Prosperdick said:

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I will gain some respect for him if he actually had a breakdown caused by all his advisors demanding he lie and take stances antithetical to his beliefs. I still will think he's a freak but at least he believes in his nutty stances.

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No chance. He is a paid ***** who will say whatever the left wants him to say, with zero conscience about it.

Quote:

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The fact that it took them that long to put out a simple statement shows how terribly run his campaign is.

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if the rumors are true...it's hard for them to say anything definitive. You cant promise he'll be back campaigning this weekend, and then he still be MIA. That would cause this thing to blow up more than it has.

Which, speaks to it not actually being the flu.

If he had had the flu, they would have led with that 10 days ago.

I think most people would just power through after a day or two with the flu

Tramp96 said:

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If he had had the flu, they would have led with that 10 days ago.

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Did he not claim the flu in the now debated Sept 30th video (where he may have been in NY)?

Its a pretty big mess which tells folks its not the flu.

The media are so pathetic. In the closing days of my campaign, I did a whirlwind trip to NYC so I could pop 7 national media hits and reach the biggest audience possible. CNN, Fox, ABC, NBC...then flew right back home. There were paps in the SECURE area of LAX filming me return.… https://t.co/dYdFwwDfk9

— Spencer Pratt (@spencerpratt) October 9, 2026

Interesting contrast

oh no said:

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I think most people would just power through after a day or two with the flu

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Yep. I have a working immune system. Never had the flu, but taken care of numerous people with it.

Charpie said:

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NEW: @jamestalarico campaign issues a statement about his 13 day absence from the campaign trail: "James looks forward to being back out this weekend after recovering from the flu…” I’ve asked for more details on where Rep. Talarico will be. @CBSNewsTexas (MORE)

— Jack Fink (@cbs11jack) October 9, 2026

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What he needs to demand is more details about where Talarico has been. Candidates for high public office don't go missing for two weeks during the stretch run of a campaign. Voters have a right to know.

Ag87H2O said:

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What he needs to demand is more details about where Talarico has been. Candidates for high public office don't go missing for two weeks during the stretch run of a campaign. Voters have a right to know.

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Its funny you think Democrats care about what the votes need to know.

flown-the-coop said:

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Tramp96 said:

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If he had had the flu, they would have led with that 10 days ago.

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Did he not claim the flu in the now debated Sept 30th video (where he may have been in NY)?

Its a pretty big mess which tells folks its not the flu.

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Yep, he did. Anyone can view that appearance on C-Span:

https://www.c-span.org/program/campaign-2026/us-senate-candidate-james-talarico-d-tx-speaks-at-hispanic-business-council/685938

In that video he sounds congested, looks flushed, which is consistent with signs of the flu, and anyone can note the date. He also notes, in that livestream, that he is a Type-1 diabetic. From what I understand, diabetics are at increased risk for complications from flu, so maybe it's worse than his campaign is letting on?

oh no said:

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I think most people would just power through after a day or two with the flu

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True. But also remember he was somehow still wearing a mask in 2022 so his immune system probably is far below most normal people.

J. Walter Weatherman said:

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oh no said:

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I think most people would just power through after a day or two with the flu

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True. But also remember he was somehow still wearing a mask in 2022 so his immune system probably is far below most normal people.

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yes. it's like he has an Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome or something.

TAMU1990 said:

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My sources are telling me Talarico is in a mental health facility. His campaign has stopped actively planning events in the vital homestretch of the campaign.

If this is true, this is actually a time to pray for Talarico. We should, of course, savagely mock his smug, awful… https://t.co/H2VVSPeQlF

— Spencer Pratt (@spencerpratt) October 9, 2026

Wild - first definitive statement but it's from a Californian. He's connected but everyone else has been eluding to this.

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Hundred bucks says this is right.

These people know what's going on. They're not making public posts like this without knowing.

Something in this freakos private life, we can all probably guess, was about to be made public and he lost his mind.

He's clearly mentally ill and fragile anyway.

I'd bet my bottom dollar the guy is in a mental health facility.

There were signs pic.twitter.com/pTaPxZ7aWf

— The Drunk Republican (@DrunkRepub) October 9, 2026

Regardless of what's really going on, what Talarico's smug, awful advisors are doing is extremely unethical. Obviously, this is way more than "the flu". If you recall, these guys came to LA to take a bunch of money from wealthy Californians. It was one of my buddies who hosted… https://t.co/q8uKYNdU9f

— Spencer Pratt (@spencerpratt) October 9, 2026

That money is meant, in good faith, to help the candidate campaign. If your campaign then goes dark for 2 weeks, you owe your donors an explanation and peddling some bull**** like "oh he's just got the flu" is unacceptable. If your candidate is incapacitated...the ethical thing to do is to give back that donor money.

