President Donald Trump and Texas Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton are raising questions about Democratic challenger James Talarico's whereabouts after the candidate spent nearly two weeks away from the campaign trail, as new reporting reveals concerns about his absence among members of his own volunteer network.
Talarico, who is challenging Paxton in Texas' closely watched Senate contest, has not appeared at an in-person campaign event since late September, citing a case of the flu. The prolonged absence has prompted attacks from Republicans, including Trump, who questioned Talarico's whereabouts during a Wednesday campaign rally in San Antonio and later on his social media platform Truth Social, calling the Texas Democrat "MISSING IN ACTION."
"TalaFREAKo has been missing for 12 days! Now, after looking for him throughout all of Texas, and beyond, probably even weirder places than anyone would think possible, he put out a statement that he has the 'flu.' 12 days is a long time to rid yourself of the so-called flu bug," Trump wrote Wednesday. "What's going on? We need a Senator that's a proven Champion like one that has been, without question, the Greatest Attorney General in the History of Texas, and one of the Greatest in the U.S.A."
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Paxton similarly questioned his opponent's absence, asking supporters at Wednesday's rally, "Where is James Talarico?"
"If it's as tight as they claim it is, and he's got a lead the way they claim that he is, and you're a billionaire writing these big checks right now to Talarico, wouldn't you want an ROI, like a return on your investment?" conservative radio host Ben Ferguson questioned on "The Will Cain Show" Thursday. "Why have we not gotten transparency from his campaign? What is really going on? Why did a guy disappear after doing an interview where he didn't look like he had the flu?"
Talarico's absence comes during the final stretch of Texas' closely watched Senate race, with Election Day less than a month away. The Democrat's last publicly documented in-person campaign event in Texas was Sept. 26, when he held a news conference in Carrollton addressing rising gasoline prices and the war in Iran, according to CNN.
Talarico subsequently attended a private fundraiser in New York and participated virtually in a Sept. 30 business forum, where he said he had been diagnosed with the flu at a Dallas urgent care facility the previous evening. Talarico has Type 1 diabetes, which puts him at greater risk of developing serious flu complications, according to the CDC.
His campaign has said Talarico expects to return to in-person campaigning this weekend ahead of a publicly scheduled CNN town hall on Oct. 14. The campaign also cited "more than 100 public events" Talarico has already done.
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"I guess I've been shaking too many hands on the campaign trail, and so I want to keep everybody safe," Talarico explained, adding he did not want to risk spreading the illness to vulnerable individuals.
"Ken Paxton has been ignoring Texans this entire campaign, and his priorities are clear: he doesn't answer to the people of this state - he answers to his billionaire megadonors and special interests," campaign spokesperson JT Ennis told Fox News Digital.
Meanwhile, the New York Post reported Thursday that leaked messages from a private Slack channel showed members of Talarico's volunteer network discussing his prolonged absence, with one expressing concern that he could lose momentum.
"I think it'll be fine. It's [j]ust conservatives blasting him. I'm just worried about him losing momentum," a Talarico campaign volunteer wrote in a group chat with other volunteers, featuring nearly 4,000 people, according to The Post. "But I 100% expect him to make a comeback at the CNN [t]own hall that's a given."
"It's a buncha people that don't actually want him to be out touring that are causing a stink. No one's genuinely upset," another volunteer wrote.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Talarico campaign for additional information on where the candidate is recovering and when this weekend he will reappear on the campaign trail but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
"I would much rather have my candidate rested and have any ailments out of the way now than down the stretch, because if they're sick two weeks before the election, they're still going to be on the road which means it's only going to get worse. So let them heal up and get their strength back," veteran Texas-based Democratic strategist Ed Espinoza told Fox News Digital. "Even though Talarico's off the trail, he's still on the airwaves," Espinoza added, referring to the campaign's significant ad spending in Texas. "He's got plenty of money to get his message out."
