By Chrysanthemum Crenshaw Cohen and Will McDaniel
Following his campaign rally before a capacity crowd in San Angelo on Thursday, The Concho Observer was granted the opportunity to discuss five issues facing rural Texans during a telephone interview with James Talarico on Friday.
Q: Regarding rural health care; it’s currently reported that one-third of rural hospitals are running on less than 10-day’s cash on hand. What does the future look like for less-than-profitable health care?
Talarico: I mean, it doesn’t look good on this current trajectory. And the “big ugly bill” that passed a few weeks ago in Washington is going to make things even worse.
And this is just part of a continuing attack we’ve seen on small towns in Texas, and rural communities across the country.
It seems like to me that D.C. politicians come in, ask for everyone’s vote during election time, and, you know — once legislating starts — they forget all about those Texans in small towns and rural communities.
This is why I’m campaigning across rural Texas is to make sure they know they have an alternative; they have a candidate who’s willing to fight for them, not billionaire mega donors in Washington.
Click here to read more on the rural healthcare crisis.
Q. On violence prevention programs: Whether it’s rape crisis centers, or domestic violence shelters, major cuts to both federal and state funding have impacted rural areas, like San Angelo. Recently the only rape crisis center for 11 counties [Open Arms Advocacy Center], was at risk of closing due to funding cuts. Now services are limited. Will you help keep these vital victim services accessible, especially in rural communities?
Talarico: As you all know, because you were there last night, this issue of domestic violence is personal to me, and something I care a lot about; something I’ve done work on at the state legislature.
It’s unacceptable that politicians in Washington are cutting funding for these vital services that folks in San Angelo and across Texas rely on. I hope people know that If I’m elected as a senator, I’m going to use every tool in my toolbox to fight for these services.
Click here to read about Open Arms Advocacy Center.
Q. Regarding homelessness: The most recent survey counted 200 homeless individuals on any given night on the streets of San Angelo. Meanwhile, Texas has seen increased criminalization of homelessness with camping bans, panhandling bans. What is your stance on the criminalization of homelessness?
Talarico: In the wealthiest country in the world, it’s unacceptable to have human beings living on the street.
Our neighbors deserve safety. They deserve a place they can call home. And we have to craft public policies that can accomplish that goal. It’s really going to require a holistic approach.
Not just about housing, although that’s a key part of this. It’s also about helping them being able to pick up their prescription drugs. I was reading some research that showed 70 percent of prescription drugs for homeless people are never picked up because they don’t have transportation to a pharmacy.
When you see people having an episode, or a mental health crisis on the street, that may be because they weren’t able to go pick up the medication that they needed. So, we need to look at this holistically.
When you’re without a home, everything becomes more difficult and those problems compound and amplify each other. So, we must attack each of those problems if we are going to get our neighbors off the street and into a home.
Further reading: Some in San Angelo look at a different approach to homelessness
Q. Democracy in the workplace: One thing you mentioned in your speech last night was union involvement. Rural Texas might be one of the least unionized parts of the country. Where does democracy fit into the workplace out here?
Talarico: I’ve been an advocate for workers in the state legislature in all four of my terms, and I will continue to do that as a U.S. senator. I think it’s pretty clear that unions built the middle class in this country, and when you look at the decline of workers’ rights and organized labor, you also see a decline in the middle class, and you see a rise in income inequality.
So I think it’s critical that we strengthen workers’ rights, that we strengthen our unions, and we ensure that every single worker is treated with dignity and respect in the workplace.
Further reading: Workers rights continue to be an issue for rural Texas.
Q. Many rural Texans feel genuinely let down by both parties. What would you say to them?
Well, I’m going up against the political establishment of both parties, and I know that a lot of people across Texas — especially in rural Texas — have been left behind by both parties. I want those folks to know that they have a place in this campaign.
If they’re feeling disillusioned, they hopefully can find some hope in this campaign, and can be a part of this movement to take on the billionaires who have ruined our country and take power back for working people.
Further reading:
- Many West Texas Hospitals Operating in the Red
- San Angelo Rape Crisis Center Adapts to Cuts in Funding
- Homelessness in San Angelo: Navigation Day
- Workers Rights in Texas
Reporter’s Notes: Crowd Pleased By Talarico’s Fresh Approach
By Will McDaniel
SAN ANGELO, TX – The stage manager announces that it’s going to be a tight fit, and everyone has to crowd together. Once both hallways are filled up, the volunteers move the crowd to the stage. And then the rest file in. The halls filled up, and people took seats on the chairs
Everybody packs in like sardines as the volunteers usher people in. Eventually the stage was filled with people, all surrounding State Rep. James Talarico, from District 50.
