Democratic state Rep. James Talarico made one of his final swings through the Houston area Wednesday ahead of November's U.S. Senate election, taking direct aim at trillionaire Elon Musk for bankrolling his Republican rival, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Speaking before a crowd at the UH Hilton on the main campus of the University of Houston, Talarico framed the Senate race as a fight against corruption.
"Ken Paxton was impeached by his own party, by his fellow Republicans for using his public office — his position of public trust — to enrich himself and his donors at the expense of the people of Texas," Talarico said. "Ken Paxton represents everything that’s wrong with this broken, corrupt system. He doesn’t serve us. He serves himself."
Paxton’s campaign has been dogged by multiple scandals, including his past indictment for felony securities fraud, as well as his 2023 impeachment on charges of abuse of office, which ultimately ended in his acquittal by the Texas Senate.
Talarico pledged to pass a raft of anti-corruption measures if elected. Specifically, he advocated for legislation to ban corporate political action committees and super PACs; to bar members of Congress from trading in stocks; to outlaw partisan gerrymandering by state governments; and to enact congressional term limits.
As a first-term lawmaker, Talarico would likely have limited power to push for any of these measures.
Talarico also took aim at Musk, pointing to the nearly $190 million in donations Paxton received from Musk through the Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC tied to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.
"In all likelihood, if you’ve seen an attack ad on your screen, that was Elon. If you’ve gotten lies in your mailbox, that was Elon. If you’ve received a text message saying scary things about me, that was Elon too," Talarico said. "Elon Musk wants our land. He wants our water. He wants our taxpayer dollars. He wants his very own personal United States Senator. He is trying to buy Texas. But on Nov. 3, we are going to send a clear message to the world’s first trillionaire: Texas is not for sale."
Talarico spoke just hours after receiving the endorsement and vote of former Republican President George W. Bush's brother, Neil Bush.
"My vote was motivated by two things: deep concern about Ken Paxton’s record and genuine admiration for the character and principles I see in James Talarico," Neil Bush said in a post on Facebook. "Today, I voted against a style of politics that I believe has damaged our country. More importantly, I voted for the kind of character and leadership I hope will help heal it."
The Bush family did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Former President Bush’s daughter, Barbara Bush, earlier made a $2,500 donation to Lone Star Rising PAC, the main political action committee supporting Talarico’s campaign.
Paxton made his most recent campaign swing through the Houston area on Tuesday, with stops in Conroe and Sugar Land.
"It’s not just James Talarico, we have to worry about. You see, this race could very well determine who controls the US Senate for the next two or more years," Paxton told his Conroe audience. "I’m not exaggerating when I say if we lose Texas, we lose America. We all know it. That’s what we’re fighting for."
Most polling in the contest shows Talarico and Paxton in a statistical dead heat.
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