Democratic Rep. Colin Allred dished out numerous one-liners during his debate Tuesday against Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, calling his podcast “fear” and referring to Cruz's anti-trans messaging as “Hail Mary” to talk about his unpopular opinions on abortion to distract.

In one particularly memorable exchange, Allred told voters that his rival in the U.S. Senate race would prefer to focus on transgender athletes because he “wants people to think about children in toilets and not women in hospitals.”

Allred, who has represented Texas' 32nd Congressional District since 2019, lashed out at Cruz for supporting the ouster Roe v. Wadeand emphasized the consequences of this result for the Texans.

“You should look into the camera and talk to Kate Cox, who is watching right now, and explain to her why you said that this law that you said was completely reasonable – why she was forced to leave her two children behind and out “To escape our state get the care she needs,” he told Cruz, referring to the Texas woman who had to sue her state to block its abortion laws after the fetus she was carrying died developed fatal illness. Cox ultimately had to seek treatment elsewhere after the Texas Supreme Court ruled against her.

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“Or,” Allred continued, “look into the camera and talk to Amanda Zurawski, who's watching, and explain to her why it's completely reasonable that she, because she had a complication during her pregnancy and so on.” Having been denied care for a long time may never be able to have children of their own. Or to the 26,000 Texas women who were forced to give birth to their rapist's child under this law, which you called “totally sensible.”

Both Cox and Zurawski have said they support Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign.

Later, the topic shifted to transgender rights and how Cruz accused Allred of supporting policies that could lead to boys participating in girls' sports. Allred, a former NFL linebacker, responded that Cruz's attack was a “Hail Mary.”

“I am a father. I am a Christian. Of course I don’t support these ridiculous things he’s talking about,” Allred said. “But he wants you to think about children in toilets, not women in hospitals. Because it is unjustifiable for Texas women to be turned away from hospitals, to bleed to death in cars, to be found in waiting rooms and by their husbands.”

Allred said it was “ridiculous” for Cruz to call himself a “protector of women and girls” because he believes it is “perfectly reasonable that when a girl is raped by a relative, a victim of incest, she should be forced to do so.” should be.” Birth the child and bring it into the world.”

In addition to slamming Cruz, who likes to tout his podcast, Allred accused him of spreading “anger sentiment,” he also seized on his rival's ambiguous response to a question about whether he would support pardons for the Jan. 6 rioters. Cruz instead mentioned the independent “Antifa and Black Lives Matter uprisings that burned cities across the country.”

Allred reminded viewers that Cruz objected to the certification of the 2020 election, firing back: “You are a threat to democracy.”

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