Texas voters debate Talarico on abortion, Israel, voter ID & more

[0:00] my topic is abortion yeah i am a catholic an orthodox catholic um you as you know catholics [0:07] we tend um and i myself included to be a one issue voter and so what makes it difficult for [0:12] us to vote democrat um is that we have uh this idea that if you cannot provoke like provide [0:18] policies or support policies that protect the most innocent among us who is the unborn child [0:24] how can we trust that you're going to provide policies to protect the rest of texans and to [0:30] promote dignity and human life in that um so i challenge you on that yeah you know some of my [0:35] spiritual heroes like pope francis and pope leo are pro-life and they are consistently pro-life [0:44] they're not just against abortion but they are against poverty against climate change against war [0:52] um and so i can respect anyone like you who is consistently pro-life and i actually think [0:59] there's common ground we can find here we may come to different moral and ethical conclusions when it [1:05] comes to the question of should abortion be legal or not it sounds like you and i do come to a [1:10] different conclusion that's okay uh you know we're both christians and and the bible is silent on the [1:16] issue of abortion it means you and i both have to look at at different scriptures to try to come [1:21] to a conclusion but what i think we can do is actually come together on reducing the number [1:28] of unplanned pregnancies and the number of abortions because if we treat this issue as a public health [1:35] problem and not a culture war problem then we can actually make progress together and this is what [1:41] drives me crazy about this debate is we use it to kind of beat each other over the head right um we [1:48] treat it as a philosophical debate or a theological debate when actually it's a public policy problem [1:54] because i also want to see fewer unplanned or unwanted pregnancies i want to see fewer abortions [2:01] and so you and i actually have the same goal we may have different um moral conclusions when it comes to [2:07] this particular uh ethical question but we actually have the same public policy goal and so if we can do [2:15] that if we can join together to make sure that we have scientifically valid sex education age [2:21] appropriate sex education if we can make sure that folks who need contraception can get it if we can make [2:26] sure everyone has health care something the catholic church has led on then we know that that reduces [2:32] the number of abortions because you can look at the research and you see that certain policy levers [2:37] like sex education like health care can actually reduce the number of abortions and sure that's what i'm [2:43] willing to work with you on um and i just want to add that the bible is not silent on abortion there [2:47] is the ten commandments that shall not kill and as catholics we take great um insult i guess sometimes [2:54] when it's sprouted that way i think we could also look at the current abortion ban in texas which bans [3:00] abortion in all cases including in cases of rape and incest including when the life of the mother is in [3:06] danger we currently see in texas women dying in emergency room parking lots from sepsis because their [3:12] doctors are too afraid to provide life-saving care we talk about texas women but it's also texas girls [3:18] we see girls as young as 10 years old who need that abortion care and they can't get it in texas and so [3:25] if we are authentically pro-life i think we should be disturbed by the outcomes of this extreme abortion [3:31] ban that's why i'm here um talking to you christian to christian today about a faith in the bible yeah and [3:37] i believe where we differ is really our interpretations of the bible um for a lot of [3:42] christian voters you've said some concerning things in the past kind of related to faith and social [3:47] issues um things such as god is non-binary questions about how many genders there really are and your [3:53] justifications using the bible for abortion and so i think that's led a lot of christian voters to [3:59] question the authenticity of your faith and i wanted to ask you a very direct question [4:03] um do you believe that the bible is the absolute source of truth and god's final authoritative word [4:11] even when our culture says otherwise yes and i think it's important to remember that even the early [4:17] church the the the disciples who actually knew uh jesus of nazareth um the early church we often talk [4:26] about as a singular body when in reality it was more like early churches because there was a lot of [4:32] disagreement there was a lot of debate and that's something that we should be comfortable with um we [4:38] as christians you and i are both members of the body of christ you you are my sister in christ and [4:44] it's okay if you and i have uh disagreements about our interpretations of scripture or certainly about [4:51] political and policy topics that should be encouraged not discouraged and we can do that as we're [4:56] called to do in scripture do it with love and so i actually want to uh clarify a few of the things [5:03] that you said because i know that this has been used um in these attack ads all over the state um [5:08] you know the first comment uh about um about god not being defined by gender uh when i said that i was [5:17] being provocative and i want to admit that and come clean about that um but i think what i was saying [5:23] is actually not controversial theologically the idea that we can't define god using human categories [5:30] uh not only did i say that but the late charlie kirk said that the late pope