James Talarico, right, and Kacey Musgraves in Austin, Texas, on Friday, Oct. 9, 2026 (X/James Talarico)
Democrat Texas U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico did not have the flu as his campaign has claimed, but was hospitalized in a mental health facility in Ohio during his mysterious disappearance from the campaign trail, according to online journalists.
Independent journalist Nick Sortor is among those reporting on Sunday: “The ‘flu’ thing was a BIG FAT LIE.”
Sortor and political strategist Rhein Amacher telephoned the Lindner Center of Hope in Mason, Ohio, to be told by a hospital employee that Talarico was “just discharged” Saturday evening.
Amacher said on X: “I personally contacted @LindnerCtrHope in Mason, Ohio, to determine whether Talarico was or had previously been a patient.
“During my recorded call, an individual identifying themselves as a female facility employee reportedly stated that Talarico was no longer a patient and had been discharged within the previous 24–48 hours.
“Texans deserve accurate, independently verified information about candidates seeking to represent them in the U.S. Senate. The stakes are too high for speculation.”
: My independent investigation into @JamesTalarico follows the initial reporting by @SaraGonzales and @CarolineWren concerning a reported private aircraft charter traveling from Hamilton, Ohio, to Austin, TXDallas, TX
Austin, TX.
I personally contacted @LindnerCtrHope in Mason, Ohio, to determine whether Talarico was or had previously been a patient.
During my recorded call, an individual identifying themselves as a female facility employee reportedly stated that Talarico was no longer a patient and had been discharged within the previous 24–48 hours.
Texans deserve accurate, independently verified information about candidates seeking to represent them in the U.S. Senate.
The stakes are too high for speculation.
— Rhein Amacher (@RheinAmacher) October 11, 2026
Sortor says the Lindner Center of Hope “specializes in around-the-clock mental health treatment.”
“While I sympathize with those dealing with mental health crises, this man is CLEARLY not suited to become a US Senator representing over 30 MILLION TEXANS,” Sortor added.
“The job doesn’t get easier after being elected – it only gets MORE stressful. And Talarico clearly can’t handle it. I pray he gets the help he needs, but Texans need a real representative they can rely on.
Caroline Wren, an America First enthusiast and former fundraiser for President Donald Trump, was tracking the purported private plane flight taken by Talarico from Austin, Texas, to Hamilton, Ohio, and noted: “What are the chances that a private plane took off from Austin and flew to tiny Hamilton airport in Ohio which is 20 mins from the Lindner Center, a private inpatient mental health treatment facility, and then turned around and flew back to Austin landing yesterday morning at 10:24am right before James Talarico magically reappears at the Austin City Limits music festival that afternoon?
“Lindner Center also happens to be the same facility that Talarico’s good friend and Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo spent 7 weeks in when she had a mental breakdown 3 years ago … So many coincidences!”
Sara Gonzales of BlazeTV opined: “Theoretically, if conclusive evidence came out today that a Senate candidate in the state of Texas had to be hospitalized in a mental health facility because he couldn’t handle the stress of running a campaign, would his mental fragility disqualify him from office?”
Talarico vanished Sept. 28 after a fundraiser in New York with the pro-LGBT Human Rights Campaign. He reappeared Friday, Oct. 9, at the ACL music festival in Austin, Texas.
His campaign claimed he had the flu, and said upon his resurfacing: “Hate to disappoint the conspiracy theorists, but James is still alive and meeting with voters at ACL today.”
President Donald Trump himself questioned Talarico’s long absence and flu claim during a rally Saturday, saying: “He had the longest flu ever recorded. He was away for, like, almost 14 days. He was missing in action! I don’t think it was the flu either, that it was a new strain of flu. It keeps you out of commission for weeks!”
Journalist Breanna Morello noted: “James Talarico’s campaign knew this story was being released. They decided to ignore journalists reaching out. They had over 13 days to construct a plan, but decided to do nothing. It’s an interesting PR strategy mainly because it’s horrendous. It’s also important to note that nobody gets the flu for 13 days – even the vaccinated.”
Journalist and Trump adviser Laura Loomer reports: “While Talarico will likely have to drop out of the Senate race in Texas if that audio from today is true and he was in fact placed inside a mental hospital and lied about it, he will have a major lawsuit. While it isn’t a crime to lie and say you were somewhere else, it is a crime to leak people’s personal health information.
“Federal law (42 U.S.C. § 1320d-6) makes it a crime to knowingly obtain protected health information from a covered entity without authorization. Doing so under false pretenses – such as falsely claiming to be a relative – can result in up to 5 years imprisonment and a $100,000 fine. State fraud laws may also apply. The hospital itself faces separate HIPAA liability for any improper disclosure.
“Talarico is a lunatic who belongs nowhere near the US Senate. At the same time, he will say the hospital violated his privacy and broke the law and if he sues he will likely win. Hopefully he drops out of the Senate race.”
On Friday, as Talarico re-emerged to the campaign trail, former Los Angeles candidate for mayor Spencer Pratt said: “This isn’t a case of the ‘flu’ with Talarico … this is a case of ‘one flew over the cuckoo’s nest.'”
Pratt added of reports that Talarico had a mental breakdown: “If this is true, this is actually a time to pray for Talarico. We should, of course, savagely mock his smug, awful campaign advisors, by all means…and while yes, of course, this would be disqualifying for Talarico’s aspirations to be a Texas Senator, we must hold empathy for anyone undergoing crisis.
“Campaigns are brutal, and not everybody is cut out for it. You need very thick skin. As much as I don’t want Talarico anywhere near government, I also don’t want [to] wish him harm, and no political office is worth having a breakdown. His awful advisors are at fault for this. They pushed him to be something he isn’t, and it didn’t work.
“I’m praying that this isn’t true, and he’s OK. You want to win these fights on the battlefield of ideas, not the minefield of poor health.”
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[ H/T WorldNetDaily ]
