James Talarico claimed Texas public schools aren't built for students of color and ranked social-emotional learning above reading and math, drawing fresh scrutiny in his Senate race.
Fox News Digital reported that an unearthed 2020 discussion shows Texas Senate candidate James Talarico slamming the state's public school system for putting academics first.
Talarico, a former two-year public school teacher who later served in the Texas House from the 52nd District, told the progressive youth group Texas Rising that the system left no room for what he called higher priorities.
He said he felt trapped by a focus on core subjects and argued those basics matter less than social-emotional learning.
Talarico put it this way during the call:
"I was trapped in a system that was focused purely on academics, reading, writing, arithmetic. And there wasn't time to talk about social-emotional learning,"
He went further, ranking those soft skills above hard content.
"All the things that we all know on this call are more important than whether or not you memorize the quadratic equation,"
Then came the claim that now defines the clip. Talarico declared the Texas system itself fails whole groups of children by design.
"Our public education system, particularly here in Texas, is not built for poor students,"
He added the line that landed hardest:
"It's not built for students of color."
Those 2020 remarks line up with the package Talarico pushed a year earlier. In 2019 he introduced the Whole Student Agenda, a slate of 24 bills.
The agenda called for changes to sex education he labeled "scientifically accurate" and pushed restorative justice programs in schools. The package did not specifically target race-related issues even though he later said the system was not built for students of color.
Talarico also led a bill requiring most Texas school districts to hire a diversity, equity and inclusion officer. The same measure called for DEI to be taught explicitly in every public school classroom.
Parents who want reading, writing, and math first see a different priority list. Social-emotional learning and DEI staffing came before the basics he once dismissed as less important than the quadratic equation.
In a 2022 Texas House hearing, Talarico described sex education as "maybe the most important topic" for Texas students. He sat on the House Public Education Committee at the time.
He also waved away bills that sought to limit inappropriate school materials. Talarico called those measures "conspiracy theory-driven" and "kooky stuff."
The pattern is consistent. Academic content takes a back seat. Identity programs and contested curriculum expand.
Talarico is now running for U.S. Senate against Republican Ken Paxton in the upcoming midterms. The race has already featured sharp exchanges over presence on the trail and trust.
Voters can weigh that record alongside Paxton's pressure on Talarico over recent absences.
His short classroom tenure, just two years, did not stop him from reshaping policy once he reached the Public Education Committee. The same committee work later drew questions about outside pay.
Prior Fox News Digital reporting found that a firm employing Talarico received millions of dollars in contracts from the Texas Education Agency while he served on the House Public Education Committee. His campaign called that allegation a "lie."
The campaign did not immediately respond to a fresh request for comment on the 2020 remarks. Talarico still presents himself as an education voice while the old tape shows him saying the system was never built for poor students or students of color.
That stance sits poorly with families who expect schools to teach every child the same core skills. Race and income become excuses instead of problems to solve with higher standards.
Recent coverage has also tracked Trump and Paxton calling out Talarico for stretches off the campaign trail.
Texas parents watching the Senate contest see a candidate who once ranked social-emotional talk above arithmetic and then wrote DEI officers into statute. The 2020 clip simply makes the hierarchy plain.
Endorsements in the race have already turned on questions of reliability. One high-profile backer put it bluntly when Randy White backed Paxton and said Talarico cannot be trusted.
Talarico has tried to recalibrate other positions as the contest intensified. He has admitted missing the mark on gender, theology, and taxes in comments examined during the same cycle.
Those adjustments appear in reporting on how Talarico conceded ground on several cultural and fiscal issues.
The education tape is harder to walk back. He said the quiet part out loud: academics were the problem, not the solution, and entire groups of students were locked out by design.
Paxton and others have kept the focus on whether Talarico shows up and what he actually believes. Separate coverage captured fresh questions about another missing stretch on the trail.
Texas schools exist to teach children to read, draft, and calculate. When a former teacher and committee member says those subjects crowd out more important work, and then adds that the system was never built for students of color, voters get a clear look at the trade-off he prefers.
Kids need the quadratic equation and the basics that open every door. Ideology that treats academics as the enemy leaves them with less.
