Talarico-Musk feud heats up in Texas Senate race
The gist
Tesla CEO Elon Musk posted that "there is something deeply wrong with James Talarico," who replied that one trillionaire shouldn't buy a Senate seat.
The feud centers on Musk's $158 million in donations routed to a PAC backing Talarico's rival, Ken Paxton.
How it unfolded
- Sep 2026Musk donated $158 million to the Republican super PAC the Senate Leadership Fund; the money ended up with Texas PAC, a group backing Ken Paxton.
- Oct 2026Campaign finance filings revealed the $158 million donation and its transfer to the pro-Paxton group.
- Oct 21, 2026Musk posted on X, "There is something deeply wrong with James Talarico." At a speech at the University of Houston, Talarico blamed attack ads, mailers and texts on "Elon" and replied that the system shouldn't let one trillionaire buy a personal U.S. Senator.