Samuel Lopez-Barton

Lib of the year | Currently @LatinoVictoryUS | Fmr @TimRyan; @ShawnLassiterTX; @wisdems; @DevalPatrick; @ColinAllredTX | Opinions are my own

[Samuel Lopez-Barton @SamBartonNOLA]

“Talaríco”

[Jessy Han @hjessy_]

this is how everyone needs to be pronouncing ‘Talarico’ until November

[mavsmarie @mavsmarie]

Congresswoman Crockett didn’t even post anything. Nothing on her Instagram or 2 accounts on here.

Talarico took the time to put out a statement AND stick to his policies on banning gerrymandering.

As I’ve been saying, this behavior is WEIRD.

[Organizermemes @OrganizerMemes]

There's a story to be written about these khive accounts who are actively lying about the democratic nominee in a crucial battleground race because they lost the primary.

[Samuel Lopez-Barton @SamBartonNOLA]

@karolineleavitt True partner in oppressing minorities, spreading hate and lies. Get the fuck out of here, the Yak is too pure for you

[Latino Victory @latinovictoryus]

Fair maps, real democracy. Our commitment to voting power remains firm

Louisiana v. Callais is a step back for voting rights. We continue fighting for a democracy where every voice counts. 🗳️⚖️ #LatinoVictory #VotingRights

[Samuel Lopez-Barton @SamBartonNOLA]

I’m a white dude married to a Chicago Mexicanita and I just realized @RealMikeyBets might be my spirit animal. The real question is does he sing Tragos Amargos when he’s hammered

[JazzBG 🇧🇬🇪🇺🇺🇦 @JazzBulgaria]

Every time Trump’s poll numbers drop:

[Aakash Gupta @aakashgupta]

If you pitched this as a screenplay, every studio would reject it for being too on-the-nose.

Fernando Mendoza was a 2-star recruit ranked 2,149th in his high school class. Zero FBS scholarship offers. Not one. He walked on at Cal, fought for a starting job, transferred to Indiana for his senior year, then led them to 16-0 and the first national title in school history. Heisman, Walter Camp, Maxwell, Davey O'Brien, Manning, Big Ten MVP. 41 TDs, 72% completion, 8-to-0 TD-to-INT ratio in the playoffs.

The Raiders took him #1 overall Thursday night. $54.56M fully guaranteed. Only the third player ever to win the Heisman, win a national championship, and go first overall the next spring. Burrow. Newton. Mendoza.

Then he skipped Pittsburgh.

The biggest stage in football, the moment every kid imagines from the second they pick up a ball, and Fernando watched the call from his living room in Florida because his mom Elsa is in a wheelchair and the travel is hard for her. She was diagnosed with MS when he was 4. She wrote a letter to her sons in The Players Tribune in 2015 promising the disease "won't affect us in the ways that matter."

The part nobody talks about: while every other top pick was on stage, Fernando announced the Mendoza Family Fund the same day. $500K personal donation to the National MS Society. Committed to raising $1M over three years. He hasn't taken an NFL snap and he's already given more to a cause than most players donate in a full career.

He and his brother Alberto have already raised $360K through the Mendoza Bros. Burger at BuffaLouie's in Bloomington. At Christmas, he handed four families dealing with MS $10,000 each for an Adidas shopping spree.

Both his parents are children of Cuban refugees who fled Castro. His dad rowed at Brown, won a Junior World Championship in 1987, and played high school football in Miami next to a teammate named Mario Cristobal. Fernando beat his dad's old teammate in the national championship game in January.

Every athlete talks about playing for their family. Fernando actually did it.

[Mike Madrid @madrid_mike]

New AP polling shows Donald Trump at ~25% approval among Hispanic voters.

That’s not just a dip.
It’s below his 2018 midterm baseline—and is the lowest point of his political career with this electorate. 🧵

[Michael Karlis @MichaelKarlis]

TEXAS NEWS:
James Talarico makes surprise appearance at NIOSA in San Antonio as part of Fiesta 2026.

[T-Bob Hebert @TBob53]

This is why he’s a #1 pick

[Latino Victory @latinovictoryus]

The next generation isn’t waiting—they’re already stepping up.

Join us for a conversation on what’s ahead for Latino leadership in Florida, featuring Samuel Vilchez Santiago and Felipe Sousa-Lazaballet, who are shaping the future and building power at every level.

From representation to real impact, this is about what’s next—and who’s leading it.

📅 Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ 5:00 PM ET
📍 Substack
🔗 Substack Link: https://t.co/DH0qlKaAlk

#LatinoVictory #FloridaPolitics #NextGeneration #LatinoLeadership #RepresentationMatters

[Tommy Vietor @TVietor08]

Man this is worrisome. Would love to hear more about a plan to fix the imbalance or get back the donors who have stayed away.

[Samuel Lopez-Barton @SamBartonNOLA]

Must be said @BarstoolYak @Katiemoneygrabz because she’ll read this.

1. @chefdonnyy and @clubtrillion wearing same pattern as shirt and pants

2. Get fresh El Milagro tortillas in Chicago, will change your life

[Samuel Lopez-Barton @SamBartonNOLA]

I have so much hate in my heart for the Kings and queens of the graveyard who have facilitated a broke democratic establishment and a rerun of 2024

[Samuel Lopez-Barton @SamBartonNOLA]

Finally watched today’s recap and all the flowers to @rone and @OhioTate

[David Axelrod @davidaxelrod]

Kudos to Mrs. Ballmer and the other donor!
I hope others who have the means will follow her example.

[Jesús Rodríguez @jesusrodriguezb]

I wrote about Bobby Pulido, the Tejano singer running for Congress whose opponent dismissed him as a “quinceañera act.” Well, guess where’s he’s campaigning?

A story about tradition and my first in @NewYorker, from Texas →

[Bobby Scott @BobbyScott4VA3]

A message from me and two of Virginia’s most respected and trusted Democratic voices regarding the Redistricting Referendum - Vote Yes, Virginia!

[Natalie Louise Lucas (Shorter)🪷 @NatalieLShorter]

How a trash-talking, meme-posting great-grandmother pulled Virginia into a fight that could define the midterms. (Click the photo)

https://t.co/ZNoDwLw0G3

[Nancy Pelosi @TeamPelosi]

Listen to @SenLouiseLucas: We didn’t start this fight, but we’re going to finish it!

#VoteYESVirginia