A weekend concert became a political sideshow Monday after<\/p>\n
former U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem took a jab at two Texans \u2014<\/p>\n
Senate hopeful James Talarico<\/a> and singer<\/p>\n Kacey Musgraves \u2014 and the country star fired back.<\/p>\n Talarico, the state’s Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, was fresh off a break from the campaign trail<\/a> when he shared photos<\/p>\n of himself and Musgraves from her Saturday show in Dallas, writing:<\/p>\n “Thank you for having me last night!”<\/p>\n Related:<\/p>\n No, James Talarico was not in a mental health facility in Ohio<\/a><\/p>\n Noem shared a screenshot of Talarico’s post Monday morning on X, stating she would take country singer-songwriter Ella Langley over Musgraves any day.<\/p>\n “And if I’m choosin’ Texas, I’ll take Ken Paxton over James Talarico,” Noem continued, invoking Talarico’s Republican opponent and the current Texas attorney general.<\/p>\n A few hours later, Musgraves, who grew up in East Texas, responded<\/a> with a pointed dig of her own: “I don’t think you have a dog in this fight but if you did you would have shot it.”<\/p>\n Noem was widely criticized in 2024 after she disclosed in her memoir, “No Going Back,” that she shot<\/p>\n and killed her 14-month-old wirehair pointer, Cricket, in a gravel pit after the dog attacked her chickens.<\/p>\n Paxton vs. Talarico: At least they can agree on the Cowboys<\/a><\/p>\n Musgraves’ comeback took off online, garnering more than three million views in just a few hours. It joins a growing list of viral moments for Talarico, whose Senate campaign has become a magnet for social media attention as the Nov. 3 election approaches.<\/p>\n Over the weekend, Talarico pushed back against viral<\/p>\n rumors that he used the flu as a pretense to seek mental health treatment in Ohio. The facility at the center of the rumor publicly denied ever having the politician as a patient, while Talarico said he had never even visited the state.<\/p>\n Subscribe<\/p>\n