September 4, 2026 • 20 mins
Gun Control and Religious Language
- Ben Discusses a Texas House floor speech in which James Tallarico argued for stricter firearm restrictions following the 2022 Uvalde school shooting.
- Emphasis on Tallarico's comments that lawmakers were "ignoring God's messengers" by not advancing certain gun-control proposals.
Uvalde School Shooting Legislation
-
- Review of debates surrounding legislation proposed after the Uvalde tragedy.
- Comparison between Tallarico's firearm restrictions proposal and the legislature's passage of the Uvalde Strong Act, which focused on school security measures.
Policing and Law Enforcement
-
- Discussion of Tallarico's comments during a public forum regarding law enforcement and allegations of over-policing in minority communities.
- Focus on his criticism of how police interact with Black and Brown communities.
- Second Amendment Debate
- Examination of Tallarico's statements that constitutional rights, including the Second Amendment, are not absolute.
- Host criticism of his views on firearm ownership and self-defense.
- Capitalism, Climate Policy, and Energy
- References to previously surfaced comments linking climate change, capitalism, and systemic oppression.
- Discussion of Tallarico's remarks about the future of the oil and gas industry and subsequent campaign efforts to clarify those statements.
- Media Commentary
- Inclusion of analysis and criticism from Laura Ingraham, who characterizes Tallarico as a progressive candidate whose views are outside the political mainstream in Texas.
- Broader discussion of Democratic candidates and the 2026 midterm elections.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
If you have encouraged white nationalist rhetoric, if you have
blocked common sense gun safety measures, if you have refused
to expand mental health care, if you have accepted contributions
from dark money groups like the NRA, then you have
blood on your hands.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
You're listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Good Friday morning. It's nice to have you with us
on the 47 Morning Update. And we've got a big
story for you. Democrats are all in to stop Donald
Trump and his agenda. They want to make sure they
take back the House and the Senate so that nothing
that Donald Trump got elected to do can be done
for the next two years. The candidates they're picking are
(00:43):
very interesting. And one of them is a guy by
the name of James Tallarico. And his words and his
videos keep disappearing. The good news is we keep finding them.
So who is James Tallarico, and what does he actually
believe in that he doesn't want you to know about?
We do a deep dive into James Tallarico, and you're
(01:04):
going to want to share this with all of your
family and your friends. Before I get to that, the
midterm elections, they're heating up. Congressional control and President Trump's agenda,
they hang in the balance, and every headline has the
potential to shift the odds. On CalSheep, you can trade
major primaries, election outcomes, and the biggest political storylines as
(01:24):
they happen. Now, you can look at the elections several
different ways on CalSheep. You can look at how many
Senate seats will Democrats hold after the midterms. Yeah, you
can get in on that. Or how many Senate seats
will Republicans hold after the midterms? And you can also
look at the races as they're happening. Georgia has a
very big race right now with John Alsop and Mike Collins.
(01:48):
You can look at that race and decide what you
think and see if you're right down the road. Now,
you can also look at the Ken Paxson-Talarico race. And
right now, Paxson is currently trading at 50%. meaning a
$ 100 trade would pay out $ 93 if he beats James Tallarico.
On Kalshi, you're trading against peers in a live market,
(02:08):
meaning there's no house, and as the probability changes, you
can buy in and out of your position. So download
the Kalshi app and use the code BEN. You're going
to get $ 20 when you trade $ 20.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
K-A-L-S-H-I. That's Kalshi. Trade on anything.
Speaker 5 (02:25):
18 plus only. Restrictions and eligibility requirements apply. Event contract
trading involves risk and may not be suitable for all investors.
Cauchy products are not available in all jurisdictions. Prices, values,
and available markets may differ from those mentioned. For more information,
see cauchy.com slash regulatory.
Speaker 4 (02:40):
It's the 47 Morning Update, and it starts right now.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Story number one.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
We've been talking a lot about James Tallarico. He's trying
to get Americans to forget who he actually is. And
this is very much like we've seen with Al-Said and
You know, the insanity of that race in Michigan. But
what we're witnessing from the Texas Democrat is even more impressive.
Just the straight up deleting of what he said in
the past. Now, this moment, we're going to talk about guns.
(03:09):
James Tallarico, he clearly hates firearms. He's a guy that
believes in maximum gun control, meaning you don't have the
right to protect or defend your family. And James Tallarico
also really likes invoking God when he wants to get
something done, because remember, he's this pastor guy. Well, we
now have unearthed video of James Tallarico saying that the
(03:32):
failure to restrict AR-15s is, quote, ignoring God's messengers. Now,
you may ask yourself, who is he talking about being
the messengers? Is it the parents of kids? Is it
the Democrats who show up in Demand that we ban
all guns.
