Kari Lake targets James Talarico with a wild claim about his 9-day absence. Then she reveals what she thinks he was hiding: ‘bottom surgery’

Kari Lake is pushing a baseless theory about Texas Senate candidate James Talarico, claiming his recent time off the campaign trail was actually for gender-affirming surgery, as reported by Advocate. This strange assertion comes after a nine-day gap in his public appearances, which Lake and other online figures have tried to turn into a major political scandal.

Talarico participated in a virtual event for the U.S. Hispanic Business Council on September 30, and he didn’t return to the public stage until October 9 at the Austin City Limits music festival. His campaign has been clear about the reason for this break, stating that he was recovering from the flu. Because Talarico has Type 1 diabetes, the illness hit him harder than it might for others.

Lake, who currently serves as a senior adviser at the U.S. Agency for Global Media under President Donald Trump, decided to weigh in on X on October 8. She shared a screenshot of an AI inquiry that asked, “In one sentence, how long does it take to recover from ‘bottom surgery?’” The AI response indicated that a person would need about six to eight weeks to return to normal work activities.

Lake’s post was a reply to Caroline Wren, who runs an account called America First

Wren had questioned why Talarico wasn’t posting daily updates about his flu, and she quickly jumped on Lake’s theory, writing, “This explains so much.” Other online figures joined in on the speculation. An account called Tim the Tool Man, which is linked to right-wing YouTuber Steven Crowder, posted, “James Talarico is recovering from bottom surgery.” Another account, Celtic Mission, even created a poll to ask if Talarico was depressed because he had top surgery or bottom surgery.

This wasn’t the only conspiracy theory floating around about his absence. Many MAGA influencers were busy pushing a false narrative that Talarico had checked into a mental health facility in Ohio. That claim was easily debunked when the clinic in question explicitly denied he was ever there.

The backlash was significant enough that some commentators, like Carmine Sabia, actually issued retractions. Sabia wrote on X, “I apologize for sharing the false report about James Talarico receiving mental health treatment. I relied on the reporting available then, but I got it wrong and retract it.”

Progressive accounts have been quick to mock these claims. One account, DirtbagLeft, pointed out the absurdity of the timing, noting, “My favorite part of this conspiracy is that James Talarico would just suddenly decide to get ‘bottom surgery’ one month before the election at the age of 37.” The post added, “Like he could have simply wanted another month to avoid suspicion. He would have already waited 37 years.”

Lake’s involvement in this story is part of a larger pattern for her. She has previously run for Arizona governor and U.S. Senate, and she is currently a nominee for U.S. ambassador to Jamaica, though that confirmation is still pending. Earlier this year, a federal judge also ruled that her work as the acting CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media was a violation of federal law.