托马斯·博蒙特，华盛顿——当民主党候选人詹姆斯·塔拉里科停止在得克萨斯州参议员竞选中举办竞选活动时，他的共和党对手肯·帕克斯顿看到了乘势出击的机会。
THOMAS BEAUMONT WASHINGTON — When Democratic nominee James Talarico stopped holding campaign events in the Texas Senate race , his Republican opponent Ken Paxton saw an opening to pounce.
“詹姆斯·塔拉里科去哪儿了？”周三，他在圣安东尼奥与总统唐纳德·特朗普共同举行集会时大声质问。
“Where is James Talarico?” he called out Wednesday during a rally with President Donald Trump in San Antonio.
但当晚，当特朗普乘坐空军一号返回华盛顿时，他似乎无意中向塔拉里科抛出了救命稻草。总统在社交媒体上表示，据塔拉里科的竞选团队称，他正患流感，“应立即前往辩论舞台”与帕克斯顿展开对决。
But that night, while flying back to Washington on Air Force One, Trump seemed to inadvertently throw Talarico a lifeline. The president said on social media that Talarico — who has the flu, according to his campaign — “should immediately report to a Debate Stage” to face off with Paxton.
这正是塔拉里科想听到的话，因为他长期以来一直敦促帕克斯顿进行辩论。
It was exactly what Talarico wanted to hear , since he had long been badgering Paxton for a debate.
“特朗普总统刚刚说肯·帕克斯顿应该接受辩论。我同意，”塔拉里科周四早上发帖写道。“球现在在你这边了，@KenPaxtonTX。”目前尚未安排任何辩论。帕克斯顿尚未公开回应特朗普的辩论要求。
“President Trump just said Ken Paxton should debate. I agree,” Talarico posted on Thursday morning. “Ball’s in your court @KenPaxtonTX.”No debate has been scheduled so far. Paxton has not publicly responded to Trump’s debate demand.
一些共和党人也担心帕克斯顿可能成为近四十年以来第一位在得克萨斯州参议员竞选中落败的共和党人，因此也敦促他接受辩论，以在这一共和党占主导地位的州中，于这场异常激烈的竞选中重获优势。
Some Republicans, worried Paxton may become the first Republican in nearly four decades to lose a Senate race in Texas, have also urged him to debate to help gain ground in an unusually competitive campaign in the Republican-leaning state.
塔拉里科曾在7月公开向帕克斯顿发起挑战，要求进行三场电视辩论。上个月，他邀请帕克斯顿在福克斯新闻频道与他进行辩论，并发布了一段自己致电邀请帕克斯顿的视频。
Talarico publicly challenged Paxton in July to three televised debates. Last month, he invited Paxton to debate him on Fox News, and he posted a video of himself calling Paxton with the invitation.
“喂，肯，我是詹姆斯，”塔拉里科在留言时说。“得州人不到一个月就要开始投票了，他们在投票前应该听到我们双方的声音。”他还补充道：“所以，如果福克斯新闻是你最舒适的平台，那我也会在那里。”
“Hey Ken, it’s James,” Talarico said while leaving a voicemail. “Texans start voting in less than a month and they deserve to hear from both of us before they do.”“So, if Fox News is where you’ll be most comfortable, I’ll be there,” he added.
到目前为止，这场竞选几乎完全通过媒体展开。据广告追踪公司AdImpact的数据，候选人的竞选团队以及十多个外部团体已在广告上花费超过2.47亿美元。而两位候选人至今尚未共同出现在选民面前。
So far, the campaign has played out almost entirely on the airwaves. The candidates’ campaigns and more than a dozen outside groups have spent more than $247 million on advertising, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact. The candidates have yet to appear jointly before voters.
帕克斯顿的竞选团队在7月份表示，他将与对手进行辩论，但后来对部分提议的主持人提出了反对。同月晚些时候，该团队暗示与某家新闻机构的协议即将达成，但并未有任何协议被公布。
Paxton’s campaign said in July that he would debate his opponent, but later objected to some proposed moderators. Later that month, it suggested an agreement with a news outlet was imminent, though none was announced.
由于没有举行辩论，帕克斯顿将注意力集中在了塔拉里科的缺席上，甚至要求提供视频证据以证明他还活着。
Without a debate, Paxton has focused on Talarico’s absence, even demanding video proof that he was alive.
“低能吉米似乎正在全国舞台上上演一场彻底的‘塔拉式崩溃’。我们只有一个简单的要求：证明他还活着，”竞选团队发言人麦迪逊·塞西说道。
“Low-T Jimmy appears to be having a full-blown mental Tala-freak-out on the national stage. We have a simple request: proof of life,” said Madison Cercy, campaign spokeswoman.
助手们表示，塔拉里科预计将于本周末恢复竞选活动，并持续至11月3日的选举日。
Talarico is expected to resume campaigning this weekend through the Nov. 3 election, aides said.