Speaker 4 (03:49):
Is it the.
Speaker 3 (03:50):
Shooters that are the messengers? Well, the Texas Democratic U.S.
Senate nominee not only has urged restrictions on firearms for
young adults during a Texas floor speech. But he framed
the lawmakers and their refusal to pass his proposal as
disregarding a direct message from God. In other words, James
(04:11):
Salrico says, God is on my side, and my bill
is God's bill, and anything you guys want to do
is not God's work, and so you're not listening to God.
I want you to understand why he decided, maybe we
don't want this video out there. Now, we have it,
and I'm going to play for.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
You the audio. And this wasn't 10 years ago, all right?
Speaker 3 (04:33):
This clip was actually posted to James Tallarico's YouTube channel
in 2023. And it shows this state representative making the
remarks during a debate over various bill proposed in response
to the 2022 shooting at Uvalde, Texas in that elementary school.
You may remember that story because it was sad and
(04:54):
people were shocked and angered to watch police not engage
the shooter. For minutes on end, while they were hearing
the gunshots going off, knowing that kids were dying. That
was the big story that came out of that shooting.
But James Tallarico says, no, no, no, that's not the
big story. The story is my bill has God's blessing
(05:17):
and none of yours do. And this is what he
said from the floor of the house in Austin while
he was demanding that you do what God says you
must do, which is to only, of course, support his
radical anti-gun bill.
Speaker 6 (05:31):
We're the only country in the world that allows this
to happen. Globally, we are not an outlier in mental health.
We're not an outlier in school security. We're an outlier
in in the number of readily accessible weapons of war
in our community. You can't offer thoughts and prayers on
(05:55):
Monday and then debate a bill to loosen gun regulations
on Tuesday. I believe in the power of prayer. I
believe prayer can change lives. I believe prayer can change
the world. But there is something profoundly cynical about asking
(06:16):
God to solve a problem that we're not willing to
solve ourselves. God moves, God works through us. God has
no other hands but our hands. We prayed and God
sent moms from all over the state, from both political parties,
(06:39):
to advocate for gun safety. We prayed and God sent
families from Uvalde to travel 160 miles to advocate for
gun safety. We prayed, and God sent our colleague from
Uvalde to bring a bill that would prevent tragedies from
happening in the future. But instead of hearing that bill,
(07:03):
we're hearing this bill. We have ignored God's messengers. This
is moral madness. And this is not the Texas House
I know. Yesterday, members of this body from both political
parties summoned the courage to address this problem. That's the
(07:25):
Texas House I know, not this bill. I know many
of you are worried about your conservative scorecards, but the
only scorecard that matters is God's, and all of us
are failing. I urge you to vote no on this bill.
Speaker 4 (07:43):
All right.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
So to be clear, Talrico says that if you refuse
to pass his bill, HB 2744, a bill sponsored to
ban 18 to 21 year olds from owning certain guns,
it is, quote, ignoring God's messengers. And apparently he's like
been ordained by God to be the messenger of what
(08:03):
is right and what is wrong in anything that he decides. Now,
the Texas legislature did not pass the bill. They did
pass the Evaldi Strong Act, which was legislation focused on
strengthening security around schools. And there was a huge problem
that we saw in Evaldi, and that's what they were
actually trying to fix. They didn't just go on this
(08:24):
crusade to just say, oh, we got to get rid
of every gun, and somehow that'll fix the problem. Now,
Tallarico previously also criticized similar proposals and said that he
strongly opposed having police protect schools, arguing that doing so would, quote,
fuel a culture of violence. All right, so Tallarico says
(08:47):
my bill is God's bill, and if you don't support
my bill, then you're not supporting God and you're spitting
in God's face. And oh, if you want to have
police at schools to protect kids in schools, then you
are fueling a culture of violence. Now, Tallarico wasn't done there,
all right? Tallarico has continually invoked Christianity while advocating for
(09:09):
radical policy positions, including, by the way, his support for
the Green New Deal. He also says God would want
to abolish prisons. Apparently, God just tells him exactly what
he wants him to do. And providing taxpayer-funded health care
for illegal immigrants, he also says, is something that God
would want to happen. This is who James Tallarico is.
(09:30):
The RNC spokesman put it this way, saying, quote, And
sex change operations for children.
