President Donald Trump mocked Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico during a rally in Corpus Christi on Tuesday by making unusual noises and miming the act of eating meat, the HuffPost reports. The President suggested that Talarico’s recent time away from the campaign trail while recovering from the flu was actually caused by eating meat. This claim contradicts the reality of the situation, as Talarico is neither vegan nor vegetarian.
Trump told the crowd, “I happen to think he was food poisoned by meat because he can’t stand it.” He went on to assert that Talarico vomits after consuming meat products. The President has made similar claims about Talarico’s diet on several occasions despite the lack of evidence.
During the event, Trump attempted to mimic Talarico at a barbecue. He said, “You ever see him go to a barbecue and he’s trying to show?” Trump then proceeded to mime eating while saying, “I love the meat,” followed by a sound described as “ahaaaa.” He continued the bit by taking another imaginary bite and making an even more unusual sound.
Talarico previously addressed claims about his diet in May
Talarico stated, “I’ve been eating barbecue since before Ken Paxton’s first indictment.” This comment referenced the various scandals surrounding Paxton, which include an indictment on three felony counts in a fraud case.
This performance in Corpus Christi is just the latest in a series of odd moments from the President on the campaign trail. Last week, Trump mimicked his former ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, by making a gagging noise instead of speaking her name. He has also spent time during his speeches discussing the physical appearance of various people he has encountered.
One of these instances involved Sen. Jon Husted. Trump commented on the senator’s rear end, saying, “I looked at his a–, and I’ve never done that with a man before.” He has repeated this story multiple times since the initial comment. Additionally, Trump made remarks regarding the appearance of rapper Nicki Minaj when she appeared at one of his rallies. He noted that she had “one hell of a beautiful a–.”
The moment featuring the meat-eating impression quickly gained attention online. It seems like the President is leaning into these strange, extended riffs during his public appearances. Whether or not these antics help him connect with voters is up for debate, but they are definitely drawing a lot of eyes to his rallies, but maybe for the wrong reasons.
Published: Oct 28, 2026 05:45 pm