But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check
James Talarico
Talarico, in August 2026: "I would not vote to send weapons to the Netanyahu government," with all military aid "conditioned on ending the death and the destruction in Gaza and the West Bank." His platform would stop offensive weapons sales to that government and prevent U.S. funds from harming civilians.
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You asked James Talarico where they stand.
Deep Dive
Talarico, an Austin-area state representative and seminarian, beat Rep. Jasmine Crockett in the March 2026 Democratic Senate primary. His position is stated, restated, and framed in his own moral vocabulary.
On the aid, his January 2026 foreign-policy platform pledges to stop "offensive weapons sales to the Netanyahu government" while "supporting defensive systems like the Iron Dome alongside agreements that American funds will not be used to harm civilians", and says America must "prevent any U.S. funds from being used to harm civilians." At a December 2025 Houston town hall he said "I will not use your tax dollars to fund these war crimes" and "I refuse to be complicit in the death and destruction in Gaza". In an August 2026 Breakfast Club interview, as reported by Jewish Insider: "I would not vote to send weapons to the Netanyahu government," and aid "needs to be conditioned on ending the death and the destruction in Gaza and the West Bank." His platform separates the government from the country: it says Netanyahu "does not have the right to bomb civilians, restrict aid, or use forced famine and collective punishment as tactics" while "Israel has the right to defend its people" and October 7 was "the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust."
Asked whether Gaza is a genocide, he deferred to the International Court of Justice, saying there is "certainly evidence to bring those charges" and the U.S. should "abide by whatever ruling that the court comes to." On AIPAC he said in the same interview that "The influence of AIPAC in our elections has a chilling effect"; he has pledged to take no AIPAC money, a funding-refusal stance separate from his stated weapons position.
In May 2026 his campaign said he would not campaign with Maureen Galindo, a Democratic House candidate in the San Antonio area whose remarks included a call for "prison for American Zionists". He told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency: "This antisemitic rhetoric has no place in our politics."
The record
• October 2023: Voted for Texas H.R. 10 (88th Legislature, 3rd Called Session), 'Reaffirming Texas' support for Israel and recognizing Israel's right to defend its citizens,' adopted 147-0 (passed/enrolled Oct. 9, 2023); per Jewish Insider the resolution backed the government of Israel's right to 'act decisively and unilaterally in self-defense' and called for the U.S. to 'provide all assistance as may be required to support Israel in its defense against Hamas and all other terrorist organizations.'
• September 2025: At his campaign launch, declined to take a position on Sen. Bernie Sanders' resolutions seeking to block U.S. military aid to the government of Israel, saying he was unfamiliar with the measures, and declined to characterize the government of Israel's conduct in Gaza as genocide in a HuffPost interview.
• December 2025: At a Houston town hall, pledged to vote to ban offensive weapons to the government of Israel, to use U.S. financial and diplomatic leverage to end 'the atrocities in Palestine,' and to refuse AIPAC support; several Houston-area Jewish Democratic leaders publicly criticized the remarks, and his campaign manager responded that Talarico supports 'Israel's right to exist' and that his criticism targets 'Prime Minister Netanyahu's unacceptable actions.'
• January 8, 2026: At a town hall in the New Braunfels area, told a capacity crowd he'll work to ban the sale of offensive military weapons to the government of Israel if elected, while affirming 'Israel has a right to exist and has a right to defend itself.'
• January 2026: Per JTA, sent an email to Jewish supporters in Texas promising that if elected he will vote for arming the government of Israel with defensive weapons, supporting a two-state solution and removing Hamas from power, and calling Oct. 7 'the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.'
• 2025-2026: Disavowed AIPAC (and, per Jewish Insider, J Street), pledging not to accept support from advocacy groups associated with either side of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Jewish Insider reported in January 2026 that he had attended an AIPAC event in late 2019 alongside a major donor; his campaign pointed to 'his record, his extensive public comments, and the issues page on his website.'
How this mark works
We track key votes on sending U.S. weapons and money to the government of Israel. A check means every tracked vote they cast came down against sending more, on the side of peace and de-escalation. A question mark means a mixed record: they sided with sending up to half of the time. An X means they voted to send more weapons and money in over half of their tracked votes, even as the way those weapons and dollars were being used became more and more obvious. At exactly half, money this election cycle from a lobbying group we track, or an endorsement from a group that backs sending weapons, makes it an X. Only votes actually cast are counted. Where a candidate has no recorded votes on these bills, the mark comes instead from a reviewed reading of their public record (money from the lobbying groups we track, endorsements, and their own words since January 26, 2024). There an X also covers fully backing the conduct of the war by the government of Israel without significant reservations, and a question mark also covers speaking about Israel without saying clearly where they stand on U.S. weapons and funding. A dash means No Position Found: we found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.
