I see no path to the White House for this guy in 2020. If the cable news outlets CNN and MSNBC (especially MS) don't tone down the adulations, we'll be certain to get you know who for another disastrous term.
7
Good luck. I could not watch him on TV yesterday morning. His hand/arm movements reminded me of Joe Cocker at Woodstock.
4
NYTs coverage of Beto thus far has been overwhelming negatively spun. Disappointed that you are not giving a fair, balanced approach to his campaign as he is a strong contender. Your coverage of Biden however, seems to take the opposite lens. We enjoy the NYTs and would like to see all candidates get fair coverage, including Beto.
"Born To Run"...from the cops. And the person he hit in his DWI.
3
My first comment may have been too direct or whatever and so I'm here trying a different tack.
I'm trying to point out that Bernie Sanders can "set the stage" for the future this country must prepare for now. You see the young striking school for Climate Change, voter rights deterioration among minorities, the curse of gerrymandering, lobbying, Citizens United, Foreign Relations around the globe, and more. These necessary issues will have to be faced in the near future, I point out, because I don't see them all coming to fruition right away and not all at once. In order to prepare the landscape for this needed change, we will need a stabilizing force to lead us out of this Trump morass and onto the world stage with clean hands where someone like Beto O'Rourke or maybe better, Stacy Abrams can continue the march. They will come because they are already on their way. In the meantime, we need that stabilization leading us out of this dark chapter we must close. That stabilizing force is Bernie Sanders.
P.S. Sanders may not make it because of the tendency for these elections to be popularity contests without much reason for voting one over the other. "They" always say, I just like the other one. This go round it's really important and Sanders knows it. He will prove his determination in the coming months and I hope the right people are watching and listening.
2
Beto could win where Hillary lost (PA, WI, MI...) in 2016 and gather enough EC votes to become President in 2020. He already showed his potential to galvanize centrists and moderate conservatives in TX, where Beto drastically reduced the Republicans’ advantage from 21 to 2 points (comparing w/Wendy Davis’). Extrapolate the above nationwide and you can see Beto’s strong potential for 2020.
1
The national Democratic party has terrible political instincts, which to a large part contributed to the election of Trump. I hope this Beto thing is just a short lived infatuation and we can move on and find a serious candidate that can both win and govern. O'Rourke's run against Cruz showed us that Texas shows signs of turning blue, but he still lost. He should run for the other senate seat, get some real governing experience and try again at a later date. He's young, there's plenty of time.
9
I am 78 yrs old. As a woman, I voted for Hillary Clinton because not only was she a Democrat,but a woman with incredible experience. This time, before my time is up, I again want a woman,and there are many with the experience to lead. But instead, we see the media going gaga over an old man, Joe Biden, who comes with lots of baggage, and a frenetic handwaving,finger-pointing, young man with little experience. Please let’s get it right! Kamalah and Amy showed us during the Kavanaugh hearing that they are tough and well versed. I believe they can take on Trump. Let’s not allow the media, many of whom I respect, to determine who our next president will be!
2
@NMS -certainly Amy and Kamala can take on Trump but that doesn't carry over to the general Dem electorate. I'd like to have a woman in the top spot too but the only woman who I think can handle Trump and she can easily prove to the rest of us why she's the one for President in 2020. She's pretty much running the country very well as it is now, thank you.
2
@willw - sorry to overlook my subject - Nancy Pelosi
1
He’s just a Representative, with just three terms and “few notable legislative accomplishments”. How is that remotely qualifying for the Presidency?
7
To all those saying Beto does not have the experience, do you not realize he was in Congress roughly three times as long as Obama was when he ran for president, and about three times as long as Kamala Harris has been?
4
This comment is intended to be a warning to those who donate to Beto's campaign.
I gladly donated once to his last campaign. From that time on until the end of the race - which was months - my cell phone received multiple texts every single day from his campaign soliciting more money from me. As soon as I blocked one number from texting me another one would send an identical request for money.
