特朗普总统周三在圣安东尼奥敦促支持者假装他在选票上，这场预计将对共和党不利的中期选举——甚至在红色的德克萨斯州也是如此。
President Trump urged supporters in San Antonio Wednesday to pretend he's on the ballot in what's expected to be a difficult midterm election for Republicans — potentially even in red Texas.
为何重要：特朗普在圣安东尼奥东区的弗里曼体育馆举行集会，这是他一个月内第三次访问德克萨斯州——凸显了共和党对现在具有竞争力的孤星州选战的重视，这些选战曾被认为是共和党轻松获胜的机会。
Why it matters: The rally at the Freeman Coliseum on San Antonio's East Side is Trump's third visit to Texas in a month — highlighting the focus the GOP has put on now-competitive races in the Lone Star State that were once presumed easy opportunities for Republicans.
现状：共和党籍德克萨斯州总检察长肯·帕克斯顿，民调显示他在德州联邦参议员竞选中以微弱劣势落后于民主党籍州众议员詹姆斯·塔拉里科，周三也发表了讲话。特朗普和帕克斯顿都反复抨击塔拉里科，将他描绘成与德州人脱节的人。"这次选举，我们谈的不是红与蓝之争。我们谈的也不是温和派民主党人，"帕克斯顿说。"我们谈的是宪政共和国、自由、《权利法案》。"
State of play: Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who polls show is narrowly trailing Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in Texas' U.S. Senate race, also spoke Wednesday. Both Trump and Paxton made repeated jabs at Talarico, whom they painted as out of touch with Texans. "This election, we're not talking about red versus blue. We're not talking about a moderate Democrat," Paxton said. "We're talking about the constitutional republic, freedom, the Bill of Rights."
特朗普反复称詹姆斯为"塔拉怪人"，说如果他当选，"德州将几乎瞬间被毁灭"，并将"变得像加利福尼亚一样"。塔拉里科的发言人周三未立即回复Axios的置评请求。
Trump repeatedly referred to James "Talafreako," saying "Texas will be almost instantly destroyed" if he's elected and would "resemble California." A spokesperson for Talarico did not immediately reply to Axios' request for comment Wednesday.
看点：与帕克斯顿和特朗普同台出现的还有卡洛斯·德拉克鲁兹，他是第35国会选区的共和党候选人，该选区是德州议会去年重新划分的五个旨在选出共和党人的民主党选区之一。
The intrigue: Appearing alongside Paxton and Trump was Carlos De La Cruz, the Republican running in the 35th Congressional District, one of five Democratic districts redrawn by the Texas Legislature last year to elect a Republican.
德拉克鲁兹面对的是民主党人约翰尼·加西亚，一名贝萨尔县治安官办公室副警长。
De La Cruz faces Democrat Johnny Garcia, a Bexar County sheriff's deputy.
这个以拉丁裔为主、包含贝萨尔县部分地区的选区，现在被非党派的库克政治报告评为"倾向共和党"，这一评级比该组织之前的评级更接近。
The majority-Latino district that includes parts of Bexar County is now rated by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report as "leans Republican," a closer rating than the group had before.
他们怎么说：德拉克鲁兹向退伍军人和民生议题发出呼吁——并试图展示自己作为华盛顿局外人的形象。
What they're saying: De La Cruz made appeals to military veterans and pocketbook issues — and tried to show himself as a Washington outsider.
“今晚我坐在厨房的餐桌旁，为家人算着房租、燃气费和杂货费，琢磨着这些开销加起来到底是多少，”德拉·克鲁兹说道。“华盛顿的圈内人从未感受过这种经济压力。”另一方则回应称：“选民之所以陷入困境，是因为鲁莽的关税推高了成本，伊朗战争导致油价飙升，而国会却给亿万富翁减税，同时削减了得克萨斯州的医疗支出，”加西亚在接受Axios采访时表示。
"I'm running for the family at the kitchen table tonight doing the math on the rent, gas and groceries, and wondering how it all adds up," De La Cruz said. "The insiders in Washington have never felt that squeeze." The other side: "Voters are struggling because of reckless tariffs driving up costs, the war in Iran which has caused gas prices to skyrocket, and a Congress that gave tax breaks to billionaires while slashing healthcare here in Texas," Garcia told Axios in a statement.
弦外之音：帕克斯顿长期以来一直是特朗普的亲密盟友，但他私下里曾感叹共和党在本选举周期面临的严峻环境。
Between the lines: Paxton, long a close ally of Trump, has privately lamented the challenging environment Republicans face this cycle.
据《纽约时报》和《Politico》分别获得的独立录音显示，帕克斯顿在同一次会议上表示，特朗普在达拉斯举行的中期选举大会“拉低了我们的民调数字”，并且竞选活动的控制权“全都来自……华盛顿特区”。
Paxton said in the same meeting that Trump's midterm convention in Dallas "dropped our numbers," and that control of the campaign is "all coming ... from D.C.," according to separate audio obtained by the New York Times and Politico.
背景：周三，特朗普自2019年以来首次访问圣安东尼奥，这座城市主要支持民主党。
Context: Wednesday was Trump's first visit to San Antonio, a largely Democratic city, since 2019.