BONUS: Rep. James Talarico

Summary

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The Late Show Pod Show with Stephen Colbert

Episode Title: BONUS: Rep. James Talarico
Date: February 17, 2026
Guest: Texas State Representative James Talarico

Overview

This special bonus episode features Stephen Colbert in conversation with Texas State Representative and U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico. The episode confronts the chilling effects of the FCC’s possible change to the Equal Time Rule, corporate and partisan threats to free speech, religion and politics in Texas, a brewing Senate race, viral internet rumors, and the ever-absurd “furries in schools” hoax. Notably, this conversation was forced off broadcast television and onto YouTube due to new legal pressures, which Colbert openly mocks and critiques throughout.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. FCC, Equal Time Rule, and Media Suppression

• FCC Crackdown: Colbert opens with an explanation of why Rep. Talarico couldn’t appear on the broadcast. Lawyers cited the Equal Time Rule, restricting candidate appearances—rules being newly and selectively enforced as the FCC mulls dropping longstanding talk show exceptions ([00:05]–[03:36]).
• Colbert’s Satirical Take:
  • He jokes, “Let’s just call this what it is. Donald Trump’s administration wants to silence anyone who says anything bad about Trump on TV because all Trump does is watch TV, okay? He’s like a toddler with too much screen time.” ([01:45])
  • Critiques FCC Chairman Brendan Carr: “You smelt it. Cause you dealt it. You are Dutch ovening America’s airwaves.” ([01:28])
  • Responds to Carr’s suggestion to leave broadcast TV for cable or streaming: “Great idea, man. Whose job is to regulate broadcast tv? Suggest everyone just leave broadcast tv.” ([02:38])

2. The Interview: Flipping Texas & First Amendment Threats

• On Political Motivation:

  • Talarico claims, “Donald Trump is worried that we’re about to flip Texas. And…this is the party that ran against cancel culture. And now they’re trying to control what we watch, what we say, what we read. And this is the most dangerous kind of cancel culture…” ([07:24])
  • Colbert’s “fact check” that CBS claims cancellation is a "purely financial decision" ([08:30]).

• Why Texas Could Flip:

  • Talarico details grassroots movement: “We’ve recruited 14,000 volunteers…shattered grassroots fundraising records, all without taking a dime from corporate PACs.” ([09:08])
  • He adds: “I can’t tell you the number of people who come up to me at the end of these events and whisper, ‘I’m not a Democrat,’ like it’s some kind of secret.” ([09:18])

3. Religion, the Religious Right, and Policy

• Talarico’s Faith Perspective:

  • Currently a Presbyterian seminarian, he distinguishes faith from politics:
    • “They [the religious right] convinced a lot of our fellow Christians that the most important issues were abortion and gay marriage, two issues that aren’t mentioned in the Bible. Two issues that Jesus never talked about … Jesus… tells us exactly…how we’re going to be judged: by feeding the hungry, by healing the sick, by welcoming the stranger.” ([11:07])
    • “Don’t tell me what you believe. Show me how you treat other people and I’ll tell you what you believe.” ([11:32])
    • “When the church gets too cozy with political power, it loses its prophetic voice.” ([13:06])

• Separation of Church and State:

  • On bills requiring the Ten Commandments in schools:
    • “Forcing our religion down their throats is not love…when the church gets too cozy with political power, it loses its prophetic voice…” ([13:06])
    • “There is nothing Christian about Christian nationalism. It is the worship of power in the name of Christ, and it is a betrayal of Jesus of Nazareth.” ([13:42])
  • Colbert concurs: “How must it diminish God to be associated with something so small as a present political party?” ([15:17])

4. Online Rumors, Misinformation, and Handling Smears

• Viral Accusations:
  • Colbert asks about a viral accusation that Talarico made a racist sexist remark regarding a rival’s campaign: “You denied that you ever said that” ([16:42])
  • Talarico: “We know that misinformation spreads on the Internet…it’s sometimes like a game of telephone. I did critique Colin Allred’s campaigning as mediocre, but I would never attack him on the basis of race…” ([16:59])
  • He underscores the greater imperative: “I’m trying to get us all to keep our eyes on the prize, which is remembering we’re on the same team and getting out there doing the organizing work so that we can win in November.” ([17:59])