Based upon my own findings and emailed conversations with his campaign, various entities operate to raise money and they all have programmed my phone number into their data base which robo texts solicitations to those phone numbers in their servers. There is no opt out feature and no way to get my name out of their data base. No way. They don't know how to remove it if they wanted to, at least that is what they are telling me.
Apparently they also obtained my contact information from the Democratic Party to which I donate. I received solicitations to donate to various other Democrats during the last election cycle and could opt out of future solicitations. No so with Beto.
After the Beto texting continued daily and could not be resolved at the campaign level I finally had to turn off texting on my phone which was very inconvenient for me but necessary.
Just today I started receiving Beto's text messages for donations. So the cycle begins.
I am looking into taking legal action to stop Beto from continuing to text my phone. I
9
Joe Biden should announce his candidacy and simultaneously announce Stacy Abrams as his running mate! Now that is a winning combo!
Go Democrats!
Vote straight Dems in 2020!
4
Here we go again.
So Beto's clearly the media darling. Last night, every station I watched had long, gushing, coy coverage. The posing, the packaging, the branding... wow. What I don't hear or see is a candidate voicing complex ideas with any insight or depth.
He's a soundbite on a skateboard. He may well end up being an impressive candidate, but count me as underwhelmed in the moment, and shoving him down my throat 24/7 is not going to change that.
It bothers me because apparently our attention span no longer makes it past the two year mark. It took months for the reports to come out confirming what millions of us pointed out during the campaign...that Hilary received significantly, tangibly, measurably less coverage overall and more negative coverage even though it was abundantly clear very early in the game that we were dealing with a criminal thug with a professed taste for sexual violence.
Beto has already received significantly more and more fawning attention than any of the women running. Has the media learned nothing? Is it still any man, by dint of being a man, trumps the women in the field? I hope journalists hold themselves to a much higher standard this time. You could do no worse than ensuring that all candidates receive exactly the same amount of coverage and not holding women to a different standard.
It's time for journalists to stop gushing and start asking questions.
----
https://www.vox.com/2016/4/15/11410160/hillary-clinton-media-bernie-sanders
10
Teddy Roosevelt- "Speak softly and carry a big stick."
Beto O'Rourke- "What is a stick? How do you use it?"
6
I can't decide whether O'Rourke is a bobblehead or a Howdy Doody. The guy just cannot talk without doing a St. Vitus Dance. All that energy is too distracting.
But, Rep. William Hurd took a road trip with him and calls him friend, so I got to at least listen to what he has to say.
Beto, please, learn a new dance!
7
Being a blank page is at least as much of a positive than it is a negative. People will read what they want to see. That said, he does seem to have a genuine knowledge of issues that people care about, does seem genuinely concerned with the common good, does seem honest and smart. After Trump people may again be ready for nuance, thoughtfulness, and a truly unifying discourse. This will probably translate into roughly centrist positions, which may be more realistic than promising to turn the US into Norway.
Let's also not forget the VP slot, which in his case may be a tremendous stepping stone. A Harris-O'Rourcke ticket might work, who knows?
What a wonderful article that doesn't waste the readers time with trivial matters like his actual position on issues of concern.Why would a reporter inquire about this when we can dwell on the issue of whether his whiteness will work against him and the fact that he likes to skateboard and shake hands with people. Trump is wrong about fake news proclamations, a better phrase would be no news.
5
Beto has a high energy level, the intellect necessary to earn an Ivy League degree, a demonstrated ability to take his message into areas not normally receptive to Democratic candidates, and a stage presence assuredly a cut or two above that of Bernie and Biden. So welcome to the top tier.
1
Mr. O'Rourke is the great white hope married to the 2 Billion Dollar woman (wife's family real estate value).
He outspent Senator Cruz 2 to 1 and still lost.
He had more campaign signs in Bethesda Md and Marin County CA then in Texas.
4
Republicans fear Beto. If you understand why this is, then you will understand that he is the only person (currently running) that can beat Trump.
