James Talarico and the Influenza Blues

MAGA politicians are so scared of Talarico’s popularity, that they are laser focused on finding the slightest excuse to attack him. This requires lots of lies and truth-twisting.

Way back in 2022, Talarico said he has cut back on red meat and pork for health reasons. The right has viciously attacked him for that statement, labeling him a vegan. Even *IF* he were vegan, why would that be an issue? But of course, he’s not a vegan. For a lot of years now, I also have cut way back on meat, and incorporated more whole grains and vegetables into my diet. Does that make me a bad person? I find it very odd that the right is constantly complaining about the bad American diet, and yet they attack Talarico for trying to eat healthy.

Talarico has said that God is non-binary, or that He cannot be defined as male or female. As a Jesus-centered Christian, I cringe at his choice of words, but I also understand exactly the point he’s making. It is absolutely Biblical that God is genderless. The far right AKA Christian Nationalists are unable to understand that, and choose to attack Talarico as teaching a false doctrine, while at the same time declaring that Trump has the Hand of God on him. *gag*.

I don’t agree with all of Talarico’s social views, but I don’t make up lies about him.

I don’t agree with Trump about much of anything, but I don’t make up lies about him, either.

Talarico’s recent bout with the flu provided MAGAs with plenty of ammunition and the lies are flying.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26

His last event in Texas before he became ill took place in Carrollton, a Dallas suburb.

MONDAY SEPTEMBER 28

He attended a series of events in New York City, including a joint fundraiser hosted by Robert De Niro, with Ohio Democratic Senate nominee Sherrod Brown.

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 29

He arrived in Dallas for a planned event the next day, but he was feeling ill and saw a doctor, who diagnosed him with the flu.

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 30

Talarico had been scheduled for an in-person conversation with Javier Palomarez, president of the United States Hispanic Business Council. When he explained he was sick with the flu, arrangements were made for a virtual Question and Answer session with the council, instead.

THURSDAY OCTOBER 1

Talarico’s planned appearance at the Central Texas African American Civic Engagement Symposium was canceled for the upcoming week, according to Essien Ita, the group’s leader. Talarico’s staff said they had canceled other events through Oct. 5.

THURSDAY OCTOBER 1 THROUGH THURSDAY OCTOBER 8

Talarico’s disappearance from the campaign trail spawned wild conspiracy theories and speculations, despite his staff informing the public that James was at home with the flu.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8

The Texas-based commentator Sara Gonzalez, of The Blaze claimed on X that she had received “unverified information on James Talarico’s whereabouts. If true, it will END his campaign.” She then began soliciting confirmation from anyone who could provide details.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9

Talarico was seen in public for the first time in over a week, when a campaign spokesperson posted a video of him greeting festivalgoers at the Austin City Limits Music Festival.

On that same day, Talarico sent a text to CBS News, saying: “Feeling much better. Back on the trail!”

An X account using an AI-generated profile picture, and using the name “TickleTexts” claimed that Talarico had been whisked out of the state on a private jet. The account claimed he was taken to Ohio. where he was hospitalized at Lindner Center for HOPE.

Spencer Pratt posted on X that same day: “My sources are telling me Talarico is in a mental health facility. His campaign has stopped actively planning events in the vital homestretch of the campaign”.

SATURDAY OCTOBER 10

Caroline Wren, a GOP influencer, former fundraiser for Trump, and Jan. 6 defendant, claimed on X that she had identified the plane which had carried Talarico from Austin to Ohio. She provided no evidence linking that flight to Talarico.

SATURDAY OCTOBER 10 & SUNDAY OCTOBER 11

Talarico was busy making several public appearances over the weekend, including his attendance at a Kasey Musgraves concert in San Antonio. He also gave an interview to NBC’s Dallas-Fort Worth station and had another interview with the Dallas Morning News’ editorial board.

SUNDAY OCTOBER 11

Rhein Amacher reacted to Caroline Wren’s X post about the plane flight and published a series of posts on X, in which he claimed he got confirmation from the Lindner Center that Talarico had been a patient there, and that he had been discharged on the evening of October 10.

Amacher posted the audio recording of a call he made to the center on the 10th

Following Rhein Amacher’s X posts, Nick Sortor posted a 45 seconds audio recording, allegedly a phone conversation with a Lindner Center of Hope employee, who said Talarico had been discharged from the center. Multiple influencers ran with this, including Elon Musk. (The uncut audio can be heard here: scroll down the page and look for the recording with the 6:41 stamp).

Ken Paxton attacked Talarico on Fox News Sunday: “two weeks is a long time to be away with the flu, and it’s just a very strange time to disappear”. Besides the fact it was less than two weeks, perhaps Paxton is unaware that people commonly take several days to recover from the flu. And type 1 diabetics, like Talarico, often take a little longer.

On October 11, the Lindner Center of Hope which Talarico had allegedly been admitted to, disputed the claims on X, which Talarico quoted.

Talarico’s staff released timestamped home security camera footage proving he was at his home in Austin, Texas from Thursday October 1 to Thursday October 8.

As with all easily debunked conspiracies, logic has flown out the window.

For starters, if someone is admitted to a mental health facility due to a nervous breakdown, they are going to stay there for at least a few weeks.

The timeline makes no sense at all. According to the flight schedule posted by Caroline Wren, Talarico would have flown to Ohio, then immediately came back to Texas. There was no time in between for him to have been evaluated by the clinic, let alone admitted. Why would he have gone all the way to Ohio anyhow?

Even if Talarico had been treated there, the center would never have confirmed it without the patient’s written permission. By doing so, they would have broken federal law, seriously risking the loss of their license to operate the facility, and they would be facing some harsh penalties.

But the timeline gets even worse. Rhein Amacher claimed that the clinic employee had confirmed on the phone that Talarico had been discharged on Saturday evening. That was some trick, considering Talarico attended the Austin City Limits music festival the day before that, on Friday, and appeared at the Kacey Musgraves the next day, not to mention his other appearances and interviews over the weekend.

The entire conspiracy, first hatched by Spencer Pratt, was badly botched.

When the claimed timestamps of the phone calls imploded the narrative, some influencers began dirty deleting their posts about the matter. But others continued to push the conspiracy: they just shifted the goalposts.

Sortor claimed he would release additional audio from the center on Monday the 12th. He did post an audio clip, but, well, listen to it for yourself. It came to nothing.

Right-wing podcaster Megyn Kelly had questions on Sunday. “Was the facility operator who said he had been there mistaken? Will you allow her to speak publicly?” she asked on X.

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller posted on X: “The Freako campaign still has yet to explain where he was for 2 weeks.”

And the conspiracy continues. Many people will never believe that Talarico wasn’t admitted to a mental hospital.

It’s a funny thing. Two or three times during Trump’s second term, he has suddenly cancelled all upcoming appointments and disappeared from the public view for a few days. Neither he nor his staff has offered an explanation. Trump’s supporters have remained silent about it.