An interview between late night TV host Stephen Colbert and Democratic Texas Senate candidate James Talarico went viral last week on YouTube after, according to Colbert, lawyers for CBS and its parent company told him not to air the interview as they were concerned with violating the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) “equal-time rule”.
[Note: Talarico’s campaign said it raised $2.5 million in the 24 hours after the interview was pulled.]
This week, another video of Talarico is going viral. As seen below, when the former school teacher and Presbyterian seminarian walked across the stage at Texas A&M University for a speaking engagement, the University of Texas graduate received a standing ovation from the packed audience.
You know things are bad in our country when this many Aggies come out to support a Longhorn for U.S. Senator.
Thank you to the students of Texas A&M University for joining our movement to take back Texas! pic.twitter.com/FPvfbL1RpJ
— James Talarico (@jamestalarico) February 25, 2026
Talarico wrote: “You know things are bad in our country when this many Aggies come out to support a Longhorn for U.S. Senator. Thank you to the students of Texas A&M University for joining our movement to take back Texas!”
[The competitive fire between the two venerable universities includes the Texas–Texas A&M football rivalry that dates from 1915, and is now marketed as the “Lone Star Showdown.”]
Several graduates from both schools are responding with awe. As one wrote: “That’s the kind of unity you can’t fake. Aggies don’t cheer for Longhorns lightly” and “Texas pride knows no rivalry! Honored to have Aggies joining Longhorns in this fight to restore our state’s values.”
Of course there are cynical comments including “At a university with 76K students it’s no big wonder than a few hundred to a thousand show up for a particular politician.”
Note: Talarico faces U.S. Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) in the Democratic primary on March 3. Crockett last appeared on Colbert’s show in May 2025, before she announced her candidacy in December, with the gap between their respective appearances fueling the “equal time” argument that hindered the airing of the Talarico interview.
Depending on the results of the Republican primary, the Democratic nominee will face either incumbent Republican John Cornyn (R-TX), Attorney General Ken Paxton, or Rep. Wesley Hunt in the general election.