Speaker 4 (09:44):
Oh yeah, I forgot about that.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
Apparently God told him that children should be able to
pick their own sex and then you should have to
pay for their sex change operations as a minor while
you mutilate their bodies.
Speaker 4 (09:55):
This is not a joke. This is, again, he's speaking
directly with God here. Now, not only did the RNC
spokesman say that, he said, quote, he is.
Speaker 3 (10:03):
Truly a sick individual who will destroy Texans' way of
life if given the chance. Now, you may say, okay,
that seems a little bit extreme.
Speaker 7 (10:16):
Is it?
Speaker 3 (10:17):
Listen to James Tallarico in this back and forth, and
you tell me.
Speaker 7 (10:20):
I'm Amanda Meredith.
Speaker 6 (10:22):
I'm a veteran of the U.S.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
Navy.
Speaker 5 (10:23):
Hey.
Speaker 6 (10:24):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Thank you.
Speaker 7 (10:25):
I'm from South Oak Cliff. My question is, since I've
been back since 2017, I have noticed the over-policing in
our neighborhoods, especially during Juneteenth. I myself was attending an
event in Lancaster, and our event was closed down two
hours prior to it actually ending. We were doing nothing.
We were just having a very joyous occasion, and yet
we were told to leave. without even giving a proper explanation.
(10:49):
Ever since that Trump had ended the investigations into civil
rights investigations, police investigations, the craziness in this country has
gotten worse. Our people have been getting killed left and right.
Carmela Anthony's case is just a tragedy.
Speaker 4 (11:04):
Excuse my language.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
But it is.
Speaker 7 (11:07):
But it is. So what are we going to do
to fix those harms? There should be no reason why
I can't go to a cookout and enjoy myself amongst
my people. I have more trauma from living here, coming
back here, than I did when I was in Bahrain, Kuwait, Afghanistan.
And that's the anxiety. That's what I was most worried about.
(11:28):
I came back here because my family is here for
my son so he can get to know them. But
that was what it's going to be like now when
I'm driving around.
Speaker 4 (11:34):
Am I going to get.
Speaker 7 (11:35):
harassed by the police and state troopers, and he has
got to stop.
Speaker 6 (11:39):
Thank you. Thank you for your question, and thank you
for your service. This is unacceptable. I was proud to
march in Dr. Opale's Walk for Freedom in Fort Worth
for Juneteenth. It was one of the most beautiful celebrations
I've participated in in the whole campaign. So many Texans
(12:02):
showing up, black, white, and brown, all together, marching for justice,
marching for progress, marching for freedom. It was a joyous,
beautiful thing to see. And I'm so sorry that law
enforcement felt the need to shut down a joyous festival
for you in this community. It is unacceptable. Law enforcement
(12:24):
is here to serve us. It is here to protect us.
And too often, we see law enforcement weaponized against black
and brown communities in this state.
Speaker 3 (12:36):
Now, what's truly amazing about what all he had to
say there is not only does he take the premise
that all cops are evil, all cops or state troopers
are bad.
Speaker 4 (12:45):
It's unacceptable. We should get rid of the cops.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
But he does this while also talking about gun control.
He says that you should not have the right to
protect and defend yourself. The same guy that doesn't want
to have police to protect you, to have law and order,
he's saying, oh, by the way, not only do I
not want police, I also don't want you.
Speaker 4 (13:05):
To be able to protect and defend yourself.
Speaker 3 (13:08):
Tallarico, by the way, this is not a joke, hired
the leader of the group called, I'm going to use
another word, coax, not glocks. And there's a word that
rhymes with coax, okay? And he hired this leader to
lead his gun control portfolio. The group that I just mentioned.
(13:30):
would hand out sex toys to raise awareness about banning guns.
Speaker 4 (13:36):
You can't make it up.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
That is who Tallarico hired, the leader of Cokes, not Glocks. Okay,
you know the other word there. Put it in there.
And said, hey, you guys, you're doing a great job.
I love what you're doing. You're handing out sex toys
to raise awareness about banning guns. How those two connect
is beyond me. But that's not all. In another clip
from 2019, Tallarica said those who do not support gun
(14:01):
control have, quote, blood on your hands.
Speaker 1 (14:06):
If you have encouraged white nationalist rhetoric, if you have
blocked common sense gun safety measures, if you have refused
to expand mental health care, if you have accepted contributions
from dark money groups like the NRA, then you have
blood on your hands.
Speaker 4 (14:24):
You have blood on your hands.
