President Donald Trump recently handed Democratic nominee James Talarico a major lifeline in the Texas Senate race after an unexpected post from Air Force One. While flying back to Washington, the President suggested that Talarico, who has been sidelined by the flu, should immediately report to a debate stage to face off with Republican opponent Ken Paxton. This public nudge from the President arrived just after Paxton mocked Talarico for his absence during a rally in San Antonio on Wednesday. Talarico has been pushing for a debate for months and jumped on the opportunity on Thursday morning, clearly happy to have the President on his side regarding the face-off. He posted, “President Trump just said Ken Paxton should debate. I agree,” and followed it up with, “Ball’s in your court @KenPaxtonTX.” Paxton has not yet responded to the President’s demand, and as of now, no debates have been scheduled. The campaign atmosphere has been pretty intense, and some Republicans are getting nervous that Paxton could become the first member of his party to lose a Senate race in Texas in nearly four decades. Because the state usually leans Republican, this race is proving to be surprisingly competitive. Instead of debating, Paxton has focused heavily on Talarico’s recent absence from the trail Paxton’s campaign even went as far as to demand video proof that his opponent was still alive. Madison Cercy, a spokeswoman for the Paxton campaign, stated, “Low-T Jimmy appears to be having a full-blown mental Tala-freak-out on the national stage. We have a simple request: proof of life.” I challenged Ken Paxton to a debate 85 days ago, but no one has heard from him.People are getting worried.I’ve received credible reports he's suffering from a rare condition that causes clinical levels of cowardice.@KenPaxtonTX: I am asking for proof of ability to debate.— James Talarico (@jamestalarico) October 10, 2026 Talarico has been trying to get Paxton in front of a camera for a long time. Back in July, he publicly challenged his opponent to three televised debates. He even tried to set one up on Fox News last month, going so far as to record a video of himself leaving a voicemail for Paxton. In that message, Talarico said, “Hey Ken, it’s James.” He continued, “Texans start voting in less than a month and they deserve to hear from both of us before they do.” He concluded the message by saying, “So, if Fox News is where you’ll be most comfortable, I’ll be there.” The candidates have not appeared together in front of voters at all during this cycle. The campaign has been dominated by massive advertising spending, with both sides and outside groups shelling out more than $247 million on airwaves, according to AdImpact. Paxton did claim back in July that he would participate in a debate, but his team later raised objections to the suggested moderators. While his campaign hinted that an agreement with a news outlet was coming later that month, nothing ever materialized. Despite the current stalemate, Talarico is expected to get back on the campaign trail this weekend and will likely remain active through the November 3 election.