2026-10-07T16:17:28-04:00 / 福克斯新闻网
这段2020年的言论重新浮出水面，进一步加剧了其此前的多番表态给其竞选德克萨斯州联邦参议员带来的复杂性，对手为肯·帕克斯顿
作者：利奥·布里塞尼奥 福克斯新闻网
发布于2026年10月7日美国东部时间下午4:17
詹姆斯·塔拉里科承认自己在部分过往表态中“偏离了正轨”
德克萨斯州联邦参议院民主党提名候选人詹姆斯·塔拉里科就其争议性过往言论发表看法，解释了自己在边境安全问题上的立场，并在《特别报道》节目中畅谈更多话题。
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德克萨斯州联邦参议院民主党提名候选人詹姆斯·塔拉里科曾敦促民主党人将削减医保福利视为不可行选项，无论该举措对州财政造成何种后果。
这番言论出自一期播客访谈，塔拉里科在访谈中讨论了新冠疫情导致预算缺口之际，德克萨斯州应如何平衡财政。他担忧共和党会在医疗服务领域寻求节省开支。
“我不在乎你从何处获取收入，也不在乎你必须上调多少税赋，”塔拉里科在2020年接受专注于年轻选民政治参与的进步派YouTube频道《德克萨斯崛起》采访时说道。
这段重新曝光的片段，与他此前涉及性别、移民和财政管理的诸多言论一道，让塔拉里科的竞选策略变得更加复杂。他希望说服德克萨斯州选民，尽管身为民主党人，但他能够代表倾向共和党的选区。
塔拉里科就其撤回争议性“觉醒”言论一事道歉：“我曾偏离正轨”
2026年5月29日，德克萨斯州联邦参议院民主党候选人詹姆斯·塔拉里科在圣安东尼奥的一场集会上发表讲话。（罗纳尔多·舍米德特/法新社通过盖蒂图片社拍摄）
当时，德克萨斯州正面临严峻的财政前景。
疫情重创了该州多个常规收入来源的关键板块。随着全国石油需求暴跌，原本来自酒店、酒吧和餐馆的税收收入也大幅缩水。德克萨斯州审计长格伦· Hegar预计将出现46亿美元的财政缺口。
“与新冠疫情相关的经济收缩导致本财年的税收收入远低于我们此前的预期，”Hegar在一份声明中表示。
“该预估还假设，对企业和个人的限制将在本日历年底前解除，经济活动将有所回暖。”
作为新冠疫情应对措施的一部分，德克萨斯州下令大多数机构在2020至2021财年预算中寻找削减5%开支的方法。
在一封信函中，州长格雷格·阿博特基本将卫生与公众服务部（HHS）排除在削减范围之外，豁免了该州的医疗补助计划、儿童健康保险计划、寄养服务和残疾人服务等项目。即便如此，根据该机构的估算，卫生与公众服务部仍有26亿美元的预算需要削减。
这留给卫生与公众服务委员会1.327166亿美元的削减目标。
“伪温和派”塔拉里科在德克萨斯州的支持率飙升，与帕克斯顿的较量或将撼动共和党关键参议院席位
2026年8月31日，德克萨斯州联邦参议院民主党候选人詹姆斯·塔拉里科在克尔维尔的凯尤剧院举行的竞选集会上发表讲话。在11月3日的大选前夕，塔拉里科正在全州范围内开展竞选活动，与共和党候选人、德克萨斯州总检察长肯·帕克斯顿的竞争势均力敌。（布兰登·贝尔/盖蒂图片社拍摄）
尽管削减额度有所减少，塔拉里科仍强烈反对针对医疗保健领域的开支削减计划。
“你们不能让我们的学生和教师——不能让病患和老年人为这场疫情买单，我们绝不能依靠本州最弱势群体来平衡预算，”塔拉里科说道。
他主张民主党应像对待上调税赋一样，对削减卫生与公众服务部预算的行为施加类似的污名化压力。
“有时在州议会大厦，你会听到有人说这是不合理的立场。但另一方已经将提高收入的选项排除在外了。他们成功地让某些选项成了禁忌，所以我认为我们的联盟，不仅是民主党人，还有进步人士，以及任何有良知的人，都应该将削减医疗和教育开支列为禁忌，将其排除在选项之外，”塔拉里科说道。
这番言论已经招致至少一名共和党观察人士的批评。
“‘高税赋塔拉里科’在德克萨斯州议会时就从未见过他不喜欢的增税提案，而如果当选参议员，他承诺会继续这一做法。詹姆斯·塔拉里科会向所有德克萨斯人加税，以资助他为儿童提供 taxpayer-funded 变性手术、为非法移民提供免费医疗等激进议程，”共和党全国委员会发言人扎克·克拉夫特在给福克斯新闻数字频道的一份声明中说道。
在竞选联邦参议员期间，塔拉里科一直主张扩大美国的医疗政策。
在其竞选网站上，塔拉里罗呼吁扩大医疗保险的参保资格，规范医疗债务，并扩大退伍军人护理服务。他关于医疗保险的观点与党内许多其他进步人士不谋而合，但也招致共和党人的批评，他们认为此类扩大会严重拖累联邦预算。
该计划的质疑者多年来一直辩称，此类扩面计划成本过高，且几乎无法解决美国医疗体系中存在的现有低效问题。2019年，怀俄明州联邦参议员约翰·巴拉索（共和党）在参议院发言抨击该想法，称其是会破坏医疗质量的束缚性解决方案。
“国会预算办公室在一份关于单一支付者医保计划的报告中预测，政府在医疗保健上的支出将大幅增加。他们还表示，为了覆盖政府运营医疗的巨额成本，个人所得税至少要翻一番。个人所得税，美国家庭——至少要翻一番，”巴拉索说道。
民调结果出人意料：塔拉里科与帕克斯顿在德克萨斯州参议院竞选中势均力敌，威胁共和党传统优势席位
2025年9月9日，德克萨斯州州众议员、民主党人詹姆斯·塔拉里科在朗德罗克的竞选启动集会上发表讲话。（布兰登·贝尔/盖蒂图片社拍摄）