Why do they fear him? Why?
"You see things; and you say 'Why?'. But I dream things that never were; and I say 'Why not?'."
--- George Bernard Shaw
--- The Serpent to Eve
--- Robert F. Kennedy
Because he, like Trump, says 'Why not?'.
It really is as simple as that.
1
He is certainly chapping Trump's hide.
I personally like Eric Swalwell's chances better, but there you go. We will see.
2
Beto's success in Texas was attributed to Tech and Civic Engagement that brought in new voters.
What Beto did in Texas changes the dynamics of campaigning in the modern era of democratic politics.
He spent more online than any campaign in the cycle, through which he set up 800 "pop up" offices, eschewed tribalism from the right and left and focused on unifying values. (See Beto's Viral Video about the right to peacefully protest - NFL players kneeling).
Cruz and Abbott and the PACs had more money and more runway than Beto. Without political consultants that have a vested interest in TV ads and print mailers, the online strategy went "non linear," developing a subscriber based to fund the campaign and volunteers that reach out to voters that normally do not participate. The campaign promoted civic engagement and sought the high information voter.
“We watched what he did in Texas in the race against Cruz and realized his potential within the Democratic primary system is enormously larger than what people are giving him credit for right now" - Club for Growth President (who are running liberal ads against Beto in Iowa).
Texas is in play -- that's huge to the electoral equation. Down ballot Democrats in Texas won seats across the board.
Democratic Super Delegates have to wait this time.
Local union endorsements, 65+ primary participants, IA,NH,SC are yesterday's model.
Beto and others who seek to enlarge civic engagement and civic discourse may yet save our democracy.
That is exactly how we got JFK and ended up with a war in Vietnam that killed 58,000 Americans.
1
With social media, now more than ever, one qualification is decisive for president - stirring excitement.
Trump showed, as did Obama, that the candidate better able to inspire people (however misplaced) will win. And Trump certainly proved that paper qualifications - Hillary had them in spades - don't matter any more.
I couldn't care less what Beto thinks about the issues, because most voters don't care. He will have time to work out dull stuff like policy after he wins.
The critique that Beto may not be ready for prime time is fair. But who else in the crowded Democratic field is stirring the excitement necessary (or even has that potential) to beat Trump?
No one.
2
Let’s add that as a presidential requirement in the Constitution, must stir excitement. At least, that is how we got Trump. People like you said the same, he will get qualified people to guide him. But in fact he never has and shoots from the hip.
2
@ Publix’s
We don’t need a celebrity as president.
Beto has an EGO problem as obvious as Obama and trump.
They all love themselves too much and are not equipped to be follow up leaders to a despot.
Obama ushers despots in
While trump encourages hate in office.
Beto will lose to trump.
He reminds me of a teenager.
Does he have ADD????
I see no leadership qualities.
Just a media spin cuz he has charisma.
Amy Klobuchar is my choice for the battle with trump.
She is a secret weapon who should not be underestimated.
Heartland meets coastal heartland and merges their messaging.
That might kick our despot off his perch.
Although after today trump should be arrested by Federal Marshalls.
No ;Beto is a spoiler like Schulz. And Biden and Sanders.
Biden shouldn’t be cajoling Stacy Abrams either.
The guy is desperate to be president. Stacy doesn’t need him to advance.
Call Amy , Stacy!!!!!!
3
Beto O'Rourke went to every county in Texas, repeatedly. He talked, and more importantly listened, to every citizen and voter he met.
You have to admire that. This is retail politics at its finest, in the best and most genuine sense of what that means.
3
Yes, but he lost anyway. That is what matters.
5
It's been interesting reading the many comments that claim O'Rourke doesn't have any policy positions. He supports the Green New Deal. He supports universal health coverage, albeit through a strengthening of the ACA and making medicare available to all who want it. He supports inclusivity for people of all races, sexual orientation and so on. He is against PACs or all kinds, and won't take their money.
Tell me again what's not to like.