5. Legislative Absurdities: “Furries in Schools” Hoax

• Talarico describes his role debunking a Republican-propagated hoax that Texas schools were installing litter boxes for students identifying as cats:
  • “When I ran for public office, I never thought I’d be talking about furries in this job.” ([18:43])
  • “I just asked him a pretty simple question. Has there been a single documented case of a school providing a litter box to students? And he couldn’t name one.” ([19:37])
  • “They want us talking about furries and bathrooms so we don’t realize…they are picking our pockets…The culture wars are a smokescreen because the real fight in this country is not left versus right. It’s top versus bottom.” ([19:44])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Colbert on Legal Absurdity/FCC:
  • “I’m absolutely not allowed to show a photo of Texas State Representative James Talarico. That’s not him. That’s a stock photo we found when we Googled. Not James Talarico… I’m not even allowed to show you a drawing of him.” ([05:04])
• Talarico on Christianity and Politics:
  • “Christianity is a simple religion. Not an easy religion…but a simple religion. Because Jesus gave us two commandments: love God and love neighbor. And there was no exception to that second commandment, love thy neighbor, regardless of race or gender or sexual orientation or immigration status or religious affiliation.” ([11:32])
• On Church and State:
  • “When the church gets too cozy with political power, it loses its prophetic voice…This separation between church and state is something we have to safeguard.” ([13:06])
• Colbert on Religio-Political Cynicism:
  • “Imagine if you managed to convince everybody that Jesus was on your side. If you then lose the election. Sounds like you’ve got a pretty weak Jesus.” ([15:17])
• Talarico on Culture Wars:
  • “The culture wars are a smokescreen because the real fight in this country is not left versus right. It’s top versus bottom.” ([19:44])

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Timeline of Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | |:---|:---| | 00:05 | Colbert explains FCC/Equal Time Rule censorship | | 02:38 | Jimmy Kimmel faux-interview, Colbert mocks FCC advice | | 03:32 | Transition to YouTube interview with Talarico | | 07:24 | Talarico discusses First Amendment and party hypocrisy | | 09:08 | “Why Texas Might Flip” — grassroots organizing details | | 10:32 | Talarico discusses his faith and progressive Christianity | | 12:49 | On separation of church/state, Ten Commandments in schools | | 16:42 | Addressing online rumors about Allred | | 18:37 | Legislative absurdities—“furries in schools” hoax | | 20:37 | Closing remarks; Colbert thanks Talarico for his online-only appearance |

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Tone & Style

The episode balances sharp satire with earnest analysis. Colbert’s witty, irreverent tone exposes the absurdity of legal restrictions and political censorship, while Talarico’s answers blend sincere faith-based argument with a calm, policy-oriented approach. The discussion is timely, candid, and lively, offering both humor and substance whether or not you’re following Texas politics.

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Transcript

[Stephen Colbert]

You know who is not one of my guests tonight? That's Texas State Representative James Tallarico. He was supposed to be here, but we were told in no uncertain terms by our network's lawyers who called us directly that we could not have him on the broadcast. Then. Then I was told in some uncertain terms that not only could I not have him on, I could not mention me not having him on. And because my network clearly doesn't want us to talk about this. Let's talk about this. You've probably heard, so you might have heard of this thing called the Equal Time Rule, okay? It's an old FCC rule that applies only to radio and broadcast television, not cable or streaming, that says if a show has a candidate on during an election, they have to have all that candidate's opponents on as well. And it's the FCC's most time honored rule right after no nipples at the Super Bowl. There's long been an exception for this rule. An exception for news interviews and talk show interviews with politicians. Now that's crucial. How else were voters supposed to know back in 92 that Bill Clinton sucked at saxophone? But on January 21st of this year, a letter was released by FCC chairman and smug bowling pin Brendan Carr. In this letter, Carr said he was thinking about dropping the exception for talk shows because he said some of them were motivated by partisan purposes. Well, sir, you're chairman of the fcc, so fccu, because I think simple. Because I think you are motivated by partisan purposes yourself, sir. You smelt it. Cause you dealt it. You are Dutch ovening America's airwaves. Let's just call this what it is. Donald Trump's administration wants to silence anyone who says anything bad about Trump on TV because all Trump does is watch tv, okay? He's like a toddler with too much screen time. He gets cranky and then drops a load in his diapers. So it's no surprise, it's no surprise that two of the people most affected by this threat are me and my friend Jimmy Kimmel. When this letter dropped, we both talked about the letter on air. And then later, Carr defended it like this.

[Jimmy Kimmel]

If Kimmel or Colbert want to continue to do their programming and they don't want to have to comply with this requirement, then they can go to a cable channel or a podcast or a streaming service and that's fine.

