Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico previously described a self-identified “TransQueer, Latinx” activist theologian as a significant influence on the progressive worldview shaping his politics.
During a March 2021 podcast appearance, the state lawmaker told Roberto Henderson-Espinoza, “When you started following me on Twitter, I couldn’t contain my inner fan boy, because I read your book last year and it continues to inspire me and y’all’s work continues to inspire me.”
Talarico also joked about his own identity, saying, “I told you I was a boring, straight, cis white man, and I added ‘Presbyterian’ to spice it up,” before adding, “My imagination is also just limited by my own background and identity.”
He continued, “My whiteness, my masculinity, all those things limit my imagination about what’s possible,” saying Henderson-Espinoza’s book helped broaden that perspective.
Henderson-Espinoza, who holds a PhD, uses He/They pronouns and identifies as Mestizaje, or mixed race, as well as autistic, non-binary, transgender, and Latinx.
The work Talarico cited was Henderson-Espinoza’s 2019 book, “Activist Theology,” which promotes a progressive faith framework centered on challenging what it describes as “interlocking supremacies.”
Their online exchange began in February 2021, after Talarico followed Henderson-Espinoza on X and called himself “a BIG fan.”
Since securing the Democratic Senate nod, Talarico has drawn repeated criticism from Republicans who argue his views are too progressive for Texas voters.
GOP critics have pointed to Talarico’s past remarks, including from 2021, when he explained that “In my faith, God is non-binary,” argued that the Bible is fine with abortion, and suggested that there are six biological sexes.
Talarico’s past affinity for Henderson-Espinoza seemingly provides some clues about where he was getting some of those ideas.
In 2018, Henderson-Espinoza penned a paper calling for “transing religion as one approach to methodologically dismantle the logic of the norm that grounds the reproduction of binarisms and theologies of complementarity.”
He praised the Bible as “trans-positive,” described transgender individuals as “Easter icons,” and has given sermons while wearing “Black Lives Matter” paraphernalia.
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Henderson-Espinoza has also battled against Texas legislation aimed at barring transgender females from competing in girls’ sports, blasting that effort as “mean-spirited,” and opposed legislation to ensure that parents were informed by schools if their children were transitioning.
Recently, Talarico publicly vented that his GOP foe, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, “is clipping my past cringey comments” and clarified his belief that “you can’t use human categories to define God.”
“James has already said that he’s missed the mark on some of these old statements,” Talarico spokesperson JT Ennis told The Post when asked about his candidate’s appearance with Henderson-Espinoza.
“While Ken Paxton clips a few cringey comments to distract from the fact that he gave an Epstein-style sweetheart deal to an admitted child molester, James will continue demanding that Paxton release the Hoffman Files so Texans can get answers about the corrupt deal that let a pedophile back on our streets.”
Adam Hoffman, a Waco lawyer, served 29 days in jail after admitting to misdemeanor counts of indecent assault and displaying harmful material to a minor after a trial on child sexual abuse charges ended in a hung jury. Paxton’s office had taken over the case after the local DA recused himself.
The Republican’s team has accused Talarico of turning a “turning a child victim into a political pawn” and argued the alleged victim of Hoffman had refused to testify in a second trial.
Hoffman’s lawyer, Gerry Morris, told the New York Times last week that while “I can’t stand Ken Paxton … He had absolutely nothing to do with the plea deal in this case.”
Talarico has polled neck and neck with Paxton, whose past controversies include his 2023 impeachment over allegations that he obstructed justice in a securities fraud case, made false statements against whistleblowers, misappropriated public resources, and gave preferential treatment to a donor, among other counts.
