Texas Sen.-elect James Talarico, the Democrat who won one of Tuesday night’s biggest upsets, went on Fox News Wednesday morning and gave President Donald Trump something few in his party have offered: credit on the border.
“Give the president credit where credit is due. He has done a better job than the previous administration in securing our border,” Talarico said on “America’s Newsroom,” according to video posted by Fox News and an account of the interview by Mediaite.
Democrat James Talarico heaps praise on President Trump for securing the border, giving him credit for doing a “better job” than the previous administration.
Wow.
He went on to say that he plans to WORK WITH Trump on several issues, including immigration and housing.
TALARICO:… pic.twitter.com/qQHb97An5q
— Overton (@overton_news) November 4, 2026
Talarico defeated Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in Tuesday’s Senate race, according to Fox News. He is the first Democrat elected to the Senate from Texas in decades, and his win was part of a night in which Democrats took control of both chambers of Congress. At the time Fox News published its Voter Poll analysis Wednesday, Democrats held a 54-seat Senate majority and had secured 228 House seats.
Credit on the border, and a push for “legal pathways”
Asked by anchor Bill Hemmer where he would work with the president, Talarico said immigration was one area, according to Mediaite. He paired his praise of Trump’s border record with a call to “create more legal pathways for hard working immigrants who want to come here and contribute to our economy,” Mediaite reported. He also described Trump as “a builder” and said he wanted to work with him on housing, according to the same report.
Fox News Digital reported that Talarico told “Fox & Friends” earlier Wednesday that he wants to work with Trump on immigration and housing, and that he supports suspending the federal gas and diesel taxes. He argued a gas tax suspension would offer quick relief at the pump while lawmakers work to end the Iran war and address energy costs, Fox News Digital reported.
Hemmer was not impressed with the fuel tax pitch as an answer on affordability. He cut in to say it would do little to help young Americans buy a house, calling it small potatoes compared with the housing problem, according to Mediaite’s account of the exchange.
Perino presses him on the campaign promises
Co-anchor Dana Perino asked whether Talarico would hold to the centrist, “common sense” positions he ran on, and whether he would disavow Democratic Socialists of America candidates who want to defund the police, end the filibuster, add states and pack the Supreme Court, Mediaite reported.
Talarico answered that voters should not simply trust what politicians say, according to Mediaite. When Perino asked whether that included him, he told viewers to judge him by his record in the Texas Legislature, Mediaite reported.
On whether he would back Democratic oversight hearings into the Trump administration, Talarico said he supports checks and balances between the branches of government but is not interested in retribution, according to Mediaite. He made the same point on “Fox & Friends,” saying Texans elected him to deliver results rather than political payback, Fox News Digital reported.
Why it matters
Talarico’s comments are notable because border security remained one of the few issues where Republicans kept their edge. The Fox News Voter Poll found Republicans held their advantage with voters who said immigration was crucial to their vote, even as Democrats were favored on corruption, costs and the Iran war.
A newly elected Democratic senator from a border state conceding on national television that Trump’s border policy outperformed the previous administration is a point conservatives are likely to hold him to when the new Senate takes up immigration. Whether his promise to work across the aisle survives pressure from his own party’s left wing is the question Perino raised, and one Talarico answered only by asking voters to watch his record.
Sources
- Fox News on X: Talarico interview clip
- Fox News Video: America’s Newsroom interview
- Mediaite: Hemmer and Perino grill Talarico
- Fox News Digital live updates
- Fox News Voter Poll analysis
Sources cited
Sources
- Original post: Overton (@overton_news) on X, Nov 4, 2026
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