benedict said that and [5:37] and so yes i was doing it maybe in in an annoying way i can admit that i think we have to be careful [5:42] using modern cultural terms sure when talking about god sure i think that is very fair criticism um [5:49] and and i've kind of admitted when um you know how i've said things in the past have maybe not come [5:54] across in the right way or or uh have upset people and that's not my intention uh and and so you know [6:01] my goal i'm a seminary student as you know my granddad was a baptist preacher and i'm following in [6:07] his footsteps hopefully going to become a minister one day and preachers often will say something shocking [6:13] in a sermon uh to get your attention um and and that's something i'm still learning how to do in [6:19] a responsible way and so i'm always going to take feedback from my fellow christians from my [6:24] constituents on on how to do that in a responsible way where i'm actually communicating what i mean [6:30] and and uh and not not muddying the water do you believe that jesus is the only savior um for [6:36] people here on earth i believe jesus is the truth the way and the light thank you why should we send [6:42] all this money to ukraine and ukraine has done a phenomenal job defending them since it feels like [6:48] forever at this point why shouldn't we invest that money first and foremost in our local communities [6:53] and help fellow texans well i i think we learned um back in the second world war that when we [6:59] fail to stand up to an aggressor in europe that comes back to haunt us and we need to strengthen [7:09] uh ukraine we need to strengthen our nato allies as they stand up to russian aggression so we don't [7:16] have to so in in some ways i see this as a cost-saving measure uh if we can stop this aggression if we can [7:23] stop vladimir putin in ukraine then we're not going to have to stop him uh elsewhere and i always think [7:31] we got to be good stewards of our taxpayer funds we got to be strategic when it comes to any investments [7:36] abroad i think uh what we're doing in ukraine is a good investment i think it will save us money in [7:42] the long run but it doesn't mean that we shouldn't always examine it and ensure that we are using [7:47] taxpayer dollars in the most efficient and effective way possible do you support the save america act [7:52] and if not what parts and why well i'd honestly have to read the details of the legislation i i'm a [7:58] policy wonk and so i always hesitate to to say i'm going to support any one bill if i haven't read the [8:04] final version of that bill yes sir uh but i from what i understand the bill is about our elections [8:09] is that right yes sir so uh i'll tell you what i am for i am for fair voter id and i say fair because [8:17] here in texas i think that a lot of our voter id policies are discriminatory and here's here's what [8:23] i mean by that some kinds of id are allowed and other valid forms of id aren't allowed so for instance [8:30] when you go to vote here in texas you can bring your concealed carry license which i'm all for [8:35] but a student at a public college or university can't bring their student id and so i think that [8:43] hurts some kind of voters and helps other kind of voters what i want to see is voter id that is [8:49] consistent across the board because i think you and i probably both agree we want everyone if they [8:54] are eligible if they are citizens to be able to vote um and we don't want to discriminate against any [8:59] one group people we don't i don't want to discriminate against republicans who are voting [9:03] and i don't want to discriminate against democrats who are voting and so that's all i'm asking for as [9:08] long as voter id is fair then i'm all for it can we pass it if you are voting with new york or voting [9:15] with california on something texas by majority wants well i am not running for the u.s senate to [9:22] represent new york or california i'm not running for the u.s senate to represent the democratic party [9:27] i am running for senate to represent all 31 million texans and i will i will i will always [9:37] do what's best for texas even if that means standing up to my own party we talked earlier about oil and [9:42] gas if the democratic party is going after the good paying oil and gas jobs here in texas i'm going to [9:47] stand up against them i'm going to call out uh democrats like joe biden who failed us on our [9:52] southern border because we need border security here in texas we need to protect our border communities [9:57] i'm going to work with republicans you know as you know i was a member of the texas legislature [10:02] there is a republican majority in the state house where i worked in the state senate and republicans [10:08] have the governor's mansion i was able to pass 60 bipartisan bills during my time in the legislature [10:15] and the only way i could pass those bills is by working with republicans and so i have no problem [10:20] standing up to my own party i'm a proud texas democrat but i already have a religion and i already [10:26] have a sports team so i have i have no problem i have no problem sharing hard truths with my party [10:33] if it's what's best for texas well i'm concerned with some of the things that i've been hearing [10:37] lately about your stance on israel and also on your support of the jewish people [10:43] with the rise of anti-semitism and perception being reality i'm very concerned to want to know [10:50] where you do stand on this issue yeah well thank you for what you do for the community and thank you [10:56] for being here and asking that question um i have deep love and respect for the jewish people for [11:02] the jewish