A Texas Democratic congressional candidate is discovering there’s a fine line between “progressive firebrand” and “political dumpster fire” — and critics say she sprinted past it at full speed.
Maureen Galindo, a sex therapist-turned-left-wing activist running in Texas’ newly redrawn 35th Congressional District, is under fire after posting a jaw-dropping social media screed proposing that the Karnes ICE detention facility be repurposed into what she called a prison for “American Zionists and former ICE officers.”
In a now-viral Instagram post, Galindo declared she would turn the detention center into “a prison for American Zionists and former ICE officers for human trafficking.”
Then came the part that sent even members of her own party scrambling for cover. “It will also be a castration processing center for pedophiles, which will probably be most of the Zionists,” she added — bizarrely referring to herself in the third person while doing it.
Galindo is currently facing Johnny Garcia, a more moderate Democrat and former Bexar County Sheriff’s Office hostage negotiator, in a May 26 primary runoff. But instead of talking about border security, inflation, or crime, the race has devolved into a spectacle of antisemitic accusations and conspiracy-laced tirades. And Galindo didn’t exactly help herself with the cleanup effort.
During an appearance on Texas Public Radio, she insisted she wasn’t antisemitic — before immediately launching into rhetoric critics say sounded ripped straight from an internet conspiracy forum.
“I’m not antisemitic. In fact, my last serious relationship was with a Jewish man,” Galindo said. “I’m against Zionist Jews. When I said that the Jews who own Hollywood are doing this, do all Jews own Hollywood? No. The Zionist Jews do. The Zionist Jews own our media, our banks, and all of our politicians.”
Even Democrats who normally bend themselves into pretzels to avoid criticizing the activist wing of their party publicly recoiled.
Texas state Rep. James Talarico blasted the comments, saying: “This antisemitic rhetoric has no place in our politics. We need leadership in both parties willing to stand up and call out hate wherever it rears its ugly head.” Talarico’s campaign reportedly confirmed he won’t campaign for Galindo even if she somehow survives the runoff.
Florida Democratic Rep. Jared Moskowitz sounded equally alarmed, posting online: “First current political candidate suggests concentration camps for American Jews. This should be national news!” Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego piled on, saying Galindo should never hold public office.
The controversy arrives as Democrats nationally continue struggling with internal warfare over Israel, antisemitism, and the increasingly radical rhetoric bubbling up from activist circles since the Hamas terror attacks of Oct. 7 and the ensuing war in Gaza. What was once fringe language confined to protest chants and anonymous social media accounts is now showing up in congressional campaigns — and party leaders are increasingly finding themselves forced to answer for it.
Meanwhile, Galindo’s candidacy has also attracted attention because of outside spending from Lead Left PAC, a mysterious super PAC reportedly tied to Republican operatives. According to reporting by The New York Times, the group has boosted progressive Democrats in primaries under the theory that far-left nominees are easier for Republicans to defeat in general elections. In Galindo’s case, that strategy may be writing itself.
The PAC reportedly highlighted her support for abolishing ICE and impeaching President Donald Trump — though it’s safe to say her own social media posts are doing plenty of heavy lifting on the self-destruction front.
Galindo has also accused her opponent Garcia of wanting “Jews and Mexicans in warehouses” and claimed “billionaire Zionists” control trafficking operations in South Texas. At this point, even seasoned political operatives are probably wondering whether anyone remembered to check if the campaign account had been hacked.
So far, Galindo has not backed away from the remarks. And as Democrats attempt to hold together a fragile coalition heading into the midterms, the episode is shaping up as another ugly reminder that the party’s loudest online voices are increasingly becoming its biggest political liability.
