State Rep. James Talarico spoke to a packed crowd in Corpus Christi on Jan. 26, laying out his campaign goals and taking audience questions on immigration, education and politics.
Talarico is running in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate. Also seeking the nomination is U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who visited Corpus Christi earlier in January.
The winner of the March 3 primary will be up against the Republican nominee in the November election. Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn is running against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt.
The Corpus Christi town hall was hosted by the Talarico campaign at the downtown Holiday Inn. He was introduced by former Nueces County Judge Barbara Canales, who said she is inspired by Talarico and described him as “that man of faith I hear all the time on that Instagram.”
State Rep. James Talarico, a candidate for U.S. Senate in the Democratic primary, discussed immigration and education during a campaign stop on Jan. 26 in Corpus Christi.
Asked what he plans to do after the primary, Talarico said that he and Crockett are “on the same team” and that if she wins the primary, he will be behind her “1,000%.”
Crockett’s stop in Corpus Christi was hosted by Indivisible Coastal Bend. Crockett’s remarks at the event addressed health care and the Jan. 7 shooting of Renee Good by an immigration agent in Minneapolis, which happened three days before her stop in Corpus Christi.
Talarico’s visit to Corpus Christi came two days after an immigration agent killed Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.
At the beginning of his remarks, Talarico discussed the deaths and deportations in Minnesota. He called for the replacement of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which he characterized as a secret police force, with an agency “that is actually going to focus on public safety,” as well as the impeachment of U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
Talarico, a former teacher, also shared about the impacts of education funding cuts on students, including a child who Talarico said was failed. Talarico recalled watching the child be restrained and carried out of school screaming after he got in a fight after his school therapist was fired due to budget cuts.
Former Nueces County Judge Barbara Canales introduces state Rep. James Talarico, a candidate for U.S. Senate in the Democratic primary, at a campaign stop on Jan. 26 in Corpus Christi.
“I promised myself that if I ever got a little bit of influence or a little bit of power, I would do everything I possibly could to stop that from happening again,” Talarico said.
This inspired him to run for the state Legislature.
Talarico said he believes that public school teachers should all make at least $100,000 and that early childhood education and pre-K should be universal, available to all children.
“In the wealthiest country in history, we have teachers who are driving Ubers at night to make extra money,” Talarico said. “We have teachers who are selling their own plasma to make ends meet. It is unacceptable in this rich nation to have our teachers going to these extraordinary lengths just to provide for their own families.”
He said that he has been disappointed by the “spinelessness” of the national Democratic Party.
Talarico expressed support for reform, including banning super PACs, ending gerrymandering, overhauling the U.S. Supreme Court and requiring members of Congress to hold public town halls in their districts.
“I’ve also said that as much as I care about education and health care and the environment, the thing we have to prioritize before all of those issues is comprehensive political reform,” Talarico said.
Talarico touted several successful bills he wrote and supported in the Texas Legislature, including to allow inmates in the juvenile justice system to graduate with a high school diploma, expand early childhood education and address the affordability of medication.
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Senate hopeful Talarico talks immigration, education in Corpus Christi