Texas state Rep. James Talarico, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, posted a campaign video on X in which he said he wished the government would “go after pedophiles like they go after brown men headed to work at 7 am.” The clip, tied to his Texas Senate bid, also compared tax policy, public schools, healthcare, and overseas military spending. The post drew a large online response, with users split over his framing of immigration enforcement and government priorities.
In the clip, he says, “I wish our government would go after pedophiles the way they go after brown men headed to work at 7 a.m.” He then says he wishes “this government would close billionaire tax loopholes like they’re closing public schools across this nation,” and that officials would fund “our health care” the way they fund “forever wars in the Middle East.”
He tells the crowd that priorities “in this country” can “change that,” adding, “We can protect our immigrant neighbors and prosecute the Epstein class,” that “every child has access to a quality public education,” and that wars “costing us a billion dollars a day” can end.
He closes, “This is what we can do together.” The footage does not identify the venue, and it does not show what he said immediately before the clip begins.
From the Stage to the Timeline
Some users treated the speech as a campaign strength. One wrote, “This is a winning campaign.” Another posted, “Amen James, amen!” Writer Zaid Jilani said Talarico and Sen. Jon Ossoff were “running pretty much the most liberal campaigns you could ever see in Texas and Georgia — and if they win it will rewrite the playbook for southern Dems.”
Other commenters disputed the contrast he drew. Commentator Gunther Eagleman replied, “ICE isn’t hunting guys for being brown and clocking in. They’re removing people who broke federal immigration law. Pedophiles should rot. Illegal entry is still a crime.”
Texas Republican Bo French asked, “Who are the ‘brown men’ James Talarico speaks of?”
Another user wrote, “ICE arrests pedos every day; you’re welcome.” Xi Van Fleet said she wished voters would “see through you for what you really are: a Communist waging class war in America and promising wealth redistribution.”
Whether Talarico’s point resonates with Texas voters remains to be seen, but his choice of words clearly struck a nerve. With immigration already one of the biggest issues in the Senate race, his “brown men headed to work” remark is unlikely to quiet the debate surrounding his campaign anytime soon.
