Talarico says Ken Paxton is "lying to the people of Texas" with AI ad that puts "words in my mouth"

Texas State Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, said Wednesday his opponent, state Attorney General Ken Paxton, is "lying to the people of Texas" with a new AI advertisement that Talarico said puts "words in my mouth."

"When you look at this ad, they are using AI in order to mislead the people of this state, and that is completely consistent with a liar like Ken Paxton," Talarico told CBS News' Ed O'Keefe in an interview Wednesday.

Paxton released the advertisement this week, which portrays an AI-generated Talarico reading a "King James Talarico" bible aloud, with references to comments he's made about God being nonbinary, gender and more broadly, Christianity.

Pressed by O'Keefe on whether the ad represented statements Talarico has previously made, Talarico replied, "Not all of those statements." He argued that Paxton's ad is in line with his "record of lying to the people of Texas," pointing to Paxton's impeachment. The Texas attorney general was impeached by the state House in 2023 on accusations of bribery, obstruction of justice and abuse of the public trust. Talarico also cited a recent endorsement he received from Paxton's former director of law enforcement, who appeared in a new ad this week supporting Talarico.

"I am confident that Democrats, independents and Republicans are going to reject Ken Paxton because we don't want a criminal representing us in the halls of power in Washington," Talarico said.

The Democrat said he would not use AI in political advertising, adding that "every ad that we put out is made by human beings, and we're very proud of that fact."

The comments come as Talarico and Paxton are facing off in November in a closely watched Senate contest that's expected to be among the most expensive in history. In May, Paxton won the Senate primary runoff for the GOP nomination, defeating incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, who's represented Texas in the Senate since 2002. Democrats hope that Talarico will benefit from Paxton's candidacy, given his history of personal controversies and more conservative ideology than Cornyn.

On Wednesday, Talarico argued, "Texans are tired of this professional wrestling in our politics," and he said they "want a serious senator who's going to bring both parties together to lower costs and get this economy back on track."

"I have a track record of doing that," he said, citing his work in the state legislature. "So I'm asking Texans to judge me based on my legislative record."

Appearing at a grocery drive Wednesday, Talarico drew a contrast between the food drive aimed at helping struggling Texans and what he called the GOP "billionaire ball," as Republicans and their donors gather in Dallas for their midterm convention Wednesday and Thursday. The Democratic candidate highlighted Texans' need for affordability, saying, "I don't want to wait until the day after the election, or the day I'm sworn in, to give Texas some relief."

"Our campaign is all about serving others, loving thy neighbor," he said. "The other side is all about self-enrichment and accumulating wealth and power for themselves at the expense of working people."

Democrats are hopeful that Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian who calls himself a progressive Christian, can break a decades-long streak of sending Republicans to the Senate. Texas hasn't elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1988, and Democrats have fallen short in multiple contests despite optimism about their chances.

The race could also be key to determining control of the Senate. With 53 Republicans, Democrats would need to flip four seats to take the majority, and Democrats are hoping the Lone Star State is one of them. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report shifted its rating of the race from likely Republican to leaning Republican after Paxton's victory in the primary, and then in August, from leaning Republican to a toss-up.

Asked what sets this race apart from the 2018 race between GOP Sen. Ted Cruz and Democrat Beto O'Rourke, Talarico replied, "This is truly a movement unlike any other that we've seen in the state of Texas," citing interest at events, volunteer participation and grassroots fundraising totals.

"People are hungry for the old-fashioned values I was raised with: honesty, integrity, service, putting others before self, doing the right thing, even when no one is watching," Talarico said. "I know those values have been out of style recently over the past 10 years. But I really do believe those old-fashioned values are about to make a comeback in this race."