Uh, so how does this particular post, what has it produced, and why is it getting such a strong response, even from Republican officials?

You know, uh, we pointed out at quorumreport.com over the weekend that after voting for one immigration crackdown after another, you now have these Texas GOP lawmakers condemning this anti-immigrant rhetoric from Beau French.

Um, and I think it, it bears saying that it's a different kind of immigrant that we're talking about, South Asian people, who have tended to vote for Republicans, um, you know, over the last few election cycles in Texas.

You know, I was thinking about the fact that, um, you know, in places like Sugar Land, Texas and Fort Bend County, which is the most ethnically diverse county in the United States, um, you know, if you walk into a restaurant, uh, owned by a South Asian person, these are the kind of folks, uh, David, not just in recent election cycles, but have been Republicans, you know, for a while.

It's the kind of place you would walk in and the business owner has a picture of George Bush, uh, with, you know, shaking hands with the business owner.

They're proud of it.

Um, and you know, I was talking to some Republican, uh, operatives and, and office holders, um, this weekend uh, about this, some folks who maybe didn't necessarily want to speak on the record but said, uh, that, look, these are people who should, in their estimation, naturally be Republicans.

Taken together, what are the polls telling us, and what do they not tell us?

So how would you describe the political mood in Texas right now? Are voters, uh, anxious, uh, angry, exhausted? Are they ready for change? Is, is-- would it, would it break the cultural hold that, uh, traditional GOP politics has?

has?Well, I think it's possible.

Anything's possible, right? And I think, uh, all of the adjectives you used are applicable in this situation.

And one thing that I think is key is that all across the rural parts of the state, I was just in San Angelo, uh, this week out in West Texas, um, and, uh, in the, uh, West Texas Legislative Summit, which is an event they do every year to talk about legislative issues, um, they were kinda going out of their way to not talk about data centers, which is something people in rural areas are angry about.

Found that interesting because, uh, the people who are really one of the key blocks, uh, you know, I, I would say, uh, the insurance policy around here for Texas Republicans is those rural voters who always show up for the GOP.

You know, historically in this state, uh, Republicans can bank about a million votes statewide, uh, in the rural counties and the small areas.

I don't know that they can count on those votes this time.

... other, other folks?

I mean, has Tallarico done good things, or it's just no matter what, it would be a close race if it was a squirrel running against Ken Paxton? Has Tallarico done anything right?

He's doing quite a few things right, and I think he's still trying to figure out how to fix some fundamental problems with some things that are fundamental to him as a candidate and fundamental to just any Democrat being able to win statewide in Texas.

I'll start with stuff about himself.

You may have seen this past weekend, he just got pummeled by some of the people who attended what was supposed to be an African-American outreach session in Houston.

He was surrounded by mostly African-American voters for a town hall.

One of my friends in Houston said, you could tell it was not Latino outreach because it was during the World Cup.

And so he was there talking to black voters and one of them stands up and was pissed at him in the viral video of this.

Does any of that matter to anyone?

talking

to talking to black voters.

And one of them stands up and was pissed at him in the viral video of this where this woman is saying, you know, you need to answer all our questions.

This is why we don't trust you, because he wasn't apparently for her.

He wasn't taking enough time, even though based on the reporting and I had looked at I wasn't there, but I saw.

that apparently he did answer questions from people for about 90 minutes.

And, you know, he's running a statewide campaign, so he can't only do that one meeting.

hensonshaving.com, and the promo code is JEFFWARD.

Can James Tallarico beat either one of them?

Look, this is the time of year, and I guess you always say, sure, anything could happen, right? But this is the time of year, as you know, you and I have covered this so many times.

This is the Lucy holding the football part of the cartoon, right? She has yet to pull it.

And there's always a poll or two around this time and a little bit earlier that shows that a Democrat could beat a Republican in Texas.

I do think that this race comes down.

to who the Republican is.

Tallarico is very gifted.

Is it is it possible this is that time or not?

I mean, are they landing? What, what's going on with that?

Oh, we'll find out.

Uh, this is politics in the Trump era, isn't it? Uh, everybody wants to come up with a nickname for everybody.

Um, and whether they stick to Talarico, we'll see.

I mean, they just started floating this.

You know, it was, uh, Governor Ann Richards many years ago that said, you know, in a political campaign, you have to say something over and over and over again until you think you'll just die if you have to say that thing again, and only then do people even start to hear it.

Um, uh, you know, whether some of these things punch through, whether they really land with the American public, uh, and the, and, and Texans at large, uh, 'cause this, believe me, this is a nationalized race.

Uh, he's in the catbird seat, and I, I don't think people ha- have a real h- handle on the fact that he is still the underdog.

It's that simple?

It can be that simple.

More than one thing can be true though, right? So, uh, let's think through it.

And I've been thinking through it since Tuesday when bomb was dropped by president Trump.

And remember, um, two months ago, plus the president said he was going to do what, that he was going to basically cut this primary runoff short.

He was going to endorse one of those guys back then, right after March 3rd.

And he said he was going to ask the other guy to drop out after making an endorsement.

to follow the Trump template, we were never supposed to be there in the first place.

It's that simple?

It can be that simple.

More than one thing can be true, though, right? So, uh, let's think through it.

And I've been thinking through it since, uh, Tuesday when the bomb was dropped, uh, by President Trump.

And, and remember, um, two months ago plus, the president said he was gonna do what? That he was going to basically cut this primary runoff short.

He was gonna endorse one of those guys back then, right after, uh, March 3rd, and he said he was gonna ask the other guy to drop out after making an endorsement.

So he didn't do that.

Right

there and what's your take?

Yeah, sure.

In that race, first on the consolidation of the support from those other candidates who didn't make the runoff, the clear winner in doing that, the one who's been effective, is Chairman Kaine.

Briscoe Kaine is someone who's been in the Texas legislature for about a decade at this point, which makes me feel really old.

Some of these things, things go by fast.

He's been in there for that long.

I remember his race when he first entered the legislature.

Is Lujan going to be the exception that proves the rule that, yeah, Donald Trump wins nine times out of ten, but John Lujan is the one who's going to make it not ten out of ten? Or can David Cruz come from second place to upset him?