Speaker 3 (14:27):
So just so you know who the Democrats think should
be in charge, it is a guy that says God
is on his team, God doesn't like cops, and we
should get rid of them. God doesn't like guns, and
we should get rid of them. And if you don't
agree with him, not only are you going against God,
but you have blood on your hands. This is who
(14:48):
the Democrats have running in Texas. During an appearance, by
the way, on Unity Over Division podcast, Tower Rico said,
Second Amendment is not absolute. Going further, saying, I believe
in the Second Amendment just as much as I believe
in the First. We have a right to bear arms
to protect ourselves, our families. We have a right to
own weapons for sport or for hunting.
Speaker 4 (15:08):
Hold on.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
I don't have a right to own weapons to protect
and defend my family? Like, who are you to decide
that it's only for sport or hunting? because you just
contradicted yourself. We'll keep going with the interview. He said, quote,
but like any freedom in the Bill of Rights, it
is not absolute.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
So there it is.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
If God tells him that things should be out of
the Bill of Rights, apparently James Tallarico thinks he can
just take it out. He also said you have a
freedom to assemble to protest, You need a permit. You
need a permit. Oh, so I have to get my rights.
What happens if he denies my permit? Do I then
lose my right to say what I believe in if
(15:46):
he's the senator from Texas? If I disagree with a
liberal on the city council or the county commissioner or
the board of aldermen or the mayor's office, do I
have a right to protest? Or only if they give
me their permit that says now you can go out
there and now you can protest. This is who James
Tallarico is. He is being haunted by his own words.
(16:08):
I want to play one more thing for you. Last
night on Laura Ingraham's show, she put a montage together
and some points she made. And I want you to
hear what she said about Tallarico. The same thing that
I want you to remember from what I said.
Speaker 4 (16:21):
Listen.
Speaker 8 (16:21):
On the kind of shoulder length wig and a more
prominent nose. And James Tallarico is the Abigail Spanberger of Texas.
Just like Open Borders Abby, he's a wild eyed radical
posing as something less threatening, something almost mystical.
Speaker 6 (16:39):
In one of my favorite poems, the Islamic mystic Hafiz
says that we are all invited to join that dance.
He says, every child has known God, not the God
of names, not the God of don'ts, but the God
who only knows four words and keeps repeating them, saying, come.
Speaker 9 (17:02):
Dance with me.
Speaker 8 (17:03):
Come dance with me? With Tallarico a senator, Texas would
be dancing all right into economic Armageddon. In newly unearthed
video from a 2020 environmental event, we see and we
hear exactly what Tallarico believes.
Speaker 9 (17:21):
I am so thankful that you asked this question and
also thankful that young activists have really drawn the link
between climate change and white supremacy and capitalism in our country.
And I think only ending the ways that all three
of those oppressive systems work together are we going to
be able to begin the process of dismantling them.
Speaker 8 (17:39):
Capitalism and white supremacy, that's a winner in Texas. And
about the oil and gas industry, which supports 1.4 million
Texas jobs, generates about $ 27 billion in tax revenue every year.
In that video obtained by CNN from that same event,
Tallarico compared being a leader in oil and gas, which
Texas is, to being a leader in cassette tapes in
(18:02):
the 1980s. He said, quote, that industry is not going
to last. Now, the Tallarico campaign gave us written responses
lengthy to his demeaning cassette tape comments about fossil fuels,
essentially disavowing them, saying he supports the oil and gas
industry and that he merely believes in an all of
(18:22):
the above energy strategy. And as for his arrogant dismissiveness
of capitalism, comparing it to white supremacy, his team told
us that James is a proud capitalist, but reiterated that
he missed the mark on some of his past statements.
He added that Texas also needs to address racism, natural
disasters and a billionaire controlled economy. Voters are going to
(18:45):
have to decide if they want to take a flyer
on this guy. But why would they want to trust
anyone who's ever used the words white supremacy and capitalism
in the same paragraph, let alone the same sentence? The
truth is, Tallarico's views are way outside the sensible middle
in America, let alone in the Lone Star State. And
(19:07):
instead of addressing legitimate questions about his expressed views about
capitalism and the oil industry, Tallarico deflects.
Speaker 6 (19:16):
They're going to claim that this new dream is radical.
They're going to claim this new dream is extreme. They're
going to claim we are socialists or communists or whatever
sounds scariest in a headline.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
You listen to Tallarico and you listen to what Laura
Ingraham said there. She's absolutely right. Now, this is the
guy that can undo this country. And there's a lot
of them like him around the country running right now.
