Musgraves Rebukes Noem Over Support for Texas Democrat

A public dispute involving country-pop singer Kacey Musgraves and former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem escalated after Noem criticized Musgraves for welcoming Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico at a concert. The exchange unfolded on X after Talarico attended the performance over the weekend and shared a photograph with the singer.

Talarico, a Democrat seeking a US Senate seat in Texas, has received support from several prominent country music figures. Noem's criticism also brought fellow country singer Ella Langley into the dispute, prompting a sharp response from Musgraves.

In her post, Noem expressed a preference for Langley over Musgraves and backed Republican candidate Ken Paxton over Talarico in the Texas Senate contest.

"I'll take Ella Langley over Kacey Musgraves any day," Noem wrote on X.

She continued her message by linking her political preference to the Texas race.

"And if I'm choosin' Texas, I'll take Ken Paxton over James Talarico." Noem wrote.

Musgraves responded directly to Noem's criticism, invoking the former secretary's widely publicized account of shooting a dog in her memoir.

"I don't think you have a dog in this fight but if you did you would have shot it." Musgraves wrote.

Langley did not appear to welcome being drawn into the disagreement. According to the source report, she or her team quickly removed her X handle from Noem's post. Noem had not published another response on the platform at the time of the report.

Noem previously faced widespread criticism over a passage in her memoir describing how she shot and killed her 14-month-old dog, Cricket, in a gravel pit after deeming the animal too difficult to manage. She presented the incident as an example of her willingness to make difficult decisions, but the account attracted controversy during the 2024 presidential campaign, when she was considered a possible running mate for Donald Trump.

Trump later appointed Noem as Homeland Security secretary after beginning his current term. He dismissed her from the position in March 2026 following a series of controversies. She subsequently moved into the role of US special envoy to the Shield of the Americas under the Trump administration.

Musgraves has also publicly addressed immigration and LGBTQ+ rights. Earlier in 2026, she encouraged concertgoers to support the Young Center for Immigrant Children's Rights as a birthday wish, explaining that the organization provides legal assistance and financial support to children whose parents have been deported.

"It's a wonderful organization, and they help give aid — legal aid — and money to children whose parents have been deported unfairly. It's not a political thing. It's just, these kids need help." Musgraves told her concert audience.

Fox News commentator Tomi Lahren challenged the singer's characterization of deportations.

"What is an unfair deportation?" Lahren responded.

Talarico has continued receiving endorsements from country music figures, including Willie Nelson, who recently backed the candidate in a video. His campaign has also gained attention because of polling that suggests a competitive race in a state that has not elected a Democratic US senator since 1993.

The latest Trafalgar poll cited in the source report gave Talarico 47.1% support among prospective Texas voters, compared with 43.6% for Paxton, the Republican candidate. The figures placed Talarico ahead by 3.5 percentage points in the survey.