塔拉里科的竞选团队未回应其医疗保健计划是否受国家赤字影响的问题，但指出其计划包括对美国顶级收入群体加税。
“詹姆斯支持让亿万富翁缴纳其应缴份额，这样我们就能为德克萨斯州中产阶级减税，并为工薪家庭提供医疗资金支持——这也是他为何公布计划，终止对企业和亿万富翁的特殊税收优惠，以帮助资助医疗保健事业，同时自豪地投票支持德克萨斯州历史上最大规模的财产税减免，以确保中产阶级家庭获得实惠，”塔拉里科的竞选团队告诉福克斯新闻数字频道。“肯·帕克斯顿一直致力于为自己和亿万富翁超级捐赠者谋利，靠着纳税人发放的薪水坐拥15处房产，还因滥用职权被本党弹劾。”
已赢得党内初选的塔拉里科，将在11月3日的德克萨斯州大选中与共和党联邦参议院提名候选人肯·帕克斯顿展开对决。
利奥·布里塞尼奥是福克斯新闻数字频道国会团队的政治记者，此前曾供职于《世界杂志》。
Unearthed clip exposes how far Talarico was willing to go on raising taxes during COVID era
2026-10-07T16:17:28-04:00 / Fox News
The resurfaced 2020 remarks add to past statements complicating his Senate bid against Ken Paxton in Texas
By Leo Briceno Fox News
Published October 7, 2026 4:17pm EDT
James Talarico admits he’s ‘missed the mark’ on some past statements
Texas Democratic U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico discusses his controversial past statements, explains his stance on border security and more on ‘Special Report.’
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James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for the Senate in Texas, once pressed Democrats to consider cuts to healthcare benefits a nonstarter — regardless of the consequences for the state’s finances.
The remark came during a podcast interview in which Talarico discussed how Texas might balance its budget amid COVID-related shortfalls. He feared Republicans would look for savings in healthcare services.
“I don’t care where you get the revenue. I don’t care what taxes you have to raise,” Talarico said in a 2020 appearance with Texas Rising, a progressive YouTube channel focused on political engagement among younger voters.
The resurfaced moment adds to the pile of past statements dealing with gender, immigration and fiscal management, complicating the political calculus for Talarico as he aims to convince voters in Texas that he could represent a Republican-leaning constituency, even as a Democrat.
TALARICO SAYS HE ‘MISSED THE MARK’ AS HE BACKTRACKS ON CONTROVERSIAL WOKE STATEMENTS
Democrat candidate for Senate James Talarico speaks during a rally in San Antonio, Texas, on May 29, 2026.(Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images)
At the time, Texas was facing a bleak financial outlook.