Downtown, in the Brooks and Bates theatre, capacity is around 300. SAPAC says 390-400 was a pretty good estimate of overall attendance, with all the fire exits open. Several dozen more arrived late, staying in line well past 8 p.m. to meet the candidate. They’re all here because in one month, Talarico has managed to capture lot of energy in Texas politics.
The stump speech notably lacked a lot of specific rhetoric against national politicians. Instead, Talarico focused his criticism on the 1-percent of Americans who control more than 99 percent of the wealth.
Quotes From the Candidate
“The culture wars are a smoke screen. So many of the divisions within this state, and this country, are manufactured by those who want us fighting each other, so we’re not fighting them.
“They want us looking left and right at each other, so we’re not looking up at them.
“It’s not Left vs. Right, it’s Top vs Bottom.” (This point seemed to really connect with the audience.)
“The people at the top; the Elon Musks and the Rupert Murdochs of the world, they work so hard to keep us angry and divided, because our unity is a threat to their wealth and power.”
“Social media algorithms, and their cable news networks tear us apart on a daily basis. They divide us by party, by race, by gender, by religion, so we don’t notice they’re picking our pockets.
“They’re gutting our healthcare, and cutting taxes on themselves while raising them on us. It’s the oldest strategy in the world. Divide and conquer.”
“Three men, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Jeff Bezos, own more wealth than 165-million Americans combined, and they’re using that wealth to rig the political system. They’re not just buying yachts and jets, they’re buying power.”
“With this kind of corruption, it can be easy to get cynical about politics. But within every cynic is a wounded idealist.
“It doesn’t have to be this way. That’s why I’m not taking a dime of corporate money. It’s why this campaign is being funded by working people, five, ten, fifteen dollars at a time.”
“Yes, the system is rigged; yes, the deck is stacked, but these are man-made systems, and We the People can take them back.
“I get the feeling when I’m out on the trail that there is something broken in America.
“Economy, political system — relationships with each other — broken. And that’s because the most powerful people in the world want it that way.
“The only minority destroying this country are billionaires. Trans[gender] people are 1 percent of the population …
“We are all focused on the wrong 1 percent. Trans people aren’t taking away our healthcare; Muslims aren’t defunding our schools; immigrants aren’t cutting taxes for their rich friends — it’s the billionaires, and their puppet politicians.”
Internal Affairs
Before running for the legislature, Talarico taught 6th grade Language Arts in San Antonio, and he said teaching middle school was the best preparation to working in Texas politics.
At the rally on Thursday, the audience’s reactions began to grow more and more enthusiastic as Talarico spoke about his platform.
In order to win, Talarico must knock out Colin Allred out of the race, and use his time to make a difference with the Democrats in the state.
Based on the energy in San Angelo, one might feel this is a fait accompli, but the broader campaign for Senate is likely to get nasty.
On the Republican side, Ken Paxton brings a laundry list of personal problems, like indictments, a contentious divorce and an impeachment, but enjoys great popularity from supporters on the Right.
John Cornyn, on the other hand, considered the less-toxic candidate, is still shadowed by his vote for the reconciliation bill, and his position as a longtime Republican insider and suffers from not being close-enough to Pres. Trump for many Right Wing voters.
As cuts to Medicaid begin to become more apparent, the popularity of several incumbents may decline sharply, giving Talarico a real chance at the ballot box, especially among working-age voters.
Many like his clean-cut style, which appears fresh and un-corrupted.
The campaign looks like it’s trying to steer clear of the Washington Beltway as long as it can, seeking to establish a new platform.
Perhaps more importantly, Talarico seems ready to double down on certain points Beto O’Rourke had to pull back from, especially on workers’ rights, and the whole billionaire issue. This kind of populism on the campaign trail might make the difference among young Texas voters.
Further quotes:
“I am called to love all my neighbors as I love myself…I am tired of being pitted against my neighbor. I am tired of being told to hate my neighbor. It’s been ten years with this kind of politics. Politics as bloodsport, politics as ‘trolling’ and ‘owning’. Politics as total war. It tears families apart, it ends friendships, and it leaves us feeling terrible all the time.
“I get the sense that across the political spectrum, there is a deep need for a different kind of politics. Not a politics of fear, not of hate, not of division, but a politics of love. A love that can heal, what is broken in America.”
Talarico has an attractive pitch, but can he grab the nomination? A state wide platform shift may follow.
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