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South Texas Democratic congressional candidate Bobby Pulido is being criticized for feeding a "sickness" and "spreading hate" through his rhetoric against President Donald Trump and Republicans, especially in light of a deadly anti-ICE shooting in Dallas this week.
In an interview with Fox News Digital, former Texas Republican Rep. Mayra Flores, the first Mexican-born woman elected to Congress, criticized Pulido and other Democrats for "attacking our men and women serving this country for enforcing the laws."
"It’s this type of hateful rhetoric that is causing innocent lives to be lost," Flores said. "And because of that, we're seeing all these shootings, and it will continue to happen because, at the end of the day, this hateful rhetoric is coming from members of Congress, from senators."
"They need to set an example," she went on. "Americans are looking up to these individuals. And so, if they're seeing that they're spreading hate, then that instills in them hate as well towards our men and women [in law enforcement]."
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This comes as the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) accused Pulido, who is a Tejano music star, of having a "lengthy history of engaging in violent, extreme political rhetoric."
The committee said that despite Pulido condemning political violence, such as Charlie Kirk’s assassination, and calling for a toning down in rhetoric on both sides, his own words through the years have not been consistent with this call.
On Sept. 10, Pulido posted on X, "I don’t care what side of the political aisle you are, what happened to Charlie Kirk is abhorrent. The political rhetoric needs to be brought down on both sides. I pray for him, his family and also for our country."
According to the NRCC, however, Pulido’s inflammatory rhetoric goes back years, even including dressing up as a blood-soaked Trump for Halloween in 2015. A screenshot of the since-deleted post shared with Fox News Digital shows a bloodied Trump with a Spanish caption reading, "Years ago Donald Trump and Paquita had a son. Here is the exclusive image."
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He has also suggested that Trump voters are racist, commenting on a 2017 news story about California farms being untended due to the president’s immigration policies by saying, "That’s what racist America wanted, that’s what you got."
In another post from 2016, Pulido wrote that Trump is "racist all the way" and that "his candidacy plays to the alt right."
This August, he accused Republicans of "literally becoming everything they accused others of being. Marxists and fascists."
Pulido also previously expressed support for the Black Lives Matter movement by posting a black square on his Instagram for "Blackout Tuesday" and sharing a video of a Houston BLM rally with the caption "#GodBlessTexas."
He has said in a video that "there’s a lot of great cops out there" but that "at the end of the day, there’s not a country out there that doesn’t oppress."
Referring to allegedly racist police officers in a 2017 X post, Pulido used profanities in Spanish to describe them.
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Addressing Pulido and other Democrats directly, Flores asked them to "please stop playing political games with our men and women that are just doing their job."
"At the end of the day, we're all Americans. We want the best for our communities, and they should not be prioritizing their political party over safety," she said.
Flores said that for many who grew up listening to Pulido’s music, he has a special responsibility to set an example of civility and respect.
"He is an icon in the Tejano industry. A lot of people look up to his music, and so he has an obligation to talk about this issue and to show respect towards our [law enforcement] men and women because he has such a huge fan base," she said.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, NRCC spokesman Reilly Richardson said, "Bobby Pulido’s history of engaging in extreme political rhetoric is utterly disqualifying."
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"Radical Democrats like Pulido have been unapologetically demonizing ICE agents and our law enforcement for years," said Reilly.
"A deep and pervasive sickness has infected the radical left in this country, and Democrats like Bobby Pulido are feeding it," he added.
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Meanwhile, another Texas leader, Republican Rep. Ronny Jackson, said the problem goes far beyond Pulido.
He called the attack on the Dallas ICE facility last week "horrific," saying it "proves the Left’s relentless attacks on law enforcement puts our officers in real danger."
"It’s past time Democrats take responsibility for their violent rhetoric, which has fueled these attacks, and join the fight to protect our brave ICE officers!" said Jackson.
Pulido did not respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment by the time of publication.
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