scriptures um i um as a seminary student my seminary required that i spent the first year [11:10] of my seminary studies learning the hebrew scriptures from a local rabbi shout out rabbi blumoff who [11:16] hopefully is watching um so i didn't learn it from a christian perspective i learned it from a jewish [11:21] perspective which i think is so valuable to understand our mother tradition and have deep [11:26] reverence for that tradition and as a state lawmaker i have stood by jewish leaders in central texas [11:33] against anti-semitism i've stood against hate in all its forms because i believe that all of us should [11:40] feel welcomed here in texas no matter our religious beliefs in fact in the state capitol i have been the [11:48] fiercest critic of christian nationalism because i don't think there's anything christian about [11:52] christian nationalism i i was i um i was raised by my granddad a baptist preacher to follow the two [12:02] commandments jesus gave us and jesus as a good rabbi um took the two commandments from the torah [12:08] to love god and to love neighbor and there's no exception to that second commandment i'm called to [12:13] love all of my neighbors not just my presbyterian or christian neighbors well i'm curious then also [12:19] than where you stand on israel yeah i'm always very careful when i talk about this to uh to make [12:25] sure that my criticisms are directed toward prime minister benjamin netanyahu and not the israeli [12:31] people um i have as you know have been very critical of prime minister netanyahu um you know i i um as a [12:41] as a former teacher seeing the death and the destruction in gaza seeing what's happening to children in [12:47] particular makes me sick to my stomach i know that october 7th was the deadliest day for the jewish [12:54] people since the holocaust and i believe that israel like any nation has a right to defend its people [13:00] but i don't believe that benjamin netanyahu has a right to wage war against civilians or use collective [13:07] punishment or restrict aid to civilians and so that's what i've spoken out against i think regardless of [13:14] of how we feel about the current situation hopefully we can all come together to fight for a two-state [13:21] solution where we have security for israel and we have freedom and self-determination for palestinians [13:29] what my hope is is my prayer actually is out of this this chaos this death this destruction this [13:37] bloodshed something new can rise out of the ashes and i hope it's a it's a sustainable durable piece [13:46] for all people in the region data centers are coming in they seem to be like coming in in droves like [13:51] there's like i think a hundred planned to be coming into texas i'm not sure or more um i think one was [13:56] just built uh people don't even know that these things are being built in their in their areas it's [14:02] just like one just pops up and they're like okay wow uh on top of that um people are afraid that the [14:08] aquifers are like losing water we're already having droughts as it is texas is a very dry hot place [14:14] what's your take on like the ai boom in those data centers i was actually up in abilene meeting with [14:22] residents democrats and republicans alike because they are building three giant data centers in abilene [14:29] i met a a mother she and her husband moved out to abilene to build their dream home and then a data [14:34] center popped up right across the street now her her young son wakes up in the middle of the night [14:40] and thinks it's day because the light's shining through his window and and so i've rolled out a [14:45] plan to crack down on these giant data center companies i've said that we got to force them to [14:50] pay for their own energy instead of jacking up our utility bills we got to force them to recycle [14:55] their water so they are not exacerbating the water crisis here in texas and force them to get the [15:00] consent of the people who live in these communities before they start building a theme of this entire [15:05] conversation tonight we have an affordability crisis because we have a corruption crisis we [15:11] we have seen we have seen for the last five decades since the late 1970s corporate special interests [15:21] billionaire mega donors buying politicians and then those politicians in both political parties [15:26] rigged the rules of the economy in favor of those wealthy special interests at our expense but we [15:32] can change that in this year in this state in this race you may have noticed that i haven't talked about [15:38] my opponent at all tonight because i don't want people to vote i don't want people i don't want [15:46] people to vote just against ken paxton i want them to vote for me i want them to know my values [15:52] and my vision but the last thing i will say is that we are running against the most corrupt politician [15:59] in texas and and this is not an exaggeration since taking office ken paxton has increased his net worth [16:06] by 27 million dollars he now owns 15 homes while most texans can't afford one he has taken bribes [16:15] from wealthy special interests including half a million dollars from data center companies all [16:20] while he sells us out when he makes public policy we cannot afford ken paxton's corruption we have an [16:27] opportunity in this race not just to defeat the most corrupt politician in texas we have an opportunity [16:32] to defeat this entire corrupt system this election is not about left versus right it's about whether we [16:38] will have a senator who puts money in your pocket or a senator who puts money in their own that is the [16:44] choice before us in november i want to thank you so much