James Talarico who is a Texas Democratic Senate candidate is currently facing fresh criticism from both the public and parts of some Christian community after a brief exchange at a campaign event sparked a wave of reactions online.
In one of the videos currently circulating on social media, Talarico was approached by an attendee or an interviewer and was asked a seemingly unexpected question: “Who’s your favorite drag queen in Texas?”
James did not hesitate the question before responding with, “Oh my gosh. Probably Alyssa Edwards.”
His quick response has since become a talking point in the Texas Senate race, with the public questioning how readily Talarico was able to identify a favorite drag performer in just a seconds after the question. The video was shared widely online, and it has gotten millions of views and prompting reactions from several Republican figures, who are his opponents.
In case you don’t know who the drag queen is, his name is Alyssa Edwards who goes by his real name as Justin Dwayne Lee Johnson, a Texas-based drag performer who became widely known through RuPaul’s Drag Race and later appeared in one of Netflix series Dancing Queen. Johnson has also spoken publicly about working with young dancers.
The controversy comes as Talarico is already facing renewed scrutiny over previous statements concerning gender and sexuality. His past comments have become a major line of attack from Republicans during the Senate campaign.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is Talarico’s Republican opponent, has also criticized the Democrat following the exchange, calling him too “weird” and “radical” for the people of Texas.
Talarico’s campaign, meanwhile, responded by redirecting criticism toward Paxton rather than directly addressing questions surrounding the video.
The short exchange has generated some heated arguments in the Texas senate race with the video which continues to fuel debate about Talarico’s political record and views.