So we better be ready because they are ready. The
radical left is ready. They hate this president. They hate
what he's doing. doing and they want to stop him.
(19:52):
So the next two years, well, he gets nothing done.
And that's exactly why these midterms are so vitally important.
They understand who they're running and what's at risk.
Speaker 4 (20:02):
Quick break.
Speaker 3 (20:02):
Ben Ferguson show more coming up.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
Thank you for listening to the 47 Morning Update with
Ben Ferguson. please make sure you hit subscribe wherever you're
listening to this podcast right now. And for more in-depth news,
also subscribe to the Ben Ferguson Podcast, and we will
see you back here tomorrow.
If you have encouraged white nationalist rhetoric, if you have
blocked common sense gun safety measures, if you have refused
to expand mental health care, if you have accepted contributions
from dark money groups like the NRA, then you have
blood on your hands.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
You're listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Good Friday morning. It's nice to have you with us
on the 47 Morning Update. And we've got a big
story for you. Democrats are all in to stop Donald
Trump and his agenda. They want to make sure they
take back the House and the Senate so that nothing
that Donald Trump got elected to do can be done
for the next two years. The candidates they're picking are
(00:43):
very interesting. And one of them is a guy by
the name of James Tallarico. And his words and his
videos keep disappearing. The good news is we keep finding them.
So who is James Tallarico, and what does he actually
believe in that he doesn't want you to know about?
We do a deep dive into James Tallarico, and you're
(01:04):
going to want to share this with all of your
family and your friends. Before I get to that, the
midterm elections, they're heating up. Congressional control and President Trump's agenda,
they hang in the balance, and every headline has the
potential to shift the odds. On CalSheep, you can trade
major primaries, election outcomes, and the biggest political storylines as
(01:24):
they happen. Now, you can look at the elections several
different ways on CalSheep. You can look at how many
Senate seats will Democrats hold after the midterms. Yeah, you
can get in on that. Or how many Senate seats
will Republicans hold after the midterms? And you can also
look at the races as they're happening. Georgia has a
very big race right now with John Alsop and Mike Collins.
(01:48):
You can look at that race and decide what you
think and see if you're right down the road. Now,
you can also look at the Ken Paxson-Talarico race. And
right now, Paxson is currently trading at 50%. meaning a
$ 100 trade would pay out $ 93 if he beats James Tallarico.
On Kalshi, you're trading against peers in a live market,
(02:08):
meaning there's no house, and as the probability changes, you
can buy in and out of your position. So download
the Kalshi app and use the code BEN. You're going
to get $ 20 when you trade $ 20.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
K-A-L-S-H-I. That's Kalshi. Trade on anything.
Speaker 5 (02:25):
18 plus only. Restrictions and eligibility requirements apply. Event contract
trading involves risk and may not be suitable for all investors.
Cauchy products are not available in all jurisdictions. Prices, values,
and available markets may differ from those mentioned. For more information,
see cauchy.com slash regulatory.
Speaker 4 (02:40):
It's the 47 Morning Update, and it starts right now.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Story number one.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
We've been talking a lot about James Tallarico. He's trying
to get Americans to forget who he actually is. And
this is very much like we've seen with Al-Said and
You know, the insanity of that race in Michigan. But
what we're witnessing from the Texas Democrat is even more impressive.
Just the straight up deleting of what he said in
the past. Now, this moment, we're going to talk about guns.
(03:09):
James Tallarico, he clearly hates firearms. He's a guy that
believes in maximum gun control, meaning you don't have the
right to protect or defend your family. And James Tallarico
also really likes invoking God when he wants to get
something done, because remember, he's this pastor guy. Well, we
now have unearthed video of James Tallarico saying that the
(03:32):
failure to restrict AR-15s is, quote, ignoring God's messengers. Now,
you may ask yourself, who is he talking about being
the messengers? Is it the parents of kids? Is it
the Democrats who show up in Demand that we ban
all guns.
Speaker 4 (03:49):
Is it the.
Speaker 3 (03:50):
Shooters that are the messengers? Well, the Texas Democratic U.S.
Senate nominee not only has urged restrictions on firearms for
young adults during a Texas floor speech. But he framed
the lawmakers and their refusal to pass his proposal as
disregarding a direct message from God. In other words, James
(04:11):
Salrico says, God is on my side, and my bill
is God's bill, and anything you guys want to do
is not God's work, and so you're not listening to God.
