Last Wednesday, I went to see James Talarico host a political rally at Baylor University, where I am a student. Talarico was given this opportunity to show Baylor’s commitment to civil discourse after Ken Paxton filled in for Donald Trump Jr. at a political event hosted by the Turning Point USA at Baylor last April.
Although both U.S. Senate candidates from Texas were invited to speak at Baylor this month, Paxton declined to return.
Caroline Cook
The event may have been a political rally, but students, faculty and staff were given priority to attend. That didn’t stop Baylor alumni and fellow Waco residents from also grabbing tickets.
As I stood in the Hurd Welcome Center’s ballroom and looked out over the sea of fellow rallygoers, I was amazed at the turnout. More than 1,000 people RSVP’d for the event. And the vast majority of them showed up.
When Talarico came to the stage, he started with a promise to “sic’em” during photo-ops, then got down to business.
His comments focused on the attempted censorship and “cancel culture” surrounding his recent interview with Jimmy Kimmel, as well as the attacks from AI ads on social media and in auto-texts. He highlighted party divisions, current economic hardships and the billionaires and politicians he said contribute to the problem.
Above all else, he spoke about how victory in this campaign was assured because voters are going to come together to make it happen. That’s what Republicans and their dark money supporters are most scared of, he said. “You should believe that we can make history. We can make history for you, and you should believe that our movement can beat their money because they sure do.”
James Talarico at Baylor University (BNG photo by Caroline Cook)
Before Talarico spoke, we heard from Cecy Jimenez, event coordinator for the Talarico campaign. She was responsible for hyping up the crowd and getting them into the spirit of the campaign.
“The way we are actually going to take back Texas is building community,” she said.
Jimenez highlighted the “Love Thy Neighbor” food drive the Talarico campaign put on last week and said 1,000 pounds of food was collected in Waco alone.
Hannah Al-Hayek, president of the Baylor chapter of College Democrats, spoke about how College Democrats are now thriving at Baylor as opposed to when she first joined the club four years ago. “I see many of my peers who feel uninterested or unhopeful and honestly believe politics can never serve people like them,” she said. “My friends have found hope in Talarico’s message.”
Along with the dozens of volunteers working the rally, security and other event personnel made sure photo ops, merchandise sales and media coverage of the event went smoothly. The security and event space were paid for by Talarico’s campaign fund.
Caroline Cook is a sophomore at Baylor University and served this summer as a BNG Clemons Fellow.