Texas state Rep. James Talarico has been making the same mistake Democrats made when they suffered serious losses in 2024. He has made gender ideology a centerpiece of his campaign, which isn’t exactly a kitchen table issue for most Texans.
Talarico has fixated on trans-identified children for much of his political career, speaking out against bills aimed at preventing irreversible “gender-affirming” treatments for children experiencing gender dysphoria.
Even though he has tried to walk back some of his more radical positions on gender, he is still harping on the issue.
While speaking at a recent Pride event, he railed against legislation prohibiting the use of puberty blockers and surgical treatments for trans-identified minors.
“I think if I'm thinking through the 3 most dangerous LGBTQ attack bills that made it through, I would say the most dangerous is SB 14, which would deny many times life-saving healthcare from our trans youth in Texas,” he said. “And the reason that I oppose that bill is because I trust parents and doctors to make decisions for kids and not politicians in Austin.”
This has been one of the themes of this session, has been parental rights and parental autonomy and parental consent. And so to see my colleagues who have been champions for parents turn around and then undermine parents in our state just because they have trans kids infuriates me, and I hope it infuriates you, and I hope you remember it when you go vote next November…I think we're talking mostly about SB 14, the, the bill that would deprive trans children of necessary healthcare and also SB 12, the anti-drag bill. But I also want to say that Democrats didn't stick together on another anti-LGBTQ bill, which is the book banning bill that would remove library books in schools just because they have a gay character or they're by a gay author.
He referred to SB 12, which bans diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices in schools while preventing school staff from socially transitioning students, as “unconstitutional” and “un-American.”
Speaking at a pride event, James talarico says SB14, the ban on transgender surgeries for minors, "infuriates me" and is "the most dangerous" bill that passed in Texas.
— Lone Star Liberty PAC (@LoneStar_PAC) July 1, 2026
He also criticized SB12, the law banning sexually oriented performances in the presence of children, and says,… pic.twitter.com/qpMLFP4AK7
SB 12 took effect in September and prohibits school districts from considering race, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation in hiring decisions. It also bars DEI training and programs except where required by federal law and requires written parental consent before students can join clubs.
Talarico still hasn’t figured out that his views on gender are not popular among Texans — or even Americans across the country. Talking more about trans-identified children than about issues making it harder for people to feed their own children in a state like Texas is akin to begging voters to support their opponent.
Yet, Talarico’s team has yet to figure that out, a fact that Republicans have been using to great effect in the campaign.