Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro rebuked Palestinian activism and Democrat U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico during an event at the University of Texas at Austin Wednesday evening.
Shapiro urged attendees of the Turning Point USA event to vote for Republican candidates in November and keep Democrats out of power.
The Daily Wire host argued Palestinian flags represent “hatred of the West” on the anniversary of the October 7 massacre.
Shapiro said that Palestinian activism unites otherwise disjointed causes, such as LGBT activism, anti-law enforcement activism, and open-borders activism, in a shared desire to “tear down the West.”
He also castigated Democrat U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico, who he said “cosplays as a Christian.”
Anger with GOP politicians “does not mean you hand power to people who are far worse,” he told the audience.
The event also featured Jeff Metcalf, whose son, Austin, was murdered by Karmelo Anthony in a high-profile 2025 case.
Metcalf spoke about the need for attendees to develop “self-command” as a means to “de-escalate” situations such as the one in which his son was murdered.
He shared a series of practical techniques to defuse tense situations, including deep breathing and slowing down speech. “Calm is contagious.”
The Turning Point event follows a recent appearance by leftist provocateur Hasan Piker. The juxtaposition of these two events has drawn controversy due to allegations from organizers of the Piker event that university officials had worked to impede their event while easing the way for Turning Point.
Multiple reporters from left-wing media outlets have also alleged that Turning Point officials asked them to leave the event, although these reports are unconfirmed.
UT-Austin is a component of the University of Texas System. The UT System is overseen by a Board of Regents that is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Texas Senate. Kevin Eltife of Tyler is the current board chair.
