A new Fox News poll showing Democrat James Talarico leading Republican Ken Paxton by seven points in Texas left “Fox & Friends” co-host Ainsley Earhardt asking how such a result could be possible in the Lone Star State.
Earhardt raised the question Friday morning with Fox News contributor and OutKick founder Clay Travis.
“Joining me now, Fox News contributor and OutKick founder Clay Travis. Clay, if you look at that Fox News poll, he’s ahead by seven points in the state of Texas. How is that possible?” Earhardt asked.
Travis said Republican voters in Texas cannot afford to be complacent.
“Texans have to wake up. I think sometimes when you have seen Republicans win for generations, a lot of people out there just don’t think at all that Democrats are capable of winning in the state,” Travis said.
He pointed to what he has been seeing on television, noting that Republican ads appear to be everywhere.
“Now, I watch a lot of football. I watch a lot of sports. Every single game that I am watching, I am seeing Republican ads dominating,” he said.
Travis argued that Republicans have been holding back their resources and are now pouring money into the race.
“I think that Republicans have held their proverbial, you know, cash until the last moment, and they now are delivering overwhelming amounts of dollars into the playing field,” he said.
Despite the poll, Travis predicted a Paxton victory.
“I believe Ken Paxton is going to win. I think that Texans are waking up to the fact that they need to get out and vote both for this race and also for the governor’s race,” he said.
He also issued a broader warning about races in traditionally Republican territory.
“But certainly there are a lot of battlegrounds out there and a lot of people who need to be aware that maybe in states where traditionally Republicans have won very, very easily, there’s a lot of Democrat enthusiasm and money on the ground,” Travis said.
Earhardt agreed that Republicans may now have the money advantage, but she noted the head start Talarico enjoyed earlier in the race.
“So, yeah, you might be right about the money with the Republicans now, because there’s a $122 million ad blitz that was announced recently,” she said. “But Talarico raised $68.6 million. That’s how much he had back in June, compared to Paxton’s $9.2 million.”
She added that the fundraising gap allowed Talarico to get ahead on the airwaves, since he was essentially unopposed at that stage.
Travis then took aim at what he described as Talarico’s mixed messaging to voters.
“Yeah, look, I think this is important. Texans know this. James Talarico is trying to tell them that he will be a normal, moderate voice,” Travis said.
He accused Talarico of delivering a very different pitch outside of Texas.
“Meanwhile, he is going out to California, he’s going to New York, he’s going to Illinois, and he’s telling everybody, ‘Hey, I’m gonna be your ally. I’m going to make sure that Donald Trump can’t get anything done,'” Travis said.
“He’s telling all the left-wingers who are giving him money that he’s their guy. He’s tellin’ all the Texans, ‘Oh, I am just a moderate voice here,'” he added.
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