1
No. This time it's got to be a woman. I am a 59-year-old, middle class, moderately liberal and highly reasonable white woman, and I am (at last) choking on my rage. Brett Kavanaugh was the last straw. Call me sexist and you'd be right. I have my reasons, and I'm sticking to them.
3
I have seen several comments on this thread consistent with the current stupid GOP strategy to label all Democrats as socialists or communists.
- Alexandrian Ocasio-Cortez is a self-proclaimed socialist. She is also a powerless naive freshman U.S. Rep who has no clout.
- Bernie Sanders is a self-proclaimed socialist. I agree with him about Medicare For All, a policy that is consistent with all other developed (capitalist) nations in the world.
- The rest of the Democratic Party are full-blown capitalists, like O'Rourke. We support well-regulated capitalism, which has proven to be the best system of government for both workers and owners of capital over the last century and a half.
---
The Republican Party, under Mr. Trump, has lost its mind. Ronald Reagan famously said that "Government IS the problem," but he didn't really mean it. Smart Republicans, like Jack Kemp, understood that.
As a Democrat, I'm all for limited government, with a safety net. The private sector addresses most of our wants and needs, and is a good thing. And I appreciate old-school Republicans reining in the expansion of government, as appropriate.
Today's Trump-Republican Party has lost its way. They think that government is inherently bad. They are not Libertarians.
Today's Republicans are anarchists.
"Deconstruction of the administrative state." - Steve Bannon
These people are nut-jobs. They are radicals. They are anti-American. They just don't get it.
Wake up, people!
Save our nation!
2
I see that Trump has weighed in to say he thinks Beto is "crazy" because he moves his hands a lot when talking. Don, guess what? He's alarmed. Just like the rest of us whenever we think about who our president is.
1
Beto just said that the world will end in 12 years because of climate change (seas will rise by 1 inch by then, for instance, killing billions...)
So the US economy has to be destroyed, starting with its energy independence, to save the world.
His biggest priority appears to be to tear down the existing southern wall.
Other than that, he appears to be the typical charming moderate full of great ideas.
2
The only reason Beto almost defeated Ted Cruz was Mr. Cruz's own hubris. Ted did not even start campaigning until after Labor Day and after he noticed Mr. O' Rourke had suddenly made some big gains in early polling.
Nevertheless, Mr. O'Rourke though doing a yeoman's effort, clearly got smoked in the debates.
Nice guy, really, POTUS, hmmm...
3
I hope Beto O’Rourke doesn’t venture to this comment board. I never imagined that so many readers of this fine paper would skin him alive. This is exactly why “young” politicians get turned off to serving their country in an elected office. Democrats, as an electorate can be a nasty, fickle, and difficult to please bunch. Ask Hillary. Ask Al Gore.
For your information, Beto O’Rourke is one of the few candidates with the least amount of baggage to haul. Booker, Harris, Sanders, Gillibrand, Warren all have had some clouds of controversy that won’t go away.
Give Beto a chance, Hear him out. If he hasn’t convinced you by your state primary, by all means, do not vote for him! There really is no need to trash or disrespect him or his supporters. Remember: We’re not the enemy!
Beto O'Rouke: The great platitudinous nothing burger. I'm certain his steam will evaporate pretty quickly.
And please don't compare Beto with Barack Obama, whose aspirational rhetoric was backed up by substance, lots and lots of it, replete with facts and specific plans for action and change.
Goodbye, Beto. Nice knowing you. Now please make way for Joe Biden, who's the only candidate I know with the gravitas and international expertise to start rebuilding America's lost reputation and global leadership.
6
I’m usually the first to praise young, progressive candidates, but Robert O’Rourke (aka “Beto”) is not that. He is simply a younger, more handsome version of many mediocre, moderate Dems, who themselves are just Republicans with “coexist” bumper stickers on their cars. Last year, Beto O’Rourke accepted more money from oil lobbying firms than any other candidate (Republican or Democrat) — second only to Ted Cruz. Speaking of which, Beto was unable to win a race against Ted Cruz, one of the most reviled men in politics. No thank you.
