In politics, what a man celebrates when the cameras roll tells you far more than any rehearsed stump speech ever could. Campaign promises get workshopped, focus-grouped, and reversed overnight. Genuine enthusiasm – the kind that escapes before a handler can tackle it – reveals something deeper. It reveals character.

So when a candidate for the United States Senate lights up at the mention of a drag performer who has spent years pulling children into that world, the revelation goes beyond politically inconvenient. For millions of Texas families weighing their options this November, it should be flatly disqualifying.

From The Daily Wire:

James Talarico has a favorite Texas drag queen – and it’s a performer who has built a career around grooming young children.

The Democratic Texas Senate nominee immediately named Alyssa Edwards when asked at a recent campaign event to name his favorite Lone Star drag performer.

No pause. No political calculation. Just a grinning “Oh my gosh, probably Alyssa Edwards,” delivered with the excitement of a man naming his favorite barbecue joint. The viral clip quickly drew White House attention, with Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller labeling Talarico “a deeply sick and disturbed individual.” Harsh words – until you look at who Talarico was so eager to celebrate.

The performer behind the name

Alyssa Edwards is the stage persona of Justin Dwayne Lee Johnson, a Texas man who owns a children’s dance studio and starred in the Netflix reality series Dancing Queen. That show documented his close mentorship of young dancers. Heartwarming enough on paper – except footage reviewed by The Daily Wire shows Johnson cultivating a nine-year-old boy into a child drag performer, calling the minor his “mini-me.” Not exactly The Karate Kid.

Johnson has been remarkably candid about his mission. In a 2023 interview with Out magazine, he described himself as “a drag performer that works with children” and reminisced about sharing the stage with his minor students at World Pride in New York. He also offered this gem about where the culture is heading:

“You know drag has really made it when the drag shows aren’t necessarily at 11 pm or midnight in a small cabaret theater underground anymore. We’re now going on when there’s Sunday church going on.”

Sunday church, replaced by drag. That’s not an accidental slip. That’s a mission statement. And James Talarico wants every Texan to know this is his guy.

Fighting against the guardrails

Talarico’s admiration didn’t materialize out of nowhere. It grew from a legislative career spent actively opposing protections for children. In 2023, Texas lawmakers advanced Senate Bill 12 – a straightforward measure barring sexually explicit performances on public property and in the presence of minors. Talarico fought it, warning it could harm drag performers and declaring that Texas was home to “some of the best drag queens in the nation.”

A federal judge struck down SB 12 last month. Attorney General Ken Paxton – Talarico’s Republican opponent in this very race – has vowed to appeal. The contrast practically draws itself: one candidate battles to protect children, the other battles to protect the performers who recruit them.

The mask slips

The drag queen endorsement is just the freshest exhibit in a growing gallery of alarm. Undercover footage obtained by The Daily Wire captured Texas Democrat Party organizer Jennifer Miranda admitting Talarico’s recent moderate pivots are pure theater. “He’s trying to target a wider net, which unfortunately means being more palatable to Republicans,” she said on camera. Privately, the real Talarico remains fully intact.

And who is the real Talarico? A man who insists there are “six biological sexes.” Who declared “God is nonbinary.” Who preached from a pulpit that “God is not a Christian.” Who worships at a church stocking Gender Queer and This Book Is Gay in a library accessible to children. Each item alone would raise eyebrows. Together, they form a portrait of someone profoundly detached from the values of the state he wants to represent.

Vice President Vance crystallized it at the RNC’s midterm convention in Dallas: “A guy that age who is so obsessed and focused on transgender children – I don’t know about you, but I never want to see that guy’s web browser history.”

Texas families have forty-eight days to deliver their verdict on James Talarico. His own words and alliances have already delivered theirs.

Key Takeaways

• Talarico enthusiastically endorsed a drag performer who recruits children into drag.
• His favorite performer calls a nine-year-old his “mini-me” and openly targets youth.
• Talarico actively fought legislation shielding minors from explicit performances.
• Undercover footage confirms his moderate pivot is a calculated campaign strategy.

Sources: Daily Wire