James Talarico Is Disappointed He Couldn’t Put A Million Texans Out Of Work

Senate candidate James Talarico (D-TX) said it was a “shame” that his oil and gas industry-killing bill never got a hearing in the Texas legislature.

During a CBS News interview that aired on Sunday, Talarico tried to skirt questions about how many jobs the proposed legislation would have eliminated — particularly in a state that depends on oil and gas for more than one million jobs — and instead blamed his fellow legislators for not wanting to “have the conversation” about moving to greener energy alternatives.

CBS News Texas political reporter Jack Fink spoke with Talarico about a broad range of topics, and asked directly about the bill.

“In your bill back — House Bill 2206 on the energy — you said there would be a transition to the green economy and you would want to replace lost jobs,” Fink said. “That doesn’t suggest that there wouldn’t be an impact on oil and gas.”

“Well, this is why I was trying to work with Republicans and Democrats alike in the legislature to make this bill a reality, but the bill wasn’t even given a hearing,” Talarico complained, arguing that his bill had just been a “rough draft” that certainly would have been changed before it got to the finish line.

“It’s meant to go through a process with stakeholders and with members of both political parties,” he added. “But folks in the State Capitol didn’t want to have this conversation and so the bill died before it even got to committee, and that’s a real shame because I think there are ways to both grow our oil and gas industry and limit these emissions at the same time.”

The bill, filed in February of 2021, was intended to address the threat of climate change and included targets for the reduction of statewide greenhouse gas emissions, aiming for 50% below 1990 levels by 2030 — along with additional reduction goals set for 2040 and 2050.

When asked about the bill earlier in the campaign, a spokesperson for Talarico replied, “James went to public schools funded by the oil and gas industry and knows how essential oil and gas is to Texas’ economy – it’s why he supports an ‘all of the above’ energy strategy so Texas can remain a leader in oil and gas, wind, solar, geothermal, and more. James will always put the economic interests of Texans first – creating good jobs and lowering energy costs.”

“It is insulting James Talarico thinks he can hide his plan to kill two million energy jobs in the state by saying that he attended public schools,” Republican National Committee Zack Kraft spokesman told The Dallas Express at the time. “It will be a cold day in Hell before the Lone Star State elects a candidate who led a mini Green New Deal and bragged about being a vegan.”