5
Should have stayed in Texas, Beto. We needed you there. The national campaign is going to be down and dirty, and that's not even taking into account what happens AFTER the primaries.
Sigh.........well, good luck, man. You're going to need it.
5
While the Mueller investigation is still incomplete, how can any politician think it appropriate to concentrate on their personal ambitions? Trump is appointing judges to important positions, and has unqualified, or fatally biased, 'friends' in critical positions, several of whom have already been indicted. His reluctant grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX is just the latest example of corporate influence. The poor judgment of these Democratic candidates makes me disqualify all of them.
2
In reply to nigel cairns San Diego
Mr O’Rourke could beat President Trump in November 2020. It is the surest way to remove President Trump from office.
I was not a Beto fan until I saw him on CNN this morning talking to people in Iowa. He seemed so sincere, honest and straight forward something that I want to see in a candidate for President. I will support whoever wins the nomination against trump but I hope it is Beto or someone like him.
5
A comment by ChristineMcM on Beto is spot on: "I see charisma over leadership, and ego ("I was born to run") over proven competence."
It also aptly describes the same 'qualities' that Barack Obama brought to his presidential campaign. And then to his presidency. Ditto for Donald Trump.
So the real question to us Americans is that, after three presidential elections of rewarding sparkle over substance, when will we learn to be more judicious in our choice of candidates?
10
I'm not sure what to make of Beto O'Rourke so far, but If you don't have anything good to say, don't say anything. The constant nitpicking at Dem candidate after Dem candidate is infuriating. Every time someone announces, here comes the avalanche of nitpickers. We see it again here with O'Rourke, as we did with Bernie, Warren, Booker, Harris, etc. etc., literally every single one so far. I understand some of the critics are simply Republicans trying to cause mischief but the numbers clearly show that most of us will in the end have to support someone who is not our first choice. Why continually help the Republicans by attacking the person who may ultimately become your party's nominee?
4
Biden has shown he can be an excellent VP.
O'Rourke does not even close to having a smidgeon of qualifications to even run for POTUS. He has accomplished nothing in his short political career. Having him as the nominee would be a disaster. Even having him on the ticket as VP would be a disaster.
8
@Rit
What had Mr. Trump accomplished before becoming POTUS?
For that matter, what had Mr. Obama accomplished before becoming POTUS?
Give Mr. O'Rourke a chance. You might be pleasantly surprised.
2
@Rit
Unlike Trump, who had years and years of wise and forthright political leadership before he decided, reluctantly, to run for President because the American people demanded it.
As a liberal, left-ist leaning, 60-something-year-old woman living in a very red southern state, I find Beto interesting. This early on in the campaign(s), I'm listening to all the dem candidates. It appears to me that Beto's presence in what is a very broad field of candidates may help to separate the wheat from the chaff. He has definitely stirred a lot of interest.
In the mean time, Trump associates are being convicted right and left, state courts are focusing on his businesses, we're breathlessly awaiting the release of Mueller's final report. I don't know why we haven't heard anything from the Repubs insofar as who they may run in 2020 should Trump be out of the picture, so Dems need to start thinking about more than "anyone but Trump."
16
@de'laine
Beto is more than interesting. He's by far the best candidate out there. And he can beat president Trump.
I thought Mitch Landrieu would be the best to beat Trump. That changed this morning seeing Beto's performance in Iowa.
But when all are matched up against each other, there maybe another one who might edge out Beto, but quite unlikely, I believe.
I have another feeling that Joe Biden may choose not to run, seeing how impressive Beto O'Rourke is. He's itching to jump in, also because he thinks the current crop may not beat Trump!