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In his own words he would not vote to send weapons to the Netanyahu government, and all military aid must be conditioned on ending the death and destruction in Gaza and the West Bank (August 2026). Reviewed by hand on 2026-09-28. This candidate has no recorded tracked floor votes.
The money
Checked the five lobbying groups we track; no direct support found in any cycle they have filed
In their words
Peace Action (2026 endorsement)
Research log
The notes behind this card: what we looked at, what we found, and where each item came from.
U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel
- [Position, 2026-08-09] Breakfast Club interview via Jewish Insider, read and verified verbatim: "I would not vote to send weapons to the Netanyahu government"; "I think all of that needs to be conditioned on ending the death and the destruction in Gaza and the West Bank."
- [Position, 2026-01-02] Campaign foreign-policy platform: "Protect innocent life by stopping offensive weapons sales to the Netanyahu government while supporting defensive systems like the Iron Dome alongside agreements that American funds will not be used to harm civilians"; "America must lead with moral clarity and prevent any U.S. funds from being used to harm civilians." (Page dated January 2, 2026, updated January 11, 2026; read again 2026-09-25.)
- [Position, 2025-12, reported 2025-12-22] At a Houston town hall the week before, as reported by Jewish Insider: "I will use every bit of financial and diplomatic leverage that this country has to end the atrocities in Palestine"; "I will not use your tax dollars to fund these war crimes. I will vote to ban offensive weapons to Israel."; "I refuse to be complicit in the death and destruction in Gaza, and I will never use your tax dollars to support the killing in that part of the world". A video of statements calling for a ban on offensive weapons sales (YouTube) has not been watched.
U.S. aid to Palestinians
- [Position, 2026-01-02] His platform says Netanyahu "does not have the right to bomb civilians, restrict aid, or use forced famine and collective punishment as tactics". At a January 8, 2026 town hall he said Netanyahu "does not have the right to use famine or collective punishment as tactics in that war" (San Antonio Current). He opposes the government of Israel restricting aid; no pledge on U.S. funding for Palestinians was located.
Characterization of the conflict
- [Position, 2026-08-09] Genocide question deferred to the ICJ (JI, verified): "certainly evidence to bring those charges"; the U.S. should "abide by whatever ruling that the court comes to" (a Mediaite report on the exchange could not be opened).
- [Position, 2025-12, reported] "God screaming at us in Gaza right now"; Americans "all complicit in it"; "atrocities" and "war crimes" characterizations.
- [Position, 2026-01-08] At a New Braunfels-area town hall (San Antonio Current): "You can be a friend to Israel, but being a friend means holding your friend accountable" and "Israel has a right to exist and has a right to defend itself". His platform says October 7th was "the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust" and "Israel has the right to defend its people."
Related rhetoric and lobbying
- [Position, 2025-12, reported] Pledged to accept no AIPAC endorsements or funding (PBIPS Facebook video, which we have not watched). Money-refusal pledge; never read as his weapons position, which he states separately.
- [Position, 2026-08-09] AIPAC "chilling effect" span (JI, verified): "...people don't feel like they can speak their minds because they're worried AIPAC is going to drop hundreds of millions of dollars of money in their race" (Jewish Insider prints the full span; re-read 2026-09-24).
- [Position, 2026-02-23] Race context: won the March primary (Ballotpedia); a Reddit thread on his platform is a discussion thread, unused).
Safety and antisemitism (context)
- [Position, 2026-05-16] His campaign said he would not campaign with Maureen Galindo, a House candidate in the San Antonio-area 35th District whose remarks included a call for "a prison for American Zionists and former ICE officers", if she won her May 26 runoff. In a statement to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency he said: "This antisemitic rhetoric has no place in our politics. We need leadership in both parties willing to stand up and call out hate wherever it rears its ugly head" (Times of Israel; TPR prints the same two sentences with "Talarico said" between them).
- [Position, 2026-01-02] His platform: "My north star will always be to protect innocent life."
- [Position, 2025-10, reported 2025-12-22] On the second anniversary of the October 7 attack, as quoted by Jewish Insider: "Every person on this Earth — no matter their color or creed — bears the image of the sacred. I continue to pray for the safe return of the hostages, an immediate end to the suffering in Gaza, and a lasting peace in the region"; he also said Hamas’ "war crimes should never be forgotten."
Also in this race
- ✗Supports Ken Paxton (Republican)
- –No Position Found Jade Simmons (write-in) (Independent)
- ✓Opposes Ted Brown (Libertarian)
All Texas candidates.
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