James Talarico claims in reverse that he opposes transgender athletes in girls ' sports "if it risks safety or fairness."

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Democrat U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico said on Wednesday that he opposed transgender student athletes competing in “girl” sports “if it endangers health or fairness.” He also reversed his position from the Texas House, which he took to oppose restrictions on trans athletes.

On Fox News, Talarico said,” Every game has to be healthy and fair. As a former public school teacher, I care deeply about our kids and our student athletes. And so, I’m against transgender athletes competing in girls ‘ sports where they risk safety or fairness.

The declaration echoes what his campaign spokesman just stated in a written statement. However, it appeared to be the first time that Talarico has publicly endorsed a ban on transgender athletes from competing in female ‘ activities. The program, Fox News, with its mainly traditional crowd, was also noteworthy, as Talarico has attempted to win over right-leaning voters in his effort to win Democrats ‘ first statewide victory in Texas since 1994. Talarico gave the discussion as Democrats from all over the country gathered in Dallas for a semester agreement designed to energize the GOP’s support base ahead of November.

Talarico voted against GOP regulations that would allow transgender student athletes to play on sports teams that reflect their gender identity as a condition consultant. He claimed that making such ideas may harm” the least of these,” a reference to Jesus ‘ words in scripture, and would amount to a force for the government to “police women’s private parts.” And he compared the arguments made for the bans to those that have previously been used to prevent Black athletes from competing in professional sports, such as the claim that trans athletes have a genetic benefit and that excluding them may promote safety.

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In 2021, Talarico stated that” some things are more important than beautifully fair contest in athletics.”

Talarico claimed in an interview with Fox News that the charges were “overly broad” and that he voted against Republican restrictions on trans student athletes in the government. He continued to support amendments that would have narrowed the options, such as limiting the prohibition to schools with professional certified counselors, limiting eligibility decisions to local school boards, and imposing restrictions solely on individual sports more than group sports.

According to Talarico,” I backed revisions that would have given nearby communities the authority to make these decisions,” as conservatives had argued. No politicians in Austin or politicians in Washington, in my opinion, are the best people to make decisions for themselves. I voted in favor of regional authorities and communities in making these decisions.

In the end, Talarico suggested, he voted against the expenses because Republicans had refrained from narrowing them.

” As a lawmaker, my job is to try to sort of sort through all the costs does,” he said on Wednesday. Additionally, there are times when there is really bad content, and I have no choice but to oppose the bill as a whole.

Republicans have covered the Austin Democrat’s past statements defending LGBTQ rights and his previous statements defending transgender rights in campaign ads and traditional media. The Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, lawyer general Ken Paxton, has made the controversy the centerpiece of his campaign against Talarico as very democratic for Texas.

Talarico also disputed his previous assertion that there are six women in an earlier Fox News meeting on Wednesday, which came after a discussion on a bill that would have required public school students to participate in athletic teams that match the sex on their birth certificate. When Fox News asked him if he still believed there were six women, he responded,” No.”

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I “missed the level on some of my previous statements, and I’ll be the first to confess it,” Talarico said. There are two women, and there are a small percentage of people with hereditary defects, I meant to say. I must admit that I didn’t say it properly. There are two women, no six, as they say.

Republicans quickly refuted Talarico’s remarks on Wednesday, calling them untrue and contrary to his legislative record.

In response to Talarico’s fresh remarks, Paxton posted on X that” James Talarico voted against TWO bills that would have prevented people from playing in women’s activities.” He also referred to it as a “far-right crime theory.” This is the most recent chapter in James Talarico’s protracted story of lies and omissions.

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Some of Talarico’s earlier statements “missed the mark,” according to Talarico.

He said on CBS earlier this year,” There are some statements that I’ve made that I regret.” ” But Ken Paxton is purposefully slicing my cringey feedback to detract from his occupation of problem,” he said.

Talarico stated before in his Senate work that local college and sports officials may make enrollment decisions involving trans players.

When it comes to transgender sports, Talarico said on The Ezra Klein Show in January during the primary,” I’m here to have that talk about how we keep security and fairness in activities.” There will be regulations that occasionally prohibit it. That’s how you approach a public policy issue by loving both transgender people and our athletes, who both have a fair chance of winning.

As a former public school teacher, JT Ennis, a Talarico campaign spokesperson, stated to Spectrum News in August that James is concerned about the safety or fairness of transgender athletes playing in women ‘ activities. He’ll also fight against discrimination, especially when the country’s most effective politicians drunk students to get political points because he believes that every child is created in the image of God.

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Additionally, Talarico has claimed that Republicans fixated on transgender athletes and other minorities as a diversion from a tainted, businessman political system that the GOP has created to gain the ultrawealthy over regular people. His campaign has been defined by a populist economic pitch encased in the words of his Christian faith and the phrase “love thy neighbor” ( ).

The entrepreneurs are the only majority that are destroying America, Talarico said at the campaign kickoff a year ago on Wednesday. The cultural wars are a” ruse.” entrepreneurs who prefer to fight us instead of fighting them create so many groups in this state and across this nation. Instead of looking away at our companions, they want us to look left and right at them.

After the representative’s comment on Wednesday, Brad Pritchett, CEO of the LGBTQ+ rights advocacy group Equality Texas, said in a statement that his organization “expects ] better” of Talarico and his campaign.

When did morally upright people decide to play political sport with Texas children? Pritchett said. Transgender students must be included in all sports impartiality. Transgender children are entitled to the same level of activities as their classmates.

In contrast to Paxton, who he claimed had “gutted protections for LGBTQIA + children in unsafe homes,” Pritchett’s statement also compared Talarico’s prior voting record and actions in the Legislature to support inclusive school environments.

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Ayden Above contributed to this article.

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Sep 9, 2026Hill Country Post

James Talarico claims in reverse that he opposes transgender athletes in girls ‘ sports “if it risks safety or fairness.”

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