[Stephen Colbert]

Great idea, man. Whose job is to regulate broadcast tv? Suggest everyone just leave broadcast tv. It's like when Arby's changed their slogan to Arby's. Would it kill you to Eat a salad. Anyway. Anyway, am I being clear? Have I been clear so far?

[Jimmy Kimmel]

Yes, indeed.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay, this one up super important. Okay. Anyway, I decided to take Brendan Carr's advice. I am going to interview James Tallerico tonight, but it's not gonna be on the Late Show. It's gonna be on The Late Show's YouTube page. The network says I can't give you URL or a QR code, but I promise you, if you go to our YouTube page, you'll find it.

[James Talarico]

Now what?

[Stephen Colbert]

After the show.

[James Talarico]

Right.

[Stephen Colbert]

Little later. Okay, now Carr here claims he's just getting partisanship off the airwaves, but the fcc, as I said, is also in charge of regulating radio broadcasts. And what would you know? Brendan Carr says right wing talk radio isn't a target of the FCC's equal time notice. No, no, I get this part. It makes sen. If you can't get rid of talk radio, what else would your angriest uncle do in traffic? Talk to your saddest aunt. Now, as I said, at this point, he's just released a letter that says he's thinking about doing away with the exception for late night. He hasn't done away with it yet, but my network is unilaterally enforcing it as if he had. But I want to assure you, Ladies and gentlemen, please. I want to assure you this decision is for purely financial reasons. And this doesn't just affect interviews. The rules forbid any candidate appearance, including by voice or picture. That's right. I am absolutely not allowed to show a photo of Texas State Representative James Talaricoz. That's not him. That's a stock photo we found when we Googled. Not James Talarico. Heck, I'm not even. And this is true, I'm not even allowed to show you a drawing of him.

[James Talarico]

Okay.

[Stephen Colbert]

Which is why I cannot show you what I'm drawing out of fear that James Talarico looks like Snoopy. Okay? Woo. Cheap high. Carr is not joking around here, folks. He is serious. He is as serious as the season cliffhanger of Matlock. Matlock. Watch it or don't watch it. I leave in May because a couple weeks ago. She's great. Kathy's great, though. You should watch. Kathy's fantastic. Okay? Because a couple of weeks ago, on Carr's orders, the FCC opened an investigation into ABC's the View after their James Talarico interview. That is absolutely shocking. James Tallarico did the View before my show at Tu Whoope. So I cannot show you any form of James Talarico. I can't interview James Talarico. I can't show any pictures of James Talarico. I'm not even sure I can say the words James Talarico. What I can show you is what we always show when we have to pull material at the last minute, this tasteful nude of Brendan Carr. We'll be right back.

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Coming up, Texas State Representative James Talarico.

[Stephen Colbert]

Ladies and gentlemen. Joining me now is a representative in the Texas who is currently running for the United States Senate. Please welcome to The Late Show YouTube page. Representative James Tallarico. Here's the thing. I don't usually say this to a guest, but if people are watching this right now, it's because they found us online on YouTube. I did an act of the show that's on tonight explaining why it's not the first time you've caused some drama. FCC opening probe into the View after appearance by Tallarico. Do you mean to cause trouble?

[James Talarico]

I think that Donald Trump is worried that we're about to flip Texas. And Stephen, this, this is the party that ran against cancel culture. And now they're trying to control what we watch, what we say, what we read. And this is the most dangerous kind of cancel culture, the kind that comes from the top. They, they went after the View because I went on there. They went after Jimmy Kimmel for telling a joke they didn't like. They went after you for telling the truth about Paramount's bribe to Donald Trump. Corporate, corporate, corporate media executives are selling out the First Amendment to curry favor with corrupt politicians. And a threat to any of our First Amendment rights is a threat to all of our First Amendment rights. So I'm just to fact check you.

[Stephen Colbert]

To fact check you. My network said our cancellation was a purely financial decision.

[James Talarico]

Got it. Got it. Yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

And I remain very grateful for the last 11 years. Now, you grew up in Texas. There you are.

[James Talarico]

I did.

[Stephen Colbert]

There you are. You can prove it. They give you the adult boots as a child and you're supposed to just grow into them. I understand.

[James Talarico]

That's right. That's right.

[Stephen Colbert]

You served in the Texas House and now you're running for Senate. The race, frankly, should not be as interesting as it is. Donald Trump won Texas by 14%. Why do you think this year Texas is considered a possibility by Democrats?

[James Talarico]

Well, I'm an 8th generation Texan. My family has been in our state since it was Mexico. And across.

