Karen Hunter is not letting Texas Democrats off the hook in the debate over whether Rep. Jasmine Crockett should campaign for Texas state Rep. James Talarico after a bruising Senate primary.
On a recent segment of her The Karen Hunter Show on SiriusXM Urban View channel, Hunter reacted to Crockett saying she had “no idea” whether she would actively campaign for Talarico, the Democratic nominee in Texas’ U.S. Senate race.
“Some people are clutching their pearls,” Hunter stated plainly. “They’re upset. They’re, ‘Oh, I can’t believe it.’”
Hunter said Democrats are right to take the race seriously, especially given the stakes for control of the Senate and major questions of accountability in Washington. However, she rejected the idea that Crockett owes the party unlimited public support after what Hunter described as a damaging primary.
“Jasmine Crockett, I understand,” Hunter continued. “I do. I do. It’s her right to not campaign.”
Jasmine Crockett is mad that she keeps being asked about campaigning with Talarico:
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) June 21, 2026
"I am not currently running for US Senate and therefore you will not see me on the trail as if I am running for US Senate."
"But y'all are still so focused on me. Bro, like, I'm not running."… pic.twitter.com/oaEG8GQrJo
Hunter said Crockett had not ruled out voting for Talarico.
“She didn’t say she wasn’t going to vote for him,” Hunter explained. “She didn’t say, ‘I’m not voting for him.’”
Instead, Hunter said Crockett appeared unwilling to lend her popularity and political capital to a campaign she believes treated her unfairly.
“She just said, ‘I’m not putting my good juju energy, all my good energy and beautifulness behind this man whose campaign maligned her. They did some dirty, dirty, dirty things,” she added before taking aim at Texas Democratic leadership.
“The Democratic apparatus in Texas, y’all. Trash. Absolute trash. I don’t blame her.” But Hunter also acknowledged the larger national stakes.
“I don’t live in Texas, but I live in the United States of America,” she said. “And that seat does matter,” going on to note that the Democrats need Senate seats to create “guard rails” and “hold people accountable.”
Hunter then turned the debate over to her listeners, asking them a few crucial questions.
“Should she be out campaigning for him?” she asked. “Should she be out there telling people to vote for him? Will it even matter?”
Listen to the full clip below.
