Talarico Faces Tough Questions as Plano Weighs Arena Deal

James Talarico spent Wednesday night answering pointed questions at a CNN town hall on abortion, faith, immigration and the national debt. His opponent, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, didn’t show.

The Democratic U.S. Senate candidate defended his Christian faith and his abortion-rights stance before an audience that pressed him from several directions. He argued that Texans share more than the political map suggests. “I am tired of us being divided into teams: left versus right, blue versus red, urban versus rural,” he said. “The truth is, we’re all on the same team.” He’s seeking to become the first Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate from Texas since 1988.

Paxton skipped the event and announced a statewide bus tour starting Saturday. “Texans don’t back down, and neither do I,” he wrote on X hours before the town hall. “I have one message for the far-left extremists who are trying to destroy Texas: Come and Take It.” He also accused Talarico of having “tried to dismantle the oil and gas industry” and waging a “war on Texas energy.” Newsweek said it reached out to Paxton’s campaign for comment. Talarico ended the night with a line about his opponent: “We cannot afford Ken Paxton’s corruption.”

Faith, Abortion and the Cost of a Ban

An independent voter who described herself as an Orthodox Catholic told Talarico that Democrats’ support for abortion rights makes it hard for many Catholics to trust the party on human dignity. Talarico, a former public-school teacher and Presbyterian seminarian student, didn’t dodge the question. “Some of my spiritual heroes, like Pope Francis and Pope Leo, are pro-life, and they are consistently pro-life,” he said. He offered a different frame. “If we treat this issue as a public health problem and not a culture war problem, then we can actually make progress together.”

He pointed to what he called dangerous outcomes under Texas’ abortion ban for women facing medical emergencies. “If we are authentically pro-life, I think we should be disturbed by the outcomes of this extreme abortion ban,” he said. The exchange ended cordially.

A Republican voter asked whether the Bible is the absolute source of truth. Talarico said yes. Asked about earlier remarks calling God nonbinary, he acknowledged he’d been “provocative.” “You are my sister in Christ,” he told her. “It’s OK if you and I have disagreements.”

Debt, Ukraine and the War in Iran

Talarico called the national debt a moral problem. “We are stealing from future generations. It is intergenerational theft,” he said. His answer was to close tax loopholes that benefit billionaires and wealthy Americans, while pursuing a more restrained foreign policy. He called for an end to the war in Iran, which he said costs taxpayers $1 billion a day. “We should be looking for efficiency in our government,” he said.

On Ukraine, he framed aid as prudence. “If we can stop Vladimir Putin in Ukraine, then we’re not going to have to stop him elsewhere,” he said. “In some ways, I see this as a cost-saving measure.”

Immigration and ICE

Talarico rejected claims that he wants to abolish ICE. “No, and I never have,” he said. But he argued that recent enforcement has crossed a line. “We were told that ICE was going to go after violent criminals,” he said. “They’re going after Uber drivers. They’re going after small-business owners. They’re going after grandmothers and infants.” He cited Lorenzo Salgado, a Houston-area resident who had lived in Texas for decades and raised three sons who attended college. “Lorenzo, our fellow Texan, deserves justice,” Talarico said.

On transgender healthcare, he said he supports barring gender-transition surgeries for minors but opposed the final Texas legislation because it went further. “Powerful people are using small minorities in our community to distract from their corruption,” he said. “The only minority destroying America is the billionaires.”

The Polling

A Marist poll released Wednesday put Talarico ahead 47 percent to 45 percent among likely voters, within the 4.9-point margin of error. Among registered voters, his lead was 4 points, down from 6 a month earlier. Independents favored him, 52 percent. Paxton’s favorability stood 22 points underwater, 34 percent favorable to 56 percent unfavorable. Still, 53 percent of likely voters expected Paxton to win. Vice President JD Vance rallied for Paxton in East Texas on Tuesday, days after President Donald Trump held a rally in San Antonio.

Plano’s School Money and a Hockey Arena

Another Texas fight centers on school dollars. Plano ISD says it will contribute up to $250 million toward a proposed Dallas Stars arena at the former Shops at Willow Bend site, on top of the $700 million the city has proposed through a venue tax that voters will decide in the upcoming election.

The district says future tax revenue from new development in the zone—not existing classroom funds—will provide the money. The contribution would flow over an estimated 18 years into a city-administered fund for public improvements. Under Texas’ “Robin Hood” recapture system, property-wealthy districts like Plano ISD send part of their local property tax revenue to the state. The district expects adjustments to what it owes the state to offset the agreement, and projects receiving about $438 million over the same period, $188 million more than it would contribute. Those are projections, not guarantees. The district approved the agreement in August, and the Plano City Council approved it Oct. 12.

Some residents aren’t convinced. “I really am not too keen on the idea of moving money away from the schools,” said Bryan Beck, a lifelong Plano resident. Finance expert Sriram Villapura said the payoff depends on results. “If there is better enrollment, yes, they’ll benefit from the extra money,” he said. “My concern is that it could potentially be more money might be going out of Plano ISD.” The district projects the redevelopment could grow its tax base by $7.3 billion, but that depends on future property values, economic conditions and state law.

Why This Matters: Two stories, one thread: who carries the risk when public decisions meet private promises. In the Senate race, Talarico is urging Texans to weigh the human cost of an abortion ban, aggressive immigration enforcement and tax loopholes for the wealthy, while Paxton skipped a public forum where voters could ask questions. In Plano, a school district is committing up to $250 million toward a privately anchored arena based on projections that, by the district’s own admission, aren’t guaranteed. Residents like Beck are asking a fair question about whether schools come first. Voters will decide the venue tax, but the broader issue is accountability: public money and public power should come with public answers. The proposed arena site is the former Shops at Willow Bend.