Trump and Rubio rally for Paxton as Talarico pushes radical anti-gun agenda in Lubbock showdown
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In Lubbock, Texas, President Donald Trump and Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico held rival rallies on the same day, spotlighting a heated Senate race in a city that remains reliably Republican but is drawing strong turnout.
Lubbock, Texas — On the same evening that President Donald Trump addressed a crowd at the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center, Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico held a rally on the city’s east side, drawing thousands of attendees. The twin events underscored the high-stakes Senate contest in a city of fewer than 300,000 residents, with a week left before the election.
Talarico, who has a narrow lead in recent polls, framed the race as a chance to push his version of an “affordability crisis” tied to corruption. He attacked Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, calling him “the most corrupt politician in Texas,” and accused tech billionaire Elon Musk of trying to influence the race through financial support for Paxton.
“We have an affordability crisis because we have a corruption crisis. But we can change that in this election, in this state, in this race,” Talarico said.
“We are running against the embodiment of this corrupt system,” he added.
President Trump, accompanied by former Secretary of State Marco Rubio, used his appearance to energize support for Paxton’s campaign. He described Talarico as an “anti-gun extremist” and warned that Democrats were “bad people” who could threaten public safety.
“They’ve got a lot of bad people,” Trump said of Democrats.
Rubio, who has not previously taken part in midterm campaign events, delivered a brief statement supporting Trump’s presidency.
“Our enemies are weaker. Our country is stronger, and our people are safer because Donald J. Trump is the president of the United States,” he said.
Both rallies featured strong partisan language and highlighted the intense voter enthusiasm in a region traditionally dominated by Republicans. The dual events illustrated the competitive nature of the Senate race, with Democrats seeking to flip a statewide seat for the first time in three decades and Republicans aiming to maintain their long-standing control of Texas politics.