Talarico: Paxton "clipping my cringey comments to distract from his career of corruption"

Texas authorities Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate successful the Lone Star State, conceded Wednesday that immoderate past statements during debates implicit transgender argumentation "missed the mark," but accused his Republican hostile Ken Paxton of "intentionally clipping my cringey comments to distract from his vocation of corruption."

Republicans are "worried astir the question that we're gathering present successful Texas," Talarico said, hours aft Republicans overwhelmingly chose Paxton, the authorities lawyer general, arsenic their Senate nominee. 

"I deliberation nationalist Republicans spot the momentum down this movement, and they're disquieted we're going to triumph Texas successful November," Talarico told CBS News' Ed O'Keefe successful his archetypal web quality interrogation since Tuesday's runoff. 

He told O'Keefe that his run has been attracting immense crowds crossed the state, and helium believes his enactment is expanding beyond the Democratic elector base.

"We've had tens of thousands of Texans showing up to rally with us. And I can't archer you the fig of radical who've travel up to maine astatine the extremity of these events and whisper, 'I'm not a Democrat,' similar they're successful the witnesser extortion program," Talarico said. "I deliberation we're reaching radical who don't usually ballot for Democratic candidates. We're besides reaching a batch of first-time voters, a fig of young people, who've been showing up astatine our events, who've been signing up to unpaid and donate."

Paxton won the Senate superior runoff for the GOP information connected Tuesday nighttime successful a landslide, defeating Sen. John Cornyn, the incumbent legislator who has represented Texas since 2002. 

Senate GOP enactment had thrown its enactment down Cornyn — a prolific fundraiser who has brought successful much than $400 cardinal for Republican Senate candidates — and viewed him arsenic a amended campaigner to instrumentality connected Talarico successful the wide election. Now, with Paxton arsenic the nominee, Republicans volition person to dump ample sums of wealth into the contention to enactment his lackluster fundraising and combat an onslaught of attacks from the near implicit a fig of morals scandals. 

For his part, Talarico has besides flexed his fundraising chops, bringing successful $27 cardinal successful the archetypal quarter. He defeated Rep. Jasmine Crockett successful March for the Democratic nomination. 

Talarico said "Texans are drowning."

"We can't spend the basics, we can't spend groceries oregon state oregon security oregon lodging oregon childcare oregon medicine drugs, and Ken Paxton intelligibly has nary solutions to connection us," helium said. "So, portion helium divides america with these aforesaid bushed civilization warfare fights, I'm going to support bringing Texans unneurotic to instrumentality connected his corruption and little our costs."

To thrust down costs successful Texas, Talarico proposes ending tariffs, suspending the national state and diesel taxes and capping medicine cause prices. He said on with the outgo of housing, childcare and insurance, "all of these things are conspiring to clasp Texans back." 

Talarico echoed a connection he's shared since the opening of the run — that the combat isn't near versus right, it's "top versus bottom."

"We're each getting screwed. None of america tin spend anything. None of america tin get ahead, nary substance however hard we work, and that's due to the fact that the system, this governmental strategy and economical system, are rigged against us," helium said. "It's been rigged for 50 years by billionaire megadonors and their puppet politicians — similar Ken Paxton."

The Democratic nominee argued that corruption is the "central occupation successful our state close now."

"I deliberation we're surviving successful an epoch of corruption, and I don't conscionable mean amerciable activity, though we're surely going to perceive a batch astir that, fixed that Ken Paxton is the nominee. But I'm talking astir corruption successful the deeper sense, the rotting of our systems from the wrong out, the decaying of long-held values and institutions, and we spot it everywhere," helium said. 

Talarico said "this run is truly astir taking connected that corruption head-on."

The wide predetermination is expected to beryllium among the astir costly Senate races successful the country. The contention could besides find power of the Senate, arsenic Democrats look to flip the chamber. Republicans presently person 53 seats successful the Senate, meaning Democrats would request to nett 4 to retake the majority. And contempt a hard map, Democrats spot Paxton's information arsenic bringing them 1 measurement person to a long-sought triumph successful Texas. No Democrat has prevailed successful a Senate contention successful Texas since 1988, erstwhile Sen. Lloyd Bentsen won reelection. The Cook Political Report shifted its rating from Likely Republican to Lean Republican aft Paxton's victory. 

Talarico hopes to decision Paxton by adding Cornyn supporters to his basal of Democratic voters. He appealed to them Wednesday, thanking Cornyn for his "many years of work to our state" and noting that portion they don't hold connected each issue, "we some inactive judge successful nationalist service." 

"We some inactive judge that these positions of nationalist spot should beryllium astir serving our neighbors, not serving ourselves," Talarico said. "And truthful to immoderate of Senator Cornyn's supporters who inactive judge successful that old-fashioned thought of service, I privation them to cognize they person a spot successful our campaign."

As the wide predetermination combat gets underway, Talarico has faced aggravated disapproval from Paxton and different Republicans, similar GOP Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, who called Talarico "absolutely extreme" connected his podcast overnight, adding, "What makes Talarico unsafe — and that worries maine — is helium packages it successful this precise bully 'aw, shucks' demeanor, and helium sounds similar a preacher."

Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian who calls himself a progressive Christian, has faced attacks from the close implicit erstwhile comments, including connected veganism and gender. 

Pressed connected a remark helium made that God is nonbinary, Talarico said helium was being "intentionally provocative," but added that "what it means is that God can't beryllium defined by quality categories." On his comments astir gender, Talarico said "I cognize determination are 2 sexes, men and women. I besides cognize there's a precise tiny percent of radical who person these chromosomal abnormalities, and I judge they merit to beryllium treated with dignity and respect."

Asked by O'Keefe astir the disapproval surrounding his diet, Talarico said helium is not a vegan, noting that he's an eighth-generation Texan who's "been eating barbecue since earlier Ken Paxton's archetypal indictment."

"If each they person is lying astir maine being a vegan, I consciousness beauteous bully astir our chances this November," helium said.