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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.”
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which → publish → 17
The guide also offers a chart detailing what the HRC calls the “Common Steps in Gender Transition.”
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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he → do → agenda
“Most Texans believe protecting kids isn’t up for negotiation, and it certainly isn’t for sale at a Manhattan fundraiser.”
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.”
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God → agitate → Bible
He also repeatedly voted against bills requiring athletes to compete by biological sex.
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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.
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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.”
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that → get → God
Talarico spokesperson JT Ennis insisted any suggestion the Texas pol changed his position is “inaccurate.”
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pol → insist → position
“As James has said, he opposes gender reassignment surgery for minors.
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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.
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Ennis → stand → points
“While Ken Paxton and his billionaire backers spread lies, James will continue bringing Texans together to solve problems, not grandstand them.”
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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.
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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.
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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.”
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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.
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party → consider → majority