The former president met with James Talarico and a candidate for governor, Gina Hinojosa, in Austin last week at a restaurant across from the University of Texas as the 2026 midterms approach.
Gov. Greg Abbott has already secured the Republican nomination and is expected to face Hinojosa in the general election Nov. 3, and Talarico, a former educator who has served since 2018 as a member of the Texas House of Representatives, is trying to get John Cornyn's Senate seat.
Gov. Abbott is considered the clear favorite to win the gubernatorial election, but Dr. Robert Jeffress, a Baptist pastor in Texas and a spiritual advisor to President Donald Trump, recognizes that Talarico could garner the needed votes to win the seat in the upper chamber.
"He is pleasant in his demeanor; he appears to know the Scripture," Jeffress notes. "Even though he twists Scripture, he could be very appealing to people who aren't educated in what the Bible really teaches."
Talarico has been telling Texans they have God — and the Bible — all wrong. When debating about boys playing in girls' sports, for example, he claimed that Genesis describes God as "masculine and feminine and everything in between."
"God is non-binary," he said.
He has also used the story of Mary in Luke 1 to defend abortion, since God asked Mary for consent before the Holy Spirit came over her.
Obama, who has identified as a Christian throughout his public life, has frequently referenced Scripture and biblical ideas — especially themes like the "Golden Rule," the Sermon on the Mount, forgiveness, and compassion — to support moral arguments about public policy on issues like LGBTQ+ rights, abortion, poverty, immigration, race relations, and unity.
Talarico also presents himself as a Christian, but Dr. Alex McFarland, an advocate for biblical truth, thinks Texans should see through the hypocrisy.
"I could present myself as an NFL player, but that would not make it true," he poses.
He says Talarico, like Obama, is treasonous and anti-American and "just one more example of how the Democrats care nothing about a constitutional America or the welfare of citizens."
