Cable news outlet CNN and digital media company Jubilee Media on Monday confirmed that Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico has agreed to a televised Town Hall in Texas.
The political discussion will air at 7 p.m. CST on CNN and stream on Jubilee’s YouTube channel.
“A Town Hall invitation has also been extended to Republican candidate Ken Paxton,” CNN officials said in a press release.
Paxton’s campaign team was unavailable for immediate comment.
Officials said CNN Anchor Erin Burnett will moderate the gathering, and that likely Texas voters from across the political spectrum — Democrats, Republicans and independents — will be able to participate by asking questions.
Even so, that doesn’t appear to be good enough for Paxton, who declined an invitation to debate Talarico on CNN, saying the outlet’s moderators would be biased. He’s yet to accept an invitation to debate Talarico on Fox News.
Talarico played up the Fox News debate invitation during his appearance at the Texas Tribune Festival last week.
“I’ll go into the lion’s den, because I know what I believe,” Talarico said in a one-on-one interview with Tribune Editor-in-Chief Matthew Watkins. “I am proud of my record, and I’m not afraid of hard questions. And Ken Paxton is running from a fight, and that sounds like low-T behavior to me.”
Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston, said the decision not to debate is wise for the Paxton campaign. The move allows Republicans to keep attacking Talarico in TV and social media ads without Paxton having to answer for the many scandals he’s faced during his time in office.
Even so, Talarico said Paxton’s avoidance does a disservice to Lone Star State voters.
“In all seriousness, Texans deserve answers to their questions,” the Democrat said. “Texans deserve to make an informed choice in this really critical race. So, I’m challenging Ken Paxton to a game on his home turf. He’s been running from accountability his whole life, and it’s time to stop running.”
Texas voters have until Oct. 5 to update their voter registrations to participate in the midterms. Early voting runs Oct. 19-20, and Election Day is Nov. 3.
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