Former College Friend Accuses James Talarico of Political ‘Betrayal’

Mike Garcia, the Chief of Staff for Tarrant County Commissioner Matt Krause, has taken to social media to recount a time when State Rep. James Talarico (D-TX) “betrayed the entire student body for his own political gain.”

State Rep. Talarico, who is currently vying for Senator John Cornyn’s (R-TX) senate seat, has positioned himself as the candidate who will bridge the divide and flip the seat blue. However, Garcia is dismissing the claim, urging voters to not fall for “his consistent betrayal.”

In a series of social media posts, Garcia recounted a time when the two were students in UT Austin. Garcia led the College Republicans and State Rep. Talarico led the University Democrats.

I've known @jamestalarico for nearly 20 years. When we were at @UTAustin in 2009, he ran the University Democrats and I ran the College Republicans. Although we disagreed, I once considered him a friend. But then he betrayed the entire student body for his own political gain.🧵 pic.twitter.com/wfNk6NOZBn

— Mike Garcia (@MikeGarciaFWTX) October 16, 2026

Both organizations teamed up for “TUITION RELIEF NOW,” an effort “to lower the rising tuition costs for UT system students.”

After the two groups planned to hold a rally in the Capitol for the cause, Garcia writes, “We received word that the University Democrats had changed their position on the issue of rising tuition and would no longer be participating in the rally.”

Surprised at the alleged last-minute change, Garcia claims that “Talarico ‘himself’ had unilaterally reversed course without consulting his club or even the club’s officers.” Garcia went on to claim that the senatorial hopeful “pulled support so that he, himself, could stay in the good graces of the university’s leadership, who opposed tuition cuts.” This resulted in the state rep getting “the cushy position of executive director of UT’s student government” the following year.

In the series of social media posts, Garcia calls State Rep. Talarico “fake” and someone who will “lie to satisfy his political ambitions.”
“None of us will be immune to Talarico’s habit of betrayal if he wins,” Garcia writes. “He betrayed his own people for political gain, and you should know that he will not hesitate to do the same to all of us for his own political ambitions.”

Attorney General Ken Paxton, who defeated Senator Cornyn in the primary, is hoping to stop the Texas Democrat from being elected to higher office. However, recent polling has both candidates tied at 45% support.