years of age. This discrepancy highlights Talarico's potential shift or inconsistency in stance on LGBTQ+ issues, particularly concerning medical treatments for transgender minors.

Written for “Texas Politician Endorses LGBTQ Group…” on 2026-11-04, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Texas Politician Endorses LGBTQ Group…
Politics · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 26% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Fox News
Hedges 3 of 83 claims Outlet record 68/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of James Talarico's positions and activities, one about a fundraiser and another about his stance on trans athletes in women's sports.”
CBS News
Hedges 7 of 75 claims Outlet record 65/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of the candidates' stances and do not describe the same specific incident or occurrence.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
27
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
26%
7 of 27 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-04 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

New York Post · 16794 article(s) · 36 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 36 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Rich Calder
25 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 “Kathy Hochul may be the worst governor in the history of New York State and one of the worst in the nation,” roared the commander-in-chief during a tele-rally promoting the campaigns of Blakeman and two other New York Republicans, Attorney General candidate Saritha Komatireddy and upstate congressional hopeful Anthony Constantino.
🔮 President Trump has agreed to grant a visa to the mother of a 15-year-old Bronx boy who was shot to death on his way to school, allowing her to travel from Ghana to NYC to mourn her son in person, NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Saturday.
🔮 Critics – including President Trump — immediately called for her to step away, saying she was too political, biased and unethical to fairly investigate the case. Norman Siegel, a longtime civil rights lawyer, said James is doing the right thing, adding that her taking the case would be like a police commissioner commenting on police misconduct cases before a probe is finished.
🔮 Republican Bruce Blakeman hit three corners of NYC to deliver his affordability message Saturday as his gubernatorial bid reached the final stretch, jabbing opponent Gov. Kathy Hochul and “anti-American” Mayor Zohran Mamdani along the way.
🔮 The socialist mayor – who has been campaigning heavily to get Gov. Kathy Hochul re-elected in a race against Republican Bruce Blakeman – showed up at the Upper East Side site around 10 a.m. Hizzoner brought donuts for poll workers and was greeted by at least one heckler, who yelled “Communist! You suck!,” according to video posted on X. Early voting will continue for more than a week before Nov. 3 on Election Day.
🔮 The ballot questions before NYC voters in the Nov. 3 general election – which include measures to fast-track how City Hall approves controversial outdoor dining sheds and anti-car, so-called street-safety projects — were selected by a 15-member Charter Revision Commission appointed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
🔮 A big chunk of the money came from former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg; the Greater New York Hospital Association Management Corp.; and Leadership for New York, a super PAC run by Jay Martin, a political strategist and former executive director at the New York Apartment Association.
🔮 Adding insult to injury, the socialist mayor then ditched a fresh Gracie Mansion tradition launched by his predecessor Eric Adams — pulling the plug on the annual breakfast reception at Gracie Mansion honoring Polish heritage.
🔮 But the decisions that I make will be decisions made solely in what I feel is in the best interest of New Yorkers.
🔮 And now they’re teaming up with other homeowners and a New York City co-op in the latest lawsuit contesting the legality of a new state-imposed tax that was initially pitched by Gov. Kathy Hochul and socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani as targeting billionaires — but also hits owners of less expensive second homes.
Also by Rich Calder
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 25 articles by Rich Calder →

Topics

Fox News HRC Senate Texas US Senate

Subjects

Talarico PERSON · 6× HRC ORG · 5× Texas GPE · 4× James Talarico PERSON · 3× Fox News ORG · 2× Senate ORG · 2× Democratic NORP · 1× Ken Paxton PERSON · 1× Republican NORP · 1× US Senate ORG · 1×

Narrative

Its host committee included controversial jeweler Alexis Bittar, a Mamdani fundraiser and transition bundler who also co-hosted a fundraiser last month for radical anti-Israel and Democratic Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed — who once referred to America as a “s–thole.”
framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-04
🔮 In a guide published by its foundation, the organization notes puberty-blocking drugs can be given to adolescents and that “some trans youth may benefit from gender-affirming surgery, which is rarely an option under the age of 17.”