The pandemic had crippled key sections of the state’s regular revenue streams. As oil demand crashed nationally, tax revenue that would normally come from hotels, bars and restaurants also faced steep reductions. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar projected a $4.6 billion shortfall.
“The economic contraction associated with COVID-19 has resulted in revenue collection this fiscal year that is much lower than our earlier projections,” Hegar said in a statement.
“This estimate also assumes that restrictions on businesses and individuals will be lifted before the end of this calendar year and that economic activity will strengthen.”
As a part of the COVID response, Texas ordered most agencies to look for ways to cut their spending by 5% in the 2020 – 2021 budget.
In a letter, Governor Greg Abbott largely shielded Health and Human Services (HHS) from the reductions, sparing the state’s Medicaid program, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, the foster care program and disability services, among others. Even so, $2.6 billion of HHS’s budget remained subject to cuts, according to the agency’s estimations.
That left the Health and Human Services Commission with a target of $132,716,600 in cuts.
‘FAKE’ MODERATE TALARICO’S TEXAS SURGE TESTS PAXTON IN FIGHT TO HOLD CRUCIAL GOP SENATE SEAT
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico speaks during a campaign rally at the Cailloux Theater on Aug. 31, 2026, in Kerrville, Texas. Talarico is campaigning across the state in a close race against Republican candidate and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.(Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Despite the reduced figure, Talarico blasted the idea of making spending reductions geared towards healthcare.
“You’re not going to make our students and our teachers — you’re not going to make the sick and the elderly pay for this pandemic we are not going to balance our budget off of the most vulnerable people in this state,” Talarico said.
He argued that Democrats should create a similar kind of stigma against cuts to HHS as the one surrounding raising taxes.
“Sometimes you get the reaction in the capitol that’s an unreasonable position to take. But the other side of the aisle has already taken revenue increases off the table. They’ve done a good job of making certain options taboo, so I think our coalition, not just Democrats but progressives, and anybody with a functioning heart should be able to make cuts to health and education taboo and take them off the table,” Talarico said.
The moment has brought on criticisms from at least one Republican onlooker.
“High-tax Talarico never saw a tax hike he didn’t love in the Texas Legislature, and he is promising to continue that if elected to the Senate. James Talarico will raise taxes on every Texan to fund his radical agenda of taxpayer-funded sex changes for kids and free healthcare for illegal immigrants,” Zach Kraft, a spokesperson for the Republican National Committee said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
As he wages his bid for U.S. Senate, Talarico has advocated for an expansion of U.S. health policy.
On his website, Talarico has called for universal eligibility for Medicare, to regulate medical debt and expand veteran care. His views on Medicare, which overlap with many other progressives in the party, have prompted criticism from Republicans who believe such an expansion would cripple the federal budget with cost.
Skeptics of the plan have argued for years that such an expansion is too expensive and does little to address existing inefficiencies in the American healthcare system.
In 2019, Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., took to the Senate floor to blast the idea, calling it a straitjacket solution that would undermine healthcare quality.
“The Congressional Budget Office projects in its report on a single-payer plan that government spending on health care would increase substantially. They go on to say to cover the massive cost of government-run care, income taxes would have to at least double. Income taxes, American families — at least double,” Barrasso said.
SHOCK POLL: TALARICO TIES PAXTON IN TEXAS SENATE RACE, THREATENING GOP STRONGHOLD
Democratic Texas State Rep. James Talarico speaks during a campaign launch rally on Sept. 9, 2025, in Round Rock, Texas.(Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Talarico’s campaign did not address questions on whether his designs for healthcare are shaped by the national deficit, but noted that his plan includes increases in taxes on the country’s top earners.
“James supports making billionaires pay their fair share so we can cut taxes for middle class Texans and fund healthcare for working families — which is why he has unveiled plans to end special tax handouts to corporations and billionaires to help fund healthcare, while proudly voting for the largest property tax cut in Texas history to make sure middle class families get a break,” the Talarico campaign told Fox News Digital. “Ken Paxton has worked to enrich himself and his billionaire mega-donors, amassed 15 properties on a taxpayer-funded salary, and was impeached by his own party for his corrupt abuse of office.”
Having cleared the party primary, Talarico will face off against Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton in the state’s Nov. 3 general election.
Leo Briceno is a politics reporter for the congressional team at Fox News Digital. He was previously a reporter with World Magazine.
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