I want you to understand why he decided, maybe we
don't want this video out there. Now, we have it,
and I'm going to play for.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
You the audio. And this wasn't 10 years ago, all right?
Speaker 3 (04:33):
This clip was actually posted to James Tallarico's YouTube channel
in 2023. And it shows this state representative making the
remarks during a debate over various bill proposed in response
to the 2022 shooting at Uvalde, Texas in that elementary school.
You may remember that story because it was sad and
(04:54):
people were shocked and angered to watch police not engage
the shooter. For minutes on end, while they were hearing
the gunshots going off, knowing that kids were dying. That
was the big story that came out of that shooting.
But James Tallarico says, no, no, no, that's not the
big story. The story is my bill has God's blessing
(05:17):
and none of yours do. And this is what he
said from the floor of the house in Austin while
he was demanding that you do what God says you
must do, which is to only, of course, support his
radical anti-gun bill.
Speaker 6 (05:31):
We're the only country in the world that allows this
to happen. Globally, we are not an outlier in mental health.
We're not an outlier in school security. We're an outlier
in in the number of readily accessible weapons of war
in our community. You can't offer thoughts and prayers on
(05:55):
Monday and then debate a bill to loosen gun regulations
on Tuesday. I believe in the power of prayer. I
believe prayer can change lives. I believe prayer can change
the world. But there is something profoundly cynical about asking
(06:16):
God to solve a problem that we're not willing to
solve ourselves. God moves, God works through us. God has
no other hands but our hands. We prayed and God
sent moms from all over the state, from both political parties,
(06:39):
to advocate for gun safety. We prayed and God sent
families from Uvalde to travel 160 miles to advocate for
gun safety. We prayed, and God sent our colleague from
Uvalde to bring a bill that would prevent tragedies from
happening in the future. But instead of hearing that bill,
(07:03):
we're hearing this bill. We have ignored God's messengers. This
is moral madness. And this is not the Texas House
I know. Yesterday, members of this body from both political
parties summoned the courage to address this problem. That's the
(07:25):
Texas House I know, not this bill. I know many
of you are worried about your conservative scorecards, but the
only scorecard that matters is God's, and all of us
are failing. I urge you to vote no on this bill.
Speaker 4 (07:43):
All right.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
So to be clear, Talrico says that if you refuse
to pass his bill, HB 2744, a bill sponsored to
ban 18 to 21 year olds from owning certain guns,
it is, quote, ignoring God's messengers. And apparently he's like
been ordained by God to be the messenger of what
(08:03):
is right and what is wrong in anything that he decides. Now,
the Texas legislature did not pass the bill. They did
pass the Evaldi Strong Act, which was legislation focused on
strengthening security around schools. And there was a huge problem
that we saw in Evaldi, and that's what they were
actually trying to fix. They didn't just go on this
(08:24):
crusade to just say, oh, we got to get rid
of every gun, and somehow that'll fix the problem. Now,
Tallarico previously also criticized similar proposals and said that he
strongly opposed having police protect schools, arguing that doing so would, quote,
fuel a culture of violence. All right, so Tallarico says
(08:47):
my bill is God's bill, and if you don't support
my bill, then you're not supporting God and you're spitting
in God's face. And oh, if you want to have
police at schools to protect kids in schools, then you
are fueling a culture of violence. Now, Tallarico wasn't done there,
all right? Tallarico has continually invoked Christianity while advocating for
(09:09):
radical policy positions, including, by the way, his support for
the Green New Deal. He also says God would want
to abolish prisons. Apparently, God just tells him exactly what
he wants him to do. And providing taxpayer-funded health care
for illegal immigrants, he also says, is something that God
would want to happen. This is who James Tallarico is.
(09:30):
The RNC spokesman put it this way, saying, quote, And
sex change operations for children.
Speaker 4 (09:44):
Oh yeah, I forgot about that.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
Apparently God told him that children should be able to
pick their own sex and then you should have to
pay for their sex change operations as a minor while
you mutilate their bodies.
Speaker 4 (09:55):
This is not a joke. This is, again, he's speaking
directly with God here. Now, not only did the RNC
spokesman say that, he said, quote, he is.
Speaker 3 (10:03):
Truly a sick individual who will destroy Texans' way of
life if given the chance. Now, you may say, okay,
that seems a little bit extreme.
Speaker 7 (10:16):
Is it?
Speaker 3 (10:17):
Listen to James Tallarico in this back and forth, and
you tell me.
Speaker 7 (10:20):
I'm Amanda Meredith.