When I was campaigning, I was doing vitamin IV's, we had a full on supplement regime, I wouldn't even drink water out of plastic bottles...I owed it to my donors and my supporters to be firing on all cylinders, nonstop; you can't afford to have a down day, let alone a down week...or 2 weeks, now, in Talarico's case.

Unless they're pulling some bizarre viral PR stunt, and we're just waiting for the punchline...what these advisors are doing is despicable. It's bad enough if they drove their candidate into the ground, but this "damage control" radio silence is just wild. Incredible cowardice and incompetence on display here.

This "flu" thing is bull***** I have had the flu for the last week and a half. I was throwing up last week. I have been coughing so much my ribs hurt. I have fatigue. I have a runny nose (and my feet smell) and my head feels like an overripe watermelon. I have missed a grand total of about 9 hours of work. I have been on and led numerous teams calls for my projects. If I had people questioning my mental health and asking for proof of life, I would have no problem picking up a phone and facetiming a group or recording a video so let people hear my scratchy voice and lung butter cough.

The fact that for 10 days, he has not been able to pick up a phone and talk to anybody, to take a photo or record a video smiling and telling us he is ok tells me he is not ok. No matter how bad his Type 1 D makes the flu, he could do those things if he just had the flu. Ergo, it isn't just the flu. It is something else...like inpatient mental health treatment, where they take your phone away and isolate you from the outside world. His team is doing him and his mental health a disservice by lying about it.

Reagan was waving from his hospital window 8 days after being shot.

Barnyard96 said:

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Reagan was waving from his hospital window 8 days after being shot.

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he was real man that didn't have AIDS though.

Talafreako sighting

Right now, backstage at @aclfestival - @jamestalarico proof of life. Charli’s special guest? pic.twitter.com/xiu7Y2FjYm

— Andy Langer (@Andylanger) October 9, 2026

Mental break, not the flu.

So he cannot be seen or heard from for 13 days and then suddenly with no warning show up at ACL? And even his campaign doesn't know it?

They managed to make it worse.

He's back

Charpie said:

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He's back

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And the libs will say "nothing to see here"

Yesterday said:

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San Angelo and Old Mac have ghosted us the last few days.

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apologies, i've been recovering from the flu

Old McDonald said:

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Yesterday said:

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San Angelo and Old Mac have ghosted us the last few days.

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apologies, i've been recovering from the flu

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Perfectly normal explanation to a 14 day blackout.

AxelFoley85 said:

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Talafreako sighting

Right now, backstage at @aclfestival - @jamestalarico proof of life. Charli’s special guest? pic.twitter.com/xiu7Y2FjYm

— Andy Langer (@Andylanger) October 9, 2026

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ACL? Talk about fish out of water. Reminds me of caddyshack Judge Smails' wife telling the kids to "shake their booties".

Is that the only media?

Are there pics showing his face?

Mathguy64 said:

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So he cannot be seen or heard from for 13 days and then suddenly with no warning show up at ACL? And even his campaign doesn't know it?

They managed to make it worse.

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Not to mention, his campaign basically blamed him being sick on being out and meeting people, shaking hands, etc.

So after being off the trail for 13 days due to the flu, first thing he does is go back out in public and start shaking hands again?

LOL.

Old McDonald said:

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Yesterday said:

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San Angelo and Old Mac have ghosted us the last few days.

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apologies, i've been recovering from the flu

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Well played!

Bravo!!!

Dude didn’t lose a pound. 2 week flu my ass LMAO.

I smoked him out of hiding. https://t.co/IuGqDv1aZa

— Spencer Pratt (@spencerpratt) October 9, 2026

FTAG 2000 said:

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So after being off the trail for 13 days due to the flu, first thing he does is go back out in public and start shaking hands again?

LOL.

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why not? he has natural immunity now

Old McDonald said:

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FTAG 2000 said:

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So after being off the trail for 13 days due to the flu, first thing he does is go back out in public and start shaking hands again?

LOL.

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why not? he has natural immunity now

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I didn't think Biden and the Democrats believed in natural immunity.
They threatened to fire us if we didn't get the clot shot 3 months after covid.

Hides from public for 14 days due to the…wait for it…flu.

James Talarico, a real Texan.