Cruz-allied super PAC starts seven-figure Spanish-language streaming ads against Talarico in Senate race

A super PAC that backs U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz began a statewide Spanish-language ad campaign on streaming platforms Friday aimed at James Talarico, the Democrat running for Texas' open U.S. Senate seat, The Texas Tribune reported.

Truth and Courage PAC is spending seven figures on the buy, according to the Tribune. Talarico faces Republican Ken Paxton on the Nov. 3 ballot, and early voting starts Monday.

What the ad says

The spot is directed at Hispanic Christians. Its narration is in Spanish, with onscreen translations over short clips of Talarico speaking, including his remarks that "God is nonbinary" and that there are "six biological sexes." Republicans have been circulating those clips for months, the Tribune reported.

The ad calls Talarico a "lobo disfrazado de oveja," a wolf in sheep's clothing, and its narrator says Talarico is spending millions to persuade voters he is a moderate. Cruz has used similar language, telling a radio show over the summer that he considers Talarico "dangerous" and that he prefers "my wolves to come in wolves' clothing."

Talarico's response

Talarico has called some of his past comments on social issues "cringey" and said they missed the mark.

At a CNN town hall Wednesday, he said he had been trying to make the point that God defies human categories such as gender, acknowledged he was being deliberately provocative in how he put it, and said that as a seminary student he was still learning to do that responsibly, according to the Tribune.

Spanish-language spending so far

Republicans have spent nearly $240 million on TV, radio and digital advertising in the Senate race, but only $3.5 million of it, about 1.5%, has been in Spanish, according to figures from the ad-tracking firm AdImpact cited by the Tribune. Democrats have spent $5.3 million on Spanish-language ads, roughly 5.4% of their total.

Truth and Courage PAC previously spent $2 million on English-language ads supporting Paxton in late August, the report said. Paxton's own campaign ran a South Texas ad with a few Spanish words that played on the "rico" in Talarico's name.

Grayson County's early voting site in Van Alstyne is Library Room 119 at Grayson College's South Campus, 1455 W. Van Alstyne Parkway. Hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Oct. 19 to 24 and again from Oct. 26 to 30, with Sunday, Oct. 25, voting from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Sources

The Texas Tribune

co.grayson.tx.us