Texas Take

After a contentious Democratic primary, James Talarico is making a big push to win over Black voters, many of whom had backed his opponent, Jasmine Crockett. In an exclusive interview with Texas Take host Jeremy Wallace at Prairie View A&M University, Talarico explains what he’s doing to win them over and talks about his relationship with Crockett. “There is no way to win Texas without Black voters,” Talarico says. In Dallas and Houston, Talarico lost 9 out of every 10 Black voters to Crockett. Can he win them back? Dallas Morning News Political Writer Gromer Jeffers Jr. joins the show to outline what Talarico has been doing and how much work he still has to do.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The mounting pressure finally caught up with now-former U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales. After other members of Congress moved to expel him for his affair with a staffer, the San Antonio Republican formally resigned, leaving people from San Antonio to El Paso with no representative in the House for the foreseeable future. San Antonio Express-News political reporter Bayliss Wagner joins host Jeremy Wallace to outline why Gonzales finally relented and what happens next to replace him. Plus, the NRA’s Justin Davis joins the program to explain how they are trying to win back members and why they opposed increased background checks on 18-year-olds after the Uvalde school shooting. Also, while Democrat James Talarico socks away huge money for his November Senate bid, the Republicans in the race continue to fight among themselves and burn GOP donor cash. Finally, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, who has never been shy about his ambition to run for president again, is starting to show up outside of Texas in places like California and Iowa.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Scandal and declining membership have beset the National Rifle Association in recent years, but the group is still expecting 70,000 gun owners to descend on Houston starting Thursday for its annual convention. Justin Davis, Director of Public Affairs for the NRA, sat down with Texas Take Podcast host Jeremy Wallace to discuss how the organization is trying to win back members and what it's done to better watch how money is spent. For just the second time since 2015, President Donald Trump will be a no-show at the event. Davis also defends the NRA’s opposition to red flag laws and the gun safety measures passed in Congress after the Uvalde school shooting in 2022.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The THC industry is fighting back against new Texas regulations that threaten to put many of them out of business. Houston Chronicle reporter Isaac Yu joins host Jeremy Wallace to explain key parts of the new regulations, the industry's recent lawsuit and what will happen next. Also, they break down the latest way that Christian nationalism may be seeping into public schools. Later, the Austin American-Statesman’s John Mortiz joins the program to talk about how Texas Democrats are still paying for their attempts to stop the congressional redistricting plan and why U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw is calling out U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz. Finally, Republican National Committee chair Joe Gruters stops in to acknowledge the tough midterm elections ahead, but insists the party has a plan to defy recent electoral history. Why? "We have no other option. We have to win," he says.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The leader of the Republican National Committee knows he will have to defy history to defend President Donald Trump in Texas and beyond as Democrats vow to retake control of the U.S. House. In an exclusive interview with Texas Take host Jeremy Wallace, RNC chair Joe Gruters said he knows almost every president over the 150 years has lost seats in Congress during midterm elections. But the GOP has to overcome the odds in order to save Trump from an endless stream of investigations and impeachment hearings during his final two years in office. “We have no other option. We have to win,” Gruters said. A big part of that mission is Texas. With the GOP national convention scheduled for Houston in 2028 and a potential midterm convention in Dallas this year, Gruters has been in Texas a lot, preparing to fight Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico and other threats to Trump’s legacy up and down the ballot in the Lone Star State.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Did Ted Cruz and Greg Abbott just get snubbed by CPAC in their own backyard? Houston Chronicle reporter Benjamin Wermund joins this week's episode to explain why the crowd favored JD Vance and Marco Rubio over either. Plus with gas prices climbing, Trump voters may be paying more at the pump. In Midland and Odessa, people are pay much more for a gallon of gas than those in Houston, Dallas or Austin - all places Kamala Harris carried in 2024. And host Jeremy Wallace has seen far too many Godzilla movies. He explains why a congressional hearing about deep-sea mining operations of the Gulf Coast has him worried about what lurks beneath the waves. Finally State Sen. Nathan Johnson joins the program for an exclusive one-on-one to talk about his campaign for attorney general, his double life writing music for Dragon Ball Z and his concern over the calcification of power in the governor's office that he says would have alarmed the framers of the Texas Constitution.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vice President JD Vance and U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Arizona, are worlds apart politically, but this week both were in the Lone Star State on a similar mission: win over Texans who could become critical if they both run for the White House in 2028. Gallego sits down with host Jeremy Wallace for an exclusive interview in San Antonio, where he says his message is as simple as can be: “no stupid wars, focus on the homeland.” His target audience in the Alamo City was clear: Latinos and veterans. Plus, University of Houston political science professor Brandon Rottinghaus explains that it’s not just Texas BBQ bringing would-be presidential candidates to Texas. He explains why the state is such a proving ground for candidates of both parties. Also, Austin American-Statesman political reporter John Moritz drops in to relay what Democrat James Talarico said in response to a Tennessee pastor who called for God to kill him. All that, plus Conroe’s Parker McCollum, shows how a Houston rodeo concert is supposed to end.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The longer President Donald Trump drags out his endorsement of either Sen. John Cornyn or Ken Paxton, the more it is costing GOP donors as the two Senate combatants continue to throw money at each other instead of turning their attention to Democrat James Talarico. Host Jeremy Wallace breaks down the latest in the drama to court Trump’s political love. Plus, what exactly did James Talarico say about veganism that has Republicans vowing to defend BBQ? Finally, Cornyn and U.S. Rep. Greg Casar force their way onto the show by verbally sparring in the pickup line at the airport – all in front of Wallace. The reason? Who is to blame for long TSA lines at airports around the nation.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Texas shattered voting turnout records in a wild primary season that saw James Talarico defeat Jasmine Crockett, and Sen. John Cornyn pushed into a runoff election with Ken Paxton. Gromer Jeffers of the Dallas Morning News and John Moritz of the Austin American-Statesman join host Jeremy Wallace to break down all the results including hot races for Congress, the Texas Legislature and statewide offices. Plus, Bayliss Wagner of the San Antonio Express-News joins with the latest on U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, whose career in Congress will be coming to an end after he confirmed that he had an affair with a staffer who later died after setting herself on fire. Finally, Wallace looks at how President Donald Trump used a stop in Corpus Christi to tout gas prices being down 10 cents, only to see them shoot up 20 cents days later after he ordered the attack on Iran.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Months of ads, rallies and campaign travel have brought us to this. On Tuesday, Texas will know whether Jasmine Crockett or James Talarico will be the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate. And on the Republican side, will U.S. Sen. John Cornyn survive the toughest GOP primary of his career against Ken Paxton and Wesley Hunt? John Moritz of the Austin American-Statesman joins host Jeremy Wallace to break down the closing arguments of all the top candidates and look at the record pace of early voting, with shocking turnout numbers in Harris, Bexar and Collin counties, to name a few. Plus, U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales is vowing never to resign despite new evidence related to an affair he had with a congressional aide who killed herself last year. Finally, President Donald Trump heads to Corpus Christi to tout the economy despite continued criticism that he hasn't done enough to address affordability in America.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices