‘I had the flu’: Talarico returns to campaign trail and dismisses theories about absence

Mark Felix/Bloomberg/Getty Images/File

Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico on Sunday denounced the wide-ranging speculation about his whereabouts in recent days as Republicans seized on his absence from the campaign trail.

“I had the flu. This is the craziest thing I’ve ever heard. It’s wild that someone can just post something on the internet and then the media just runs with it,” Talarico told MS NOW .

The state representative, who is locked in a tight contest with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, said he had been working from home as he recovered and meeting with his team via Zoom. Talarico returned to public events over the weekend, seen speaking to attendees at the Austin City Limits music festival on Friday and in the front row of a Kacey Musgraves concert in Dallas on Saturday.

Paxton and his allies, however, have zeroed in on the Democrat’s absence during the final stretch of a race that could be critical to determining control of the Senate.

At a rally in San Antonio on Wednesday, the GOP Senate nominee started a “Where is James Talarico” chant in the crowd. Paxton’s campaign also published a flurry of social media posts claiming Talarico is “nowhere to be seen.” President Donald Trump has also chimed in, describing Talarico as “MISSING IN ACTION” in a Truth Social post.

Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty Images

Send us your questions for Texas Senate candidate James Talarico

Talarico revealed he had been diagnosed with the flu on September 30 during a virtual appearance at the United States Hispanic Business Council, an event he was supposed to attend in person. He said he had started to feel under the weather and visited urgent care in Dallas.

Before his reemergence this weekend, his last in-person campaign appearances took place on September 26, when he held a press conference in Texas and then on September 28, when a Talarico campaign source said the candidate attended a private fundraiser in New York City featuring actor Robert DeNiro.

On Sunday, he dismissed the speculation that there was another reason for his absence as “silly season in our politics” before turning the focus to Paxton, who has yet to agree to a debate.

“I’ve heard credible reports that Ken Paxton has a serious medical condition that causes clinical levels of cowardice,” Talarico joked. “He has asked for proof of life from me, I’m asking for proof of spine from him.”

Talarico’s return to the campaign trail comes ahead of a town hall on Wednesday evening hosted by CNN and Jubilee Media and moderated by Erin Burnett, live in Fort Worth, Texas. The media outlets have also extended a town hall invitation to Paxton.

Mark Felix/Bloomberg/Getty Images/文件

德克萨斯州民主党参议员候选人詹姆斯·塔拉里科周日谴责了近日来关于他行踪的各种猜测，共和党人抓住他缺席竞选活动这一事实大做文章。

“我得了流感。这是我听过的最疯狂的事。真是不可思议，有人在网上发帖，媒体就大肆报道，”塔拉里科告诉MS NOW。

这位与德克萨斯州总检察长肯·帕克斯顿选情胶着的州众议员表示，他一直在家休养，并通过Zoom与团队开会。塔拉里科周末重返公众视野，周五在奥斯汀城市极限音乐节上与观众互动，周六又出现在达拉斯凯西·马斯格雷夫斯演唱会的前排。

然而，帕克斯顿和他的盟友们却将矛头指向了这位民主党人在竞选最后阶段的缺席，而这场竞选可能对决定参议院的控制权至关重要。

周三在圣安东尼奥举行的一场集会上，共和党参议员候选人帕克斯顿带头高喊“詹姆斯·塔拉里科在哪儿？”。帕克斯顿的竞选团队还在社交媒体上发布了一系列帖子，声称塔拉里科“不见踪影”。唐纳德·特朗普总统也加入了讨论，在Truth Social网站上发帖称塔拉里科“行动中失踪”。

Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty Images

请将您的问题发送给我们，以便我们讨论德克萨斯州参议员候选人詹姆斯·塔拉里科。

塔拉里科在9月30日通过视频连线参加美国西班牙裔商业委员会的活动时透露，他被诊断出患有流感。他原本应该亲自出席该活动。他说，他开始感到身体不适，并前往达拉斯的急诊中心就诊。

在本周末重新露面之前，他最后一次亲自出席竞选活动是在 9 月 26 日，当时他在德克萨斯州举行了一场新闻发布会；然后是在 9 月 28 日，据塔拉里科竞选团队的消息人士称，这位候选人参加了在纽约市举行的一场私人筹款活动，演员罗伯特·德尼罗也出席了该活动。

周日，他驳斥了有关他缺席另有其他原因的猜测，称其为“政治上的愚蠢时刻”，然后将注意力转向了帕克斯顿，后者至今仍未同意参加辩论。

“我听说有可靠的消息称，肯·帕克斯顿患有严重的疾病，导致他懦弱得像个临床病人，”塔拉里科开玩笑说。“他要求我证明他还活着，而我则要求他证明他有骨气。”

塔拉里科重返竞选活动之际，正值他将于周三晚间在德克萨斯州沃斯堡参加由CNN和Jubilee Media联合举办、艾琳·伯内特主持的市政厅会议。这两家媒体也已向帕克斯顿发出市政厅会议的邀请。