Democratic Texas State Rep. James Talarico speaks during a campaign launch rally on September 9, 2025, in Round Rock, Texas. Talarico recently called giant corporations “welfare queens” while defending his views on healthcare and food assistance.
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Not many Democrats can say they’ve discussed their way into podcaster and UFC commentator Joe Rogan‘s good graces. But it’s something Texas Democrat James Talarico managed to do, and he’s bringing his usual brand of calm logic to a new setting: a filmed debate with 20 undecided voters. The Texas state representative who is vying for a spot in the U.S. Senate defended numerous claims in the popular Surrounded video series for Jubilee, and very few — if any — went unchallenged. From mentions of “welfare queens” to Talarico reflecting on his time as a teacher on San Antonio’s Westside, much was covered in the 1.5-hour clip.
One thing that stands out about Talarico is his apparent ability to meet people with opposing views in the middle. But the Round Rock, Texas, native surely gave everyone in the circle, along with those tuning in online, numerous nuggets to think on in the coming days, weeks and months ahead of the primaries.
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Sitting at the center of a circle with 20 undecided voters surrounding him, Talarico went through various claims he opted to defend, as residents of his home state of Texas questioned his stances. The U.S. Senate hopeful evoked some eyebrow-raising responses among those in the circle after making several statements, such as “Joe Biden failed us on our Southern border,” before pointing a finger at the former president while defending his claim that immigrants make America stronger and richer.
The eighth-generation Texan, whose mom is from the border town of Laredo, said this was something he believes many Democrats fail to admit. But, while debating one undecided voter, Talarico explained he believes Biden’s immigration policies “paved the way for Donald Trump to come in with masked men in unmarked vehicles, secret police tearing parents from their children, kidnapping people off the street. I think both parties have failed us on this issue.”
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When it comes to immigration, Talarico made it clear where he stands. While speaking to an undecided voter about immigration laws and undocumented immigrants, Talarico spoke of his experience as a school teacher on the Westside of San Antonio, where he claims to have “taught a lot of students who were undocumented.”
“I don’t want to stereotype,” Talarico said. “But those students tended to be the most patriotic, the hardest working students that I had in the classroom.”
He explained that they understood something that he, as an eighth-generation Texan, takes for granted, in that they believed the U.S. was “the land of opportunity” and were willing to do whatever it took to survive. While defending this specific claim, Talarico described his belief that the Southern border should be treated like the front porch: with a welcome mat and a locked door. That way, he detailed, the U.S. can keep out those who want to do harm and welcome “folks who want to contribute and want to be American,” saying he believes this would “make the country stronger.”
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Talarico also details the things he’s in support of, such as Republicans coming together with Democrats to carry out “comprehensive immigration reform” by getting more immigration judges, increasing border patrol, modernizing ports of entry, reforming the asylum system and relieving the visa backlog, to name a few.
Texas Rep. James Talarico calls corporations ‘welfare queens,’ defends food assistance
Another claim Talarico defended during his time on Surrounded was his belief that cuts to healthcare and food assistance hurt all Americans — not just those who depend on government assistance in some way, shape or form.
After Talarico revealed his belief that all humans are interconnected because “we are a social species” who “rise and fall together,” adding that he thinks this is “particularly true in healthcare and food assistance,” one undecided voter asked how you can help others while ensuring the system isn’t abused by “nasty people” and “welfare queens.”
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In his response, Talarico said, “The biggest ‘welfare queens’ in this country are the giant corporations that don’t pay a penny in federal taxes” and the CEOs who he alleges get a tax deduction for flying on personal jets — not hungry kids who rely on school food programs or parents working multiple jobs to get by.
In the video, Talarico also made it clear that he has no issue working with those on the other side of the aisle, citing it’s something he did to cap insulin prices in Texas.