President Donald Trump took aim at two rising Democratic Senate candidates during a podcast interview released Wednesday, dismissing both Maine Senate hopeful Graham Platner and Texas Senate candidate James Talarico as unfit for higher office.
The comments came during an appearance on New York Post columnist Miranda Devine’s podcast, where the discussion turned to a pair of Democrats who have recently drawn national attention for very different reasons.
Devine first raised the issue of Platner, arguing that Democrats face a significant challenge with the Maine candidate because of a series of controversies that have followed his campaign.
Trump did not hold back.
“He’s a major sleazebag,” the president said. “I mean, you can’t imagine [he wins], yet he’s up in the polls against Susan Collins. But she’s always down in the polls and she survives.”
The criticism comes after Platner’s campaign acknowledged that he had exchanged sexually explicit messages with several women who were not his wife. The controversy followed renewed attention surrounding a tattoo on his chest resembling a Nazi SS “Totenkopf” symbol, which Platner has since covered up.
Platner has denied that the tattoo was intended as a Nazi symbol, maintaining that it was a skull-and-crossbones design he received while serving in the military.
After discussing the Maine race, Devine shifted the conversation to Texas Senate candidate James Talarico, prompting an even harsher response from Trump.
“I actually think Talarico is worse, you wanna know [between] the two of ’em,” Trump said.
The president then compared Talarico to Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas, whom Talarico defeated in the Democratic primary earlier this year.
Trump criticized Crockett as “grossly incompetent” and “low IQ,” but nevertheless argued that she would have been preferable to Talarico as the Democratic nominee.
“Oh, he’s horrible. Talarico’s horrible,” Trump said.
The president also criticized Talarico over a variety of cultural and political issues, including gender-related debates, mask-wearing, and questions about his lifestyle.
“With the six genders, with the mask a couple of months ago. Why you wearing a mask? Vegan in Texas doesn’t work, he’s heavy vegan,” Trump said. “Now he’s going, ‘Let’s have a barbecue!’”
Talarico has denied that he is a vegan. Last week, the Democratic Party’s X account posted a photograph showing him eating a large piece of meat.
Trump’s comments echoed criticism recently voiced by Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters, who discussed Talarico during an interview with Newsmax.
Gruters, referring to the candidate as “Talafreako,” accused him of being out of step with the values of many Texas voters.
“He thinks God is non-binary, he wants to mutilate children. He wants to put boys in girls locker rooms,” Gruters said. “People are done with that.”
According to the article, Talarico has supported allowing children to undergo sex-change operations and has also argued that a law preventing transgender boys from competing against girls in youth sports has harmed Texas’s reputation.
Despite the criticism from Trump and other Republicans, not everyone agrees with the assessment of Talarico’s political prospects.
Former George W. Bush strategist Mark McKinnon told MS NOW that he believes the Texas Democrat could be a formidable candidate. McKinnon argued that one of Talarico’s strengths is his ability to connect religious language and themes to his political message.
According to McKinnon, Talarico may even be able to “out-Bible” Republicans in a statewide campaign.
The contrasting views underscore the sharp political divide surrounding both Democratic candidates as their races continue to attract national attention. While Trump portrayed both men as deeply flawed representatives of a Democratic Party he opposes, supporters and critics alike appear to recognize that each has become an increasingly prominent figure in the political landscape.
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