A resurfaced 2020 appearance by James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate in Texas, is drawing fresh attention to his fiscal positions as he campaigns for a seat in a Republican-leaning state. In the clip, Talarico told a progressive YouTube channel that he did not care what taxes had to be raised to protect health services from budget cuts during the COVID-19 crisis.
«I don't care where you get the revenue. I don't care what taxes you have to raise,» Talarico said during the appearance with Texas Rising, a progressive channel focused on political engagement among younger voters. The remark came as Texas faced a bleak financial outlook, with the pandemic crippling key revenue streams and oil demand collapsing nationally.
At the time, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar projected a $4.6 billion shortfall. «The economic contraction associated with COVID-19 has resulted in revenue collection this fiscal year that is much lower than our earlier projections,» Hegar said in a statement. «This estimate also assumes that restrictions on businesses and individuals will be lifted before the end of this calendar year and that economic activity will strengthen.»
As part of the COVID response, Texas ordered most agencies to find 5% spending cuts in the 2020–2021 budget. Governor Greg Abbott largely shielded Health and Human Services from the reductions, sparing Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program, foster care and disability services. Even so, $2.6 billion of the HHS budget remained subject to cuts, leaving the Health and Human Services Commission with a target of $132,716,600.
Talarico blasted the idea of reducing healthcare spending. «You're not going to make our students and our teachers — you're not going to make the sick and the elderly pay for this pandemic,» he said. «We are not going to balance our budget off of the most vulnerable people in this state.»
He argued that Democrats should create the same stigma around cuts to health and education that Republicans had created around tax increases. «Sometimes you get the reaction in the capitol that's an unreasonable position to take,» Talarico said. «But the other side of the aisle has already taken revenue increases off the table. They've done a good job of making certain options taboo, so I think our coalition, not just Democrats but progressives, and anybody with a functioning heart should be able to make cuts to health and education taboo and take them off the table.»
The resurfaced moment adds to a pile of past statements on gender, immigration and fiscal management that have complicated Talarico's political calculus as he aims to convince Texas voters he can represent a Republican-leaning constituency. Republicans seized on the clip. «High-tax Talarico never saw a tax hike he didn't love in the Texas Legislature, and he is promising to continue that if elected to the Senate,» said Zach Kraft, a spokesperson for the Republican National Committee.
Talarico has advocated for expanding U.S. health policy. His website calls for universal eligibility for Medicare, regulating medical debt and expanding veteran care. Those views overlap with many progressives in the party and have drawn criticism from Republicans who argue such an expansion would cripple the federal budget.
In 2019, Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., took to the Senate floor to blast the idea, calling it a straitjacket solution that would undermine healthcare quality. «The Congressional Budget Office projects in its report on a single-payer plan that government spending on health care would increase substantially,» Barrasso said. «They go on to say to cover the massive cost of government-run care, income taxes would have to at least double.»
Talarico's campaign did not address questions on whether his healthcare designs are shaped by the national deficit, but noted that his plan includes increases in taxes on the country's top earners. «James supports making billionaires pay their fair share so we can cut taxes for middle class Texans and fund healthcare for working families,» the campaign said. It added that Talarico has «unveiled plans to end special tax handouts to corporations and billionaires to help fund healthcare, while proudly voting for the largest property tax cut in Texas history.»
The campaign also attacked his likely Republican opponent, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, saying he «has worked to enrich himself and his billionaire mega-donors, amassed 15 properties on a taxpayer-funded salary, and was impeached by his own party for his corrupt abuse of office.»
Having cleared the party primary, Talarico is now working to convince voters in a state that has not elected a Democrat to the Senate in decades. The 2020 clip is the latest test of whether his past positions will weigh down his bid.