Claims (27 extracted, 7 hedged)

Radical US Senate candidate James Talarico of Texas held a Big Apple fundraiser hosted by leaders of a group that supports gender surgery and transition drugs for minors — weeks after insisting he opposes the controversial practices. asserted
he → hold → practices
In a Sept. 8 Fox News interview, the Democratic state legislator facing Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a critical November race, said he’d vote in favor of a national ban on gender surgery for minors if elected to the Senate. asserted
he → face → Senate
Yet Talarico’s Tuesday Greenwich Village fundraiser was hosted by three people who serve on the boards of the Human Rights Campaign or its foundation — an organization that advocates access to what it calls “gender-affirming care” for transgender minors, according to TexasScoreCard.com. uncertain
it → host → TexasScoreCard.com
The reception’s hosts included Morgan Cox, who sits on the HRC’s board of directors; author Andrew Solomon, who serves on the HRC Foundation Board of Directors; and former US Ambassador to Spain James Costos, who sits on both the HRC and its foundation boards, according to an event flyer. uncertain
who → include → flyer
In a guide published by its foundation, the organization notes puberty-blocking drugs can be given to adolescents and that “some trans youth may benefit from gender-affirming surgery, which is rarely an option under the age of 17.” uncertain
which → publish → 17
The guide also offers a chart detailing what the HRC calls the “Common Steps in Gender Transition.” asserted
HRC → offer → Transition
It lists puberty blockers for “early- to mid-adolescents” and cross-sex hormone therapy, including testosterone for biological females and estrogen with an androgen inhibitor for biological males. asserted
It → list → males
Tickets to Talarico’s fundraiser ranged from $1,000 for an individual ticket to $13,500 for “Champion” level entry, according to the event listing. uncertain
Tickets → range → listing
Talarico pocketing checks at the fundraiser thrown by HRC honchos — while publicly distancing himself from gender surgery for minors — is one of his many U-turns, critics said. asserted
critics → pocket → turns
“James Talarico will say anything to get elected; he will change his positions depending on who’s in the room,” claimed Paxton campaign spokeswoman Madison Cercy. asserted
Cercy → say → room
“No matter how much flip-flopping he may do, he will remain a radical Democrat who wrote a bill to eliminate the oil and gas industry, fought for passing a state income tax, and the moment he’s sworn in, he’ll begin pushing his radical trans agenda once again. uncertain
he → do → agenda
“Most Texans believe protecting kids isn’t up for negotiation, and it certainly isn’t for sale at a Manhattan fundraiser.” asserted
it → believe → fundraiser
Zach Kraft, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee, agreed: “It is hard to keep track of what James Talarico claims to believe given that he flip flops” regularly. uncertain
he → agree → what
“If you want to know how he will vote in the Senate, look at his record in the Legislature where he voted for taxpayer-funded sex changes for kids of any age and to allow men in women’s sports,” Kraft added. asserted
Kraft → want → sports
In 2023, as a member of the Texas House of Representatives, Talarico voted against a bill that ultimately became law, which prohibited gender surgery, puberty blockers and hormone treatments for minors. asserted
which → vote → minors
Two years earlier, he agitated his conservative constituents by claiming on the Texas House floor that under his interpretation of the Bible “God is non-binary” and “both masculine and feminine and everything in between.” asserted
God → agitate → Bible
He also repeatedly voted against bills requiring athletes to compete by biological sex. asserted
He → vote → sex
During the Fox News interview, he tried to backtrack on his controversial assertion that God is non-binary as well as his bizarre claim that “modern science” shows there are six biological sexes. uncertain
science → try → assertion
I get that,” Talarico admitted, explaining, “What I was trying to say is that you can’t use human categories to define God, and that’s not controversial theologically.” asserted
that → get → God
Talarico spokesperson JT Ennis insisted any suggestion the Texas pol changed his position is “inaccurate.” asserted
pol → insist → position
“As James has said, he opposes gender reassignment surgery for minors. asserted
he → say → minors
At the same time, he’ll always stand against discrimination, especially when the most powerful politicians in the country bully students to score political points,” said Ennis. asserted
Ennis → stand → points
“While Ken Paxton and his billionaire backers spread lies, James will continue bringing Texans together to solve problems, not grandstand them.” asserted
James → spread → them
The Greenwich Village fundraiser came a day after Talarico attended another NYC fundraiser, which was thrown by a host committee packed with donors and allies of far-left Mayor Zohran Mamdani. asserted
which → come → Mamdani
That gala, which also raised money for Ohio Democrat Sherrod Brown’s comeback bid to reclaim his former US Senate seat, was headlined and introduced by actor Robert De Niro. asserted
which → raise → Niro
Its host committee included controversial jeweler Alexis Bittar, a Mamdani fundraiser and transition bundler who also co-hosted a fundraiser last month for radical anti-Israel and Democratic Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed — who once referred to America as a “s–thole.” asserted
who → include → thole
The Paxton-Talarico race — which is considered a dead heat heading into the Nov. 3 midterm elections — is widely viewed as critical to determining which party secures the Senate majority. asserted
party → consider → majority
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support