I was actually worried about the poor caliber of the candidates, until I watched both John Delaney & Pete Buttigieg on Monday on CNN, both of whom were quite impressive. Somehow, nobody said anything about Delaney, which surprised me. His looks are quite unimpressive, but only until he opens his mouth & start speaking, so clearly with no fumbling and sufficiently progressive without scaring anyone at the "middle of the road." This has nothing to do with the gender of the candidates. I was for Mrs. Clinton in 2008 Primary.
There maybe a possibility that Trump may not be the Republican candidate next year. We can worry about that if it comes to that.
As for electoral match up, among the Republicans, Trump is still the most formidable, I think.
@A.G. His only claim to fame is losing to Ted Cruz, after accepting $500,000 from oil lobbying firms. What a joke. He is handsome and charismatic—that’s it.
1
Dear fellow Democrats,
For those of you who are critical of O'Rourke, who do you support as the Democratic nominee, and why?
---
I have a great deal of admiration for Joe Biden. I wish he were ten years younger. I wish he had run in 2016. He would have won.
Kamala Harris is bright and exhibits strong leadership qualities. But she has supported the Universal Basic Income platform advocated by a handful of Silicon Valley billionaires. That policy is problematic for me (as a liberal democrat). We should stand for equal opportunity, not equal outcomes.
I agree with Bernie Sanders on many (but not all) issues. Especially Medicare for All (or some form of universal health coverage, like the rest of the developed world has adopted). His window was 2016. And I appreciate the impact of his message at that time.
I agree with Elizabeth Warren on many (but not all) issues. I appreciate her work to create the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. But I fear she is fighting the last war against Wall Street, and not even aware of what the next battle is all about.
---
I will enthusiastically support the next Democratic nominee for president in 2020, whomever it is.
And I see nothing wrong with Robert Francis O'Rourke carrying that torch. He listens to people. He is positive and forward-looking. I agree with most (but not all) of his policy positions. Most importantly, I think he can win on the national stage in 2020.
7
I will not vote for anyone who runs on generational or any other type of division. It seems the Democratic Party increasingly has only identity politics to offer, with its members voting more and more frequently, like this candidate, with the Republicans. But then the Democratic Party has become the Republican Party of my youth, and has become more and more old-fashioned and status quo, regardless of the age of its presidential candidates.
7
I think y'all need to check yourself, before you wreck yourself.
Does it really matter who you vote for, when you vote for this instead of that, nose clamped?
Frank Zappa for president.
1
Beto O’Rourke lags behind Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders in name recognition, but many voters have bitter memories of the two older men.
O’Rourke is criticized in this article for having no major victories during his time in the House of Representatives. With Republicans in control of the House, no Democrats became legislative stars.
A more damning criticism, however, is O’Rourke’s lack of party loyalty. He will have to prove himself more sensitive to the needs of other Democrats during the primary season.
The fact that Beto O’Rourke is probably more centrist than many of the younger Democrats bodes well for his likely ability to win a general election against the phony populist, Donald Trump.
O'Rourke strikes many voters as a practical progressive, which means fair-minded, interested in the needs of working people and -- importantly -- electable.
3
How pathetic that Beto O'Rourke makes headlines.
What has he done in life except be born handsome to an affluent, politically connected and ambitious family?
He's the Democratic Jared Kushner.
10
Go Joe Biden with running mate Stacy Abrams!
Vote straight Dems in 2020!
1
not yet,Beto. Not yet. Run for Senate instead.
5
I am so worn of cults of personality. Well let's see what he has to say.
7
https://secure.actblue.com/donate/bernie-email-template?akid=533.1707029.4-Imkg&rd=1&refcode=em_logo&refcode2=533_1707029_4-Imkg&t=1
Beto gained a lot of support from Sanders supporters so that he would beat Cruz......unfortunately he lost
2
I would thinK this news item rates a little higher up on the page, wouldn't you?
2
I don't know much about his politics, but I'd like to watch Beto face off with AOC in a corn on the cob eating contest.
5
Anyone else get the feeling the people who would obviously lose, Joe and Bernie, are getting the fake/imposter Democrat talk up treatment?