Speaker 6 (10:22):
I'm a veteran of the U.S.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
Navy.
Speaker 5 (10:23):
Hey.
Speaker 6 (10:24):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Thank you.
Speaker 7 (10:25):
I'm from South Oak Cliff. My question is, since I've
been back since 2017, I have noticed the over-policing in
our neighborhoods, especially during Juneteenth. I myself was attending an
event in Lancaster, and our event was closed down two
hours prior to it actually ending. We were doing nothing.
We were just having a very joyous occasion, and yet
we were told to leave. without even giving a proper explanation.
(10:49):
Ever since that Trump had ended the investigations into civil
rights investigations, police investigations, the craziness in this country has
gotten worse. Our people have been getting killed left and right.
Carmela Anthony's case is just a tragedy.
Speaker 4 (11:04):
Excuse my language.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
But it is.
Speaker 7 (11:07):
But it is. So what are we going to do
to fix those harms? There should be no reason why
I can't go to a cookout and enjoy myself amongst
my people. I have more trauma from living here, coming
back here, than I did when I was in Bahrain, Kuwait, Afghanistan.
And that's the anxiety. That's what I was most worried about.
(11:28):
I came back here because my family is here for
my son so he can get to know them. But
that was what it's going to be like now when
I'm driving around.
Speaker 4 (11:34):
Am I going to get.
Speaker 7 (11:35):
harassed by the police and state troopers, and he has
got to stop.
Speaker 6 (11:39):
Thank you. Thank you for your question, and thank you
for your service. This is unacceptable. I was proud to
march in Dr. Opale's Walk for Freedom in Fort Worth
for Juneteenth. It was one of the most beautiful celebrations
I've participated in in the whole campaign. So many Texans
(12:02):
showing up, black, white, and brown, all together, marching for justice,
marching for progress, marching for freedom. It was a joyous,
beautiful thing to see. And I'm so sorry that law
enforcement felt the need to shut down a joyous festival
for you in this community. It is unacceptable. Law enforcement
(12:24):
is here to serve us. It is here to protect us.
And too often, we see law enforcement weaponized against black
and brown communities in this state.
Speaker 3 (12:36):
Now, what's truly amazing about what all he had to
say there is not only does he take the premise
that all cops are evil, all cops or state troopers
are bad.
Speaker 4 (12:45):
It's unacceptable. We should get rid of the cops.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
But he does this while also talking about gun control.
He says that you should not have the right to
protect and defend yourself. The same guy that doesn't want
to have police to protect you, to have law and order,
he's saying, oh, by the way, not only do I
not want police, I also don't want you.
Speaker 4 (13:05):
To be able to protect and defend yourself.
Speaker 3 (13:08):
Tallarico, by the way, this is not a joke, hired
the leader of the group called, I'm going to use
another word, coax, not glocks. And there's a word that
rhymes with coax, okay? And he hired this leader to
lead his gun control portfolio. The group that I just mentioned.
(13:30):
would hand out sex toys to raise awareness about banning guns.
Speaker 4 (13:36):
You can't make it up.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
That is who Tallarico hired, the leader of Cokes, not Glocks. Okay,
you know the other word there. Put it in there.
And said, hey, you guys, you're doing a great job.
I love what you're doing. You're handing out sex toys
to raise awareness about banning guns. How those two connect
is beyond me. But that's not all. In another clip
from 2019, Tallarica said those who do not support gun
(14:01):
control have, quote, blood on your hands.
Speaker 1 (14:06):
If you have encouraged white nationalist rhetoric, if you have
blocked common sense gun safety measures, if you have refused
to expand mental health care, if you have accepted contributions
from dark money groups like the NRA, then you have
blood on your hands.
Speaker 4 (14:24):
You have blood on your hands.
Speaker 3 (14:27):
So just so you know who the Democrats think should
be in charge, it is a guy that says God
is on his team, God doesn't like cops, and we
should get rid of them. God doesn't like guns, and
we should get rid of them. And if you don't
agree with him, not only are you going against God,
but you have blood on your hands. This is who
(14:48):
the Democrats have running in Texas. During an appearance, by
the way, on Unity Over Division podcast, Tower Rico said,
Second Amendment is not absolute. Going further, saying, I believe
in the Second Amendment just as much as I believe
in the First. We have a right to bear arms
to protect ourselves, our families. We have a right to
own weapons for sport or for hunting.
Speaker 4 (15:08):
Hold on.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
I don't have a right to own weapons to protect
and defend my family? Like, who are you to decide
that it's only for sport or hunting? because you just
contradicted yourself. We'll keep going with the interview. He said, quote,
but like any freedom in the Bill of Rights, it
is not absolute.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
So there it is.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
If God tells him that things should be out of
the Bill of Rights, apparently James Tallarico thinks he can
just take it out. He also said you have a
freedom to assemble to protest, You need a permit. You
need a permit. Oh, so I have to get my rights.
What happens if he denies my permit? Do I then
lose my right to say what I believe in if
(15:46):
he's the senator from Texas? If I disagree with a
liberal on the city council or the county commissioner or
the board of aldermen or the mayor's office, do I
have a right to protest? Or only if they give
me their permit that says now you can go out
there and now you can protest. This is who James
Tallarico is. He is being haunted by his own words.
(16:08):
I want to play one more thing for you. Last
night on Laura Ingraham's show, she put a montage together
and some points she made. And I want you to
hear what she said about Tallarico. The same thing that
I want you to remember from what I said.
Speaker 4 (16:21):
Listen.
Speaker 8 (16:21):
On the kind of shoulder length wig and a more
prominent nose. And James Tallarico is the Abigail Spanberger of Texas.
Just like Open Borders Abby, he's a wild eyed radical
posing as something less threatening, something almost mystical.
Speaker 6 (16:39):
In one of my favorite poems, the Islamic mystic Hafiz
says that we are all invited to join that dance.
He says, every child has known God, not the God
of names, not the God of don'ts, but the God
who only knows four words and keeps repeating them, saying, come.
Speaker 9 (17:02):
Dance with me.
Speaker 8 (17:03):
Come dance with me? With Tallarico a senator, Texas would
be dancing all right into economic Armageddon. In newly unearthed
video from a 2020 environmental event, we see and we
hear exactly what Tallarico believes.
Speaker 9 (17:21):
I am so thankful that you asked this question and
also thankful that young activists have really drawn the link
between climate change and white supremacy and capitalism in our country.
And I think only ending the ways that all three
of those oppressive systems work together are we going to
be able to begin the process of dismantling them.
Speaker 8 (17:39):
Capitalism and white supremacy, that's a winner in Texas. And
about the oil and gas industry, which supports 1.4 million
Texas jobs, generates about $ 27 billion in tax revenue every year.
In that video obtained by CNN from that same event,
Tallarico compared being a leader in oil and gas, which
Texas is, to being a leader in cassette tapes in
(18:02):
the 1980s. He said, quote, that industry is not going
to last. Now, the Tallarico campaign gave us written responses
lengthy to his demeaning cassette tape comments about fossil fuels,
essentially disavowing them, saying he supports the oil and gas
industry and that he merely believes in an all of
(18:22):
the above energy strategy. And as for his arrogant dismissiveness
of capitalism, comparing it to white supremacy, his team told
us that James is a proud capitalist, but reiterated that
he missed the mark on some of his past statements.
He added that Texas also needs to address racism, natural
disasters and a billionaire controlled economy. Voters are going to
(18:45):
have to decide if they want to take a flyer
on this guy. But why would they want to trust
anyone who's ever used the words white supremacy and capitalism
in the same paragraph, let alone the same sentence? The
truth is, Tallarico's views are way outside the sensible middle
in America, let alone in the Lone Star State. And
(19:07):
instead of addressing legitimate questions about his expressed views about
capitalism and the oil industry, Tallarico deflects.
Speaker 6 (19:16):
They're going to claim that this new dream is radical.
They're going to claim this new dream is extreme. They're
going to claim we are socialists or communists or whatever
sounds scariest in a headline.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
You listen to Tallarico and you listen to what Laura
Ingraham said there. She's absolutely right. Now, this is the
guy that can undo this country. And there's a lot
of them like him around the country running right now.
So we better be ready because they are ready. The
radical left is ready. They hate this president. They hate
what he's doing. doing and they want to stop him.
(19:52):
So the next two years, well, he gets nothing done.
And that's exactly why these midterms are so vitally important.
They understand who they're running and what's at risk.
Speaker 4 (20:02):
Quick break.
Speaker 3 (20:02):
Ben Ferguson show more coming up.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
Thank you for listening to the 47 Morning Update with
Ben Ferguson. please make sure you hit subscribe wherever you're
listening to this podcast right now. And for more in-depth news,
also subscribe to the Ben Ferguson Podcast, and we will
see you back here tomorrow.
Host
Ben Ferguson
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