President Donald Trump criticized Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico in a social media post on Wednesday night, referring to him as "MISSING IN ACTION" due to his absence from the campaign trail following a flu diagnosis. Trump stated, "Ladies and Gentlemen, upon information and belief, James TalaFREAKo, who is running for the United States Senate in Texas, is MISSING IN ACTION!" He questioned Talarico's whereabouts and mentioned that "bad rumors" were circulating about him.
Talarico is in a competitive race against Republican nominee Ken Paxton, despite Texas being traditionally a Republican stronghold. Trump suggested that Talarico should debate Paxton. In response, Talarico expressed his willingness to debate Paxton on social media, stating, "President Trump just said Ken Paxton should debate. I agree. Ball’s in your court."
Talarico had previously invited Paxton to a debate, but Paxton did not respond. During a rally for Paxton, Trump labeled Talarico a "‘dumocrat’ communist" and made claims about Talarico's diet, suggesting that his illness was related to eating meat. Talarico denied these claims in a podcast appearance, stating he felt confident about his chances in the upcoming election.
Talarico explained his absence from the campaign trail by saying he had been diagnosed with the flu and prioritized public health by staying away from events. He mentioned, "If I was passing on this illness to somebody and got someone’s grandmother or someone’s baby sick, I couldn’t live with myself, so I thought the best thing to do was to put safety first and put everyone’s health first."