[Stephen Colbert]

So you're gonna get deported is what you're saying.

[James Talarico]

Across the state, there is a backlash growing to the extremism and the corruption in our Politics. And I have traveled every corner of Texas already, from El Paso to Beaumont, from Amarillo to Brownsville, and we've had thousands of Texans showing up to rally with us. And I can't tell you the number of people who come up to me at the end of these events and whisper, I'm not a Democrat, like it's some kind of secret. And we've recruited 14,000 volunteers who are out there doing the work all over our state. We have, this is one of the most exciting parts. We have shattered grassroots fundraising records, all without taking a dime from corporate PACs. And so this is, this is really, it's a people powered movement to take back our state and take back our country. And I feel like we're building something really special in Texas. And clearly Donald Trump has taken note.

[Stephen Colbert]

Now, one of the things, one of the things that's come up in some of the conversations you've had on the Texas State House floor, which some of the videos I've seen you do, and one of the things that's gotten you attention out there is that you are a Presbyterian seminarian presently.

[James Talarico]

Yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

You're a seminarian. Okay. Okay. The right attempts to co opt Christianity to say that, you know, you can't believe in God. You can't believe in God. I think Donald Trump might have said something like that at the National Prayer Breakfast. Like you can't actually be a Christian and be a Democrat. But the religious right is, it's largely a political movement that references spirituality, but it's a political. What do you, what is your, what is your heartfelt hand out to the people who want to use religion as a tool of political power?

[James Talarico]

Well, for 50 years, the religious right, a political movement that is the perfect description for it. They convinced a lot of our fellow Christians that the most important issues were abortion and gay marriage, two issues that aren't mentioned in the Bible. Two issues that Jesus never talked about. Jesus in Matthew 25 tells us exactly how you and I and every one of our fellow believers, how we're going to be judged and how we're going to be saved by feeding the hungry, by healing the sick, by welcoming the stranger. Nothing about going to church, nothing about voting Republican. It was all about how you treat other people. Don't, don't. I've said before, don't tell me what you believe. Show me how you treat other people and I'll tell you what you believe. And I think in our faith, we've got to get back to those. My granddad was a Baptist preacher in South Texas. And when I was little, he told me that Christianity is a simple religion. Not an easy religion, he would always clarify, but a simple religion. Because Jesus gave us two commandments, love God and love neighbor. And there was no exception to that second commandment, love thy neighbor, regardless of race or gender or sexual orientation or immigration status or religious affiliation. And it's why I have fought so hard for the separation of church and state in the state capitol in Texas. Because.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, I want to. I want to ask you about that.

[James Talarico]

Yeah, please.

[Stephen Colbert]

Because you did, as a. As a state rep, you fought against the. A bill requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in schools.

[James Talarico]

That's right.

[Stephen Colbert]

Why, even on that level, do you think it's important to keep the separation not just for the state, but for the church?

[James Talarico]

Well, because we are called to love all of our neighbors, including our Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, agnostic, atheist neighbors. And forcing our religion down their throats is not love. And it's why I have fought. It's why I fought so hard for that sacred separation in our First Amendment. Because my granddad, he raised me to believe that that boundary between church and state doesn't just benefit the state or our democracy, although it certainly does, but it also benefits the church, because when the church gets too cozy with political power, it loses its prophetic voice, its ability to speak truth to power, its ability to imagine a completely different world. And so this separation between church and state is something we have to safeguard. It's something we have to fight for. And I think we need someone in the US Senate who is going to confront Christian nationalism and say. And tell the truth, which is that there is nothing Christian about Christian nationalism. It is the. It is. It is the worship. It is the worship of power in the name of Christ, and it is a betrayal of Jesus of Nazareth. And I just want to thank you, Stephen, because I know you're not a politician, but you have really shown people in this country what Christianity should be and what it means to actually live out the teachings of Jesus, even in a talk show.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, I'm going to push back a little bit on that. That's very nice of you to say. I would never lay that compliment to myself because I think I fall far short of what my standards would be. But I will agree with you on this. I think that it is bad for certainly my church or any religious organization to associate themselves from a political party. How must it diminish God to be associated with something so small as a present political party?

[James Talarico]

That's right.

[Stephen Colbert]

Because Imagine this. Imagine that you manage to co op Christianity. Imagine if you managed to convince everybody that Jesus was on your side. If you then lose the election. Sounds like you've got a pretty weak Jesus.

