Former U.S. Rep. Colin Allred is calling out state Rep. James Talarico after a TikTok creator alleged Talarico privately called Allred a “mediocre Black man” while praising U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett as a “formidable, intelligent Black woman.” Talarico is white.

The creator, Morgan Thompson, says the comment came during what’s been described as a private conversation on Jan. 12 after a town hall in Plano, Texas.

​While Thompson does not have a recording to verify the exchange and expected to receive backlash, she shared that she still “felt like it was important enough to bring forward, given the nature of everything,” according to Politico.

Eventully news of the viral TikTok video made it to Allred, and the former U.S. representative didn’t mince words.

“I understand that James Talarico had the temerity and the audacity to say to a Black woman that he had signed up to run against a ‘mediocre Black man,’ meaning me, not a ‘formidable, intelligent Black woman,’ meaning Jasmine Crockett,” he said in a video on his social media platforms on Monday.

“First of all, let me just give you some free advice, James: If you want to compliment Black women, just do it. Just do it,” Allred said. “Don’t do it while also tearing down a Black man. We’ve seen that play before. We’re sick and tired of it.”

Allred, who is now running for Congress in the 33rd District against Rep. Julie Johnson (D-Texas), continued: “When you make an accusation, you often have a bit of confession in it. Maybe you use the word mediocre because there was something creeping into your mind about yourself.”

Thompson, who initially leaned toward supporting Talarico, says the remark exposed the “blind spots that white people can have, whether they have good intent or not.”

Talarico denied attacking Allred on the basis of race.

“In my praise of Congresswoman Crockett, I described Congressman Allred’s method of campaigning as mediocre – but his life and service are not. I would never attack him on the basis of race,” Talarico said in the statement.

In his sharply worded video, Allred also urged voters to back Crockett instead, saying, “Go vote for Jasmine Crockett… This man should not be our nominee for United States Senate.”

Crockett called the controversy “unfortunate” at the start of Black History Month, but said Allred “drew a line in the sand” by standing up for people demeaned in politics.

“[Allred] made it clear that he did not take allegations of an attack on him as simply another day in the neighborhood, but more importantly, his post wasn’t about himself,” she said. “It was a moment that he decided to stand for all people who have been targeted and talked about in a demeaning way as our country continues to be divided.”

Early polling has Crockett and Talarico neck-and-neck, with Crockett dominating among Black Democratic voters ahead of the March 3 primary.