Video: Sen.-Elect Talarico Tells Fox News 'I Am Not Interested in Retribution' but Backs 'Checks and Balances'
A Breitbart clip post from Fox's 'America's Newsroom.' We relied on Breitbart's written account, not the video. The Texas Democrat says his mandate is lowering costs and fighting corruption, and that he would support oversight.
Breitbart posted a clip of Sen.-elect James Talarico, D-Texas, on Fox News Channel's "America's Newsroom" Wednesday morning, the day after his win over Ken Paxton.
The question. Host Bill Hemmer asked: "If your Democratic colleagues pursue hearings and investigations, be it the Senate or the House side, will you support that or not?"
His answer. Talarico said: "Well, I will support checks and balances, ensuring that each branch of our government is holding the other branches accountable. That's necessary. It's part of our constitutional order." He said his mandate is "to bring down costs, to root out corruption, to create new jobs and get this economy back on track."
On retribution. "I am not interested in retribution," he said. "The people of Texas did not elect me last night for retribution." He said he plans to deliver "even for the Texans who didn't vote for me," and that this is why he appeared on Fox News the morning after. Breitbart says he emphasized willingness to work with Republicans in the coming Congress.
Why it matters here. His tone differs from other Democrats who have promised subpoenas. Our earlier report covered those posts. His line also leaves room for investigations, since he said he would back oversight.
What we could not check. This post summarizes Breitbart's written account of a video. We did not watch the segment, so we cannot vouch for tone, context or anything left out.