[James Talarico]

Yeah, that's exactly right. And that's the key, is you don't want to fit the big thing into the small thing, and God is the biggest thing there is. And so to try to fit God into a political party, whether it's the Republican Party or the Democratic Party, you've got it reversed. And so it's why I think we have to remember to put those big things first, to put the love of God and the love for our neighbors before anything else. Because right now, what you've got is people baptizing their partisanship and calling that Christianity, when in reality, your politics should grow out of your faith, not the other way around.

[Jimmy Kimmel]

Now.

[Stephen Colbert]

There'S been some attention on your race in recent weeks after a tiktoker that you met in person says that you privately said to them, and I want to get this, quote, tribute to you, right. This person says, you said, I signed up originally to run against a mediocre black man, not a formidable and intelligent black woman, supposedly in reference to Colin Allred being the black man. And you've denied this.

[James Talarico]

Yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay. You denied that you ever said that.

[James Talarico]

That's correct. Okay.

[Stephen Colbert]

Allred continues to talk about it even though he's no longer running for the Senate.

[James Talarico]

Correct. Right.

[Stephen Colbert]

So where does that stand? How do you, as someone who. This person says this about you, you say didn't happen. How do you imagine this gets adjudicated? And what would you like to say to people?

[James Talarico]

Yeah, I mean, we know that misinformation spreads on the Internet and it's sometimes like a game of telephone. As I said in my statement, I did critique Colin Allred's campaigning as mediocre, but I would never attack him on the basis of race. I respect Colin Allred deeply. Even though we have disagreements on the best way to campaign and the best way to win Texas, my job in this moment is to try to lower the temperature, is to try to remind us that we are all on the same team trying to change the politics of our state and change the politics of our country, because we are seeing the consequences of losing elections as we speak. And we have a moral imperative to win in November in Texas and to win across this country, because that's how we're going to get things back on track. And so I know things get tense in a primary. I know stuff flies around on The Internet. I understand that, but I'm trying to get us all to keep our eyes on the prize, which is remembering we're on the same team and getting out there doing the organizing work so that we can win in November.

[Stephen Colbert]

Have you spoken to Colin already?

[James Talarico]

I have. I call. You know, I called him after all this stuff came out and everything started to blow up. Just to reiterate what I said in my statement that I do respect him.

[Stephen Colbert]

And how did the conversation go?

[James Talarico]

You know, I don't want to reveal anything in a private conversation, but I hope that he and I walked away with a better understanding of each other.

[Stephen Colbert]

Now you're serving in Texas House of Representatives. You've had your fair share of strange days. I understand you had to weigh in on legislation about, and I hope I'm reading this correctly, furries.

[James Talarico]

I did.

[Stephen Colbert]

Now I know what furries are. And is that the same furries that I do not use my work computer to search for?

[James Talarico]

That's right, yeah. When I ran for public office, I never thought I'd be talking about furries in this job. But my Republican colleagues in the state legislature, they were promoting an Internet hoax that Texas public school students were identifying as cats.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes, I heard the story.

[James Talarico]

And that the schools were providing litter boxes to those students. I know, I know.

[Stephen Colbert]

My understanding is not just Texas, it's everywhere in the United States.

[James Talarico]

It's an epidemic.

[Stephen Colbert]

Biden. Biden signed a law that had to happen.

[James Talarico]

Yes. Forcing litter boxes in every classroom. Yes. Anyway, they decided to write a bill to combat this completely made up problem. And it fell to me, as a member of the Public Education Committee, to question the author of that bill. And so I just asked him a pretty simple question. Has there been a single documented case of a school providing a litter box to students? And he couldn't name one. And this video went everywhere. You can look it up online.

[Stephen Colbert]

So the law was working.

[James Talarico]

Yes, that's right. That's exactly right. He actually kind of said something similar to that. His response was that this law is to prevent that from ever happening. Oh, I see. Which I guess is true. But anyway, there is a point to this craziness. They want us talking about furries and bathrooms. So we don't realize that they are picking our pockets, that they are closing our schools, they are gutting our health care, and they are raising taxes on all of us while they cut taxes for their billionaire donors. The culture wars are a smokescreen because the real fight in this country is not left versus right. It's top versus bottom. Thank you, sir.

[Stephen Colbert]

Thanks so much for being here. And thanks for being the first guest to ever appear only on YouTube.

[James Talarico]

I'm honored. I'm honored. Thank you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Representative James Tallarico, everybody. Thank you for listening to the late show pod show with Stephen Colbert. Just one more thing. If you want to see more of me, come to The Late Show YouTub YouTube channel for more clips and exclusives.

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