Bush Family Under Fire Over Donation To Talarico

James Talarico rails against big money in politics, but the Texas Democrat’s Senate bid is getting a financial assist from a member of one of America’s most prominent Republican families.

Barbara Bush, daughter of former President George W. Bush, gave $2,500 this quarter to Lone Star Rising PAC, the main outside group backing Talarico, according to Federal Election Commission records reviewed by Fox News Digital.

The contribution puts a Bush family member among the donors helping Talarico as he battles Republican Ken Paxton in a race with implications for GOP control of the Senate.

Talarico has accused Paxton and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, of “want[ing] corporations and billionaires to decide our elections, not Texans.”

But he has defended his approach to campaign spending, saying he will not “unilaterally disarm” while Republicans use political action committees, according to The Texas Tribune.

Lone Star Rising accounts for nearly all outside spending in support of Talarico, Houston Public Media reported. Its donors include the Eagles’ Don Henley, who contributed $150,000.

Bush’s check was far smaller, but Texas campaign finance expert Andrew Cates pointed to her decision to donate through a group required to disclose its contributors.

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“She didn’t give it to a 501(c)(4), in which her contribution would’ve been completely anonymous. She gave it to a PAC that reports all the money in and out,” Cates told Houston Public Media.

The donation comes against the backdrop of a long-running rift between her father and President Donald Trump. Their strained relationship stretches back to the 2016 campaign, when Trump mocked members of the Bush family, including the former president’s mother and brother.

Barbara Bush, the twin sister of NBC host Jenna Bush Hager, shares her name with her late grandmother, the former first lady. Her campaign finance filing listed an address in Brooklyn’s Clinton Hill neighborhood.

She serves as the NBA’s vice president of social impact and inclusion. According to the George W. Bush Presidential Center, her international work draws on the “convening power of basketball” for humanitarian initiatives involving social justice, “health equity” and sustainability.

Bush also co-founded Global Health Corps, which helps young people tackle global health challenges, and has written several children’s books with Hager.

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