Daily Caller reports that Texas Democratic congressional candidate Bobby Pulido is facing intense backlash after old social media posts resurfaced in which he claimed that child molestation is “not necessarily rape” and defended bringing a convicted child sex offender to perform at a middle school benefit concert.

Pulido, a Latin Grammy-winning Tejano singer running against Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz in Texas’ 15th Congressional District, invited his longtime bandmate and accordionist Frankie Caballero — a registered sex offender convicted of indecent sexual contact with an 8-year-old girl — to perform at Harwell Middle School in Edinburg, Texas, in 2018.

In 2018 tweets defending the decision, Pulido wrote:  

“Child molestation is abhorrent. But is not necessarily rape or murder… My point, and Geraldo’s point, is they have been unfairly demonized.”

He compared criticism of child molesters to saying “whites shouldn’t be able to buy guns because most mass shooters are white.”

Pulido has repeatedly claimed he was unaware of Caballero’s status as a sex offender at the time, but reports show he continued touring with him for years after the conviction, bragged in a 2019 interview about getting him out of jail, and even joked about his criminal history on stage.

The scandal has drawn sharp criticism from Republicans, with the RNC calling Pulido “Pervy Pulido” and questioning his judgment and moral fitness to serve in Congress.

Pulido is the Democratic nominee in a competitive South Texas district. His campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment.