Tim Scott says James Talarico, who is actually running in Texas, must be stopped in Michigan to save the Senate

Senator Tim Scott appeared on Fox News’ Sunday Night in America with host Trey Gowdy to discuss the Senate filibuster and upcoming elections. During the conversation, Scott made a mistake about which state Democratic candidate James Talarico is running in.

Scott, a Republican from South Carolina, told Gowdy that Democrats have been “consistently saying” they want to get rid of both the filibuster and the Senate itself. He also said the Democratic Party wants Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., to become states.

The 60-year-old senator went on to claim that Democrats plan to add liberal justices to the Supreme Court. He said the only way to stop this from happening is for Republicans to win more elections.

Scott mixed up Talarico’s Senate race with the Michigan contest

Scott’s comment came shortly after he faced criticism for defending attack ads against Abdul El-Sayed, a Democratic candidate running for Senate in Michigan. During the segment, Scott appeared to confuse Talarico’s race with the Michigan race.

“That means we have to stop Talarico in Michigan by electing Mike Rogers,” Scott said. However, Talarico is not running for Senate in Michigan. He is the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate seat in Texas, where he will face Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton in the 2026 election. This race is already attracting national attention, as past polling shows James Talarico leading both Republican Senate candidates in Texas. 

Talarico, a Texas state representative, won the Democratic primary in March after defeating Rep. Jasmine Crockett. Mike Rogers, the Republican candidate Scott mentioned, is actually running against El-Sayed in Michigan, not against Talarico. This confusion about races comes as Talarico remains confident about the Texas Senate race, fueled by GOP voters who whisper support for him like they’re in witness protection. 

El-Sayed, a physician, won Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary last week, defeating Rep. Haley Stevens.  Scott, however, did mention El-Sayed later on, without acknowledging that he had mistaken him for Talarico earlier on. 

Scott criticized El-Sayed directly, claiming he “wants to get rid of borders, he wants to punish police, he wants to defund police, he wants to defund ICE.” Scott did not provide direct quotes or sources from El-Sayed to support these claims.

Scott then called for nationwide support for Rogers’ campaign. “Mike Rogers needs our support all across the country to make sure he’s successful in Michigan,” Scott said.

He added that Republicans need to win elections to block Democratic policy goals. “Democrats would do it. We should get the votes to do it first. Without any question, we need the kind of Republicans being elected that will support President Trump and his objectives and make it easier for us to have success legislatively,” Scott said.

Gowdy responded to Scott’s comments by saying, “All right, Chairman, here’s a look. We’ll, we’ll listen together,” before the segment moved on to other content.

The on-screen text during the interview displayed two headlines: “Thune Struggles to Recruit Save America Act Votes” and “Senators Put on Spot Over Trump’s Filibuster Push.” Scott appeared in the interview from a location with an aerial view of Charleston, South Carolina, in the background.

Scott’s remarks drew attention on social media following the interview. One user wrote, “Scott: ‘If people tell you who they are, believe them.’ Well, Scott just told us that he is a moron who doesn’t know that Talerico is not the Senate candidate in Michigan.”

Another user commented, “Yes, let’s spread the word to prevent James Talarico from being elected Michigan’s next senator.. What an idiot.”

A separate user raised a different question about Republican positions, writing, “Can any Republican explain why we should have large parts of the United Stayed that don’t get electoral representation?”