Ken Paxton knows something most politicians pretend they don’t. Voters have short memories, sure, but voting records last forever. And right now, the Texas Attorney General is betting that Democratic challenger James Talarico’s legislative history will matter more than his current campaign messaging.
The Paxton campaign just dropped a new ad called “Hypocrite” that’s airing during the Texas Democratic Convention in Corpus Christi this week. It’s not subtle. Then again, nothing in Texas politics really is anymore, and maybe that’s exactly what we need. The ad goes straight after Talarico’s record on issues that Republicans believe will resonate with everyday Texans who work in oil fields, worry about their daughters’ sports teams, and watch their paychecks get eaten alive by inflation.
“James Talarico is a hypocrite when it comes to fighting for families,” the narrator says. The ad hammers Talarico on his opposition to the Save Women’s Sports Act, his criticism of the oil and gas industry that employs millions of Texans, and his votes against tax cuts. It’s the kind of direct contrast advertising that makes consultants nervous but voters actually understand.
Here’s what’s really happening. Talarico is trying to do what every progressive candidate attempts when they run statewide in Texas. They scrub the website, soften the language, and hope nobody remembers what they said when they were playing to the Austin crowd. It’s political theater, and Paxton’s team is saying they’re not having it.
“We will not let Talarico continue to lie to Texans,” a Paxton campaign spokesman told The Daily Wire. “He can try to reinvent himself and hide behind the liberal media all he wants, but the truth remains: at every turn, Talarico has voted against Texas families to advance his radical progressive agenda.”
You know what strikes me about this? It’s not just about one race. This is the fundamental tension in Texas politics right now. The state’s major cities keep lurching left while the rest of Texas holds firm on traditional values. Democrats think they can bridge that gap with better messaging. Republicans think the gap is real and voters deserve to know it exists.
The ad specifically calls out Talarico for wanting to “teach trans ideology in schools and let boys compete in girls’ sports.” That’s not accidental language. Parents across Texas have watched this issue explode in school board meetings and legislative sessions. They’ve seen girls lose scholarships and records to biological males. The Paxton campaign is betting that suburban moms and dads remember this stuff even if Talarico’s new campaign website conveniently forgets it.
Then there’s the oil and gas angle. Talarico allegedly called it “immoral” to use the very energy source that keeps Texas running and millions of families employed. In a state where energy independence isn’t just policy but identity, that’s a tough sell. Try telling a roughneck in Midland or a pipeline worker in Corpus Christi that their livelihood is immoral and see how that conversation goes.
The Paxton campaign says Talarico has been influenced by activist theologian Robyn Henderson-Espinoza, who identifies as transgender. Republicans have been scrutinizing Talarico’s past comments on religion, gender, and sexuality, looking for the kind of quotes that reveal what someone really believes when they’re not focus-grouped within an inch of their life.
“He can scrub his website and try to deny it, but Texans deserve the truth, and we’re going to make sure they hear it,” the Paxton spokesperson added. That’s the crux of it. In an era where politicians can delete tweets and rewrite biographies overnight, voting records remain stubbornly permanent.
This race matters beyond Texas too. It’s a test case for whether progressive candidates can successfully moderate their image for statewide runs in red states, or whether their legislative records will follow them like shadows. Paxton is making a straightforward argument: you can’t vote one way in Austin and campaign another way across Texas. Either your convictions mean something or they don’t.
The timing of the ad during the Democratic Convention is strategic. While Talarico presumably stands before friendly crowds talking about his vision for Texas, Republican voters across the state will see a very different version of his record. It’s counterprogramming at its most direct.
Whether this approach works depends on something simple. Do voters care more about what a candidate says now or what they did when it actually mattered? Paxton is betting on the latter, and in Texas, that’s usually a safe wager.
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