• What Happened: Texas state Rep. James Talarico claimed on The Late Show that the Bible says nothing about abortion or gay marriage and that Jesus taught salvation comes through treating people well and welcoming strangers.
  • Why It Matters: Talarico selectively quoted Scripture while omitting key context, added words to biblical text, and has previously claimed God is non-binary and Jesus was a "radical feminist."
  • Bottom Line: Speaker Mike Johnson pushed back on the same verse Talarico cited, arguing biblical moral imperatives for individuals do not automatically apply to civil government and immigration law.

A Texas Democrat running for U.S. Senate decided the best place to deliver a theology lecture was Stephen Colbert's couch, and it went about as well as you would expect.

State Rep. James Talarico appeared on The Late Show Monday and told the audience that abortion and gay marriage are "two issues that aren't mentioned in the Bible, two issues that Jesus never talked about." The crowd applauded. Because of course they did.

Talarico then pointed to Matthew 25 as proof that salvation comes through feeding the hungry, healing the sick, and welcoming the stranger. "Nothing about going to church, nothing about voting Republican. It was all about how you treat other people," he said.

Here is the problem. Talarico did not just quote Scripture. He added to it. When citing Jesus in Matthew 22, he tacked on "regardless of race or gender or sexual orientation or immigration status or religious affiliation." None of those words appear in the text. Not one.

He also conveniently left out that Jesus in Matthew 22 was answering a question about which commandment was greatest, not issuing an exhaustive list of the only two that matter. The passage itself says "on these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." All of it. Including the parts Talarico would rather skip.

This is the same man who has claimed God is non-binary, Jesus was a "radical feminist," and that there are six biological sexes.

Speaker Mike Johnson addressed this kind of selective Scripture reading directly, noting that biblical admonitions for personal conduct do not automatically bind civil authorities the same way. "Borders and walls are biblical," Johnson said plainly.

One man added words to the Bible on late night television. The other actually read it.