After Wednesday’s two-hour speech in San Antonio, President Trump fired off a Truth Social post calling on Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to debate his rival in the U.S. Senate race, Democrat James Talarico.
In his post, Trump accused Talarico, an Austin-area state rep, of being ‘MISSING IN ACTION’ after the Democrat canceled several planned appearances because he had contracted the flu.
“Where is he? What is wrong with him? Bad rumors are coming out,” Trump said. “He should immediately report to a Debate Stage [sic] against Ken Paxton, who is ready, willing and able …”
However, political experts maintain that Trump’s proposal is a terrible idea for the scandal-ridden Paxton, who trails Talarico in the polls.
Paxton would likely be forced to answer uncomfortable questions about his political baggage, including his 2023 impeachment and subsequent acquittal, whistleblower complaints alleging abuse of office, his settlement in a state securities fraud case and allegations of extramarital affairs.
“We’ve seen Ken Paxton confronted even in front of friendly audiences with the litany of his ethical baggage, and it hasn’t gone well,” University of Houston Political Science Professor Brandon Rottinghaus told the Current in an earlier interview. “As a political storyline, the Paxton campaign would like to minimize the opportunities to have this in front of voters.”
Despite his illness, Talarico was quick to respond to Trump’s call to action.
“I agree,” Talarico tweeted. “Ball’s in our court, Ken Paxton.”
Paxton hasn’t yet responded to Trump’s request.
Indeed, Talarico has accepted five separate invitations from media outlets looking to host a debate between the two candidates. Paxton’s team has accepted none, even though his campaign said over the summer that the attorney general would debate Talarico when the time came.
Usually, candidates trailing in the polls have an incentive to debate their opponents in hopes of winning over undecided voters. Paxton, however, appears to be an exception. His campaign has relied on social media attacks while avoiding the debate stage.
Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University, previously told the Current that Paxton is stuck between a rock and a hard place. If he accepts the debate invitation, it’s likely to hurt his poll numbers. Iff he doesn’t, the electorate could feel insulted by Paxton’s lack of participation.
“Even if voters have decided not to watch, not to pay any attention, at least they’ve been respected enough that the candidates were willing to stand up in debate,” Jillson said. “To simply decline to debate is potentially an insult to the electorate. And I think one of the problems that Republicans have in Texas now is the sense of entitlement on their part. … And that’s one of the reasons I think that these races are close up and down the ticket.”
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