Colin Allred Nukes James Talarico — Claims He Called Him a ‘Mediocre Black Man’ in Scathing Rant

(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

Former Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX) pulled no punches on Monday while tearing into U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico for reportedly calling him a “mediocre Black man” during a recent event.

Allred, a former NFL player who lost his Senate bid against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) in 2024, posted the takedown to social media.

“Morning, everybody. It’s cold out here, and I got some steam coming off my head ’cause I’m, you know, just finished my workout. Got some steam coming off my ears too. I understand that James Talarico had the temerity and the audacity to say to a Black woman that he had signed up to run against a mediocre Black man—meaning me—not a formidable, intelligent Black woman, meaning Jasmine Crockett. Let me just break this down into a few segments here,” began Allred, taking a swipe at progressive darling Talarico, who is currently a member of the Texas House of Representatives. Talarico is facing off against Rep. Crockett (D-TX) in the primary, which the more moderate Allred opted not to run in.

Allred continued:

First of all, let me just give you some free advice, James: if you want to compliment Black women, just do it. Just do it. Don’t do it while also tearing down a Black man. Okay? We’ve seen that play before. We’re sick and tired of it. We’re tired of folks using praise for Black women to mask criticism for black men. That’s not good for our community. It’s not good. It just doesn’t work, and we know what you’re doing. Okay? So if you—next time you want to praise a black woman, just do that. Leave black men out of it. Just leave a lot of things out of it.

Second of all, did you ever have a coach or somebody, you know, a leader in your life tell you that when you make an accusation, you often have a bit of confession in it? Maybe you use the word “mediocre” because there’s something creeping into your mind about yourself. Because I know you’re not talking about somebody who’s been better at three things than you’ve ever been at one. You are not saving religion for the Democratic Party or the left. We already had Senator Dr. Raphael Warnock for that. We don’t need you. You’re not saying anything unique. You’re just saying it looking like you do.

And third of all, let me just say to all the young Black men out there—all the men come from tough backgrounds, struggle growing up—who maybe think that someday you want to put yourself forward as a leader in your community: haters like this are gonna show up, okay? And you’re gonna feel like you have to be twice as good and jump twice as high and talk twice as well, but you don’t have to. You can walk out there with your shoulders back and your head held up high, knowing who you are and the value that you bring, and understanding that this comes with the territory and that there’s gonna be folks like this. And when we see them, we should say thank you. Thank you for taking off the mask. Thank you for telling us who you really are and what you really think. Because we’re on our way, and we don’t need you to come with us, and we don’t need your help to get there.

So with that being said, go vote for Jasmine Crockett. This man should not be our nominee for the United States Senate. I wasn’t gonna get involved in this race, but listen: don’t come for me unless I send for you, okay, James? And keep my name out of your mouth while you’re at it.

Watch the full clip above.

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