While the ones they fear, Beto and Kamala, are getting the fake Democrat comments about how they can't win.
1
"I want to leave you with this." " The only way for us to live up to the promise of America is to give it our all and give it to all of us."
That is Trump... That is independence and liberty!
Beto is already President!
1
Beto O'Rourke has been reading his press a little too much. With all the attention and adulation he got in the Texas race, he lost to that execrable excuse for a Senator, Ted Cruz. Clearly, O'Rourke can't even carry Texas.
6
Did Trump really just mock somebody else for "crazy" and/or excessive hand movement? The very specific projections he constantly voices *have* to be on purpose. But that would suggest that he's sufficiently self-aware to know which behaviors to single out.
Turn off the sound sometime when Trump is spewing on TV (as I invariably need to). He looks like somebody has just ill-advisedly removed his straightjacket. As if the clownish raccoon tanning eyes and the orange Flock of Seagulls thing on his head wasn't absurd enough, there's the enraged cobra gesture he makes with his right hand, the angry pinky wave with both hands, the incredulous sideways shout to an offstage character, the televangelist's open arm pose (held a bit too long) . . . and of course, that bizarre PDA thing he does with American flags.
At CPAC he looked like Mussolini on a 5-day meth binge.
Combine this body language, which in its way is actually the most truthful form of expression that Trump is capable of, with the words that come out of his mouth and the things he actually seems to think and believe, and it all adds up to a deeply unhinged individual.
Contrast this with Mr. O'Rourke, who certainly needs to work on some more cogent and specific policy ideas, but whose enthusiasm is both genuine and charismatic. His stage presence is a bit like Obama at his best. He'd make an excellent VP to offset the occasional woodenness and, let's face it, the age concerns, of a Warren or Sanders ticket.
4
@Scottb
Well, it's all about cosmetics and a packaged product, right? Let's see how well he's able to say nothing and how good he looks doing it. "Hope and change," anyone? We've been propagandized not to care about "policies."
4
ah the hand wringing of the coastal elites. Beto went to every county in Texas and asked for their votes, he is progressive in many areas, if you think Americans vote on platform, please slap yourself in the face. Americans vote on who the person, their charisma, leadership and it factor. W was simply a better candidate than either Gore or Kerry, Trump won because lets face it nobody likes Hillary. This guy took off and ran on his instincts that the people in this country want and deserve more, he never bad mouthed Cruz or even mentioned Trump by name. Cruz eked out a victory by two points in a state Clinton lost by 9. He increased the voter turnout in the midterms to Presidential levels and as a result we won two Republican House seats and came within an eye lash of two more. I can tell you who not getting elected Bernie, Warren, Gillibrand, Klobuchar, Butteig, Castro, et al. The big four are Kamela, Biden, Beto and Booker. Any combination of those four will win.
2
I propose a new law that has absolutely zero chance of ever getting passed or taken seriously by the political class. NO ONE can actively run for president until one year prior to the election date. Also, something something election finance reform laws.
2
I am a Virginian, but I made more than one donation to Beto in Texas, something I'd never done before. I wanted to see Cruz go down. I thought Beto O'Roarke might take him down.
But now I'm VERY uneasy.
I see shining worship in the eyes of Beto's wife and it really scares me. I know that look. I've seen it before in the eyes of women being gaslighted. It's not the look of a woman who loves her husband. It's the look of a woman who is not rational. I see the same look in the eyes of his supporters. The supporters of Beto O'Roarke are not rational. They mistake his charm and charisma for the qualities of a good President.
He's a small time mayor and a small time congressman with few (no?) legislative achievements. He LOST a Senate race against the most hated man in the Senate. Granted, Texas is about the hardest place in the Universe for a Democrat to get elected and Beto ALMOST did it. That's nothing to sneeze at. If he HAD done it, I'd say that he should most certainly run for President. He didn't do it.
Given that Beto O'Roarke has not, he seems to be a man who believes his own Cult of Personality. This is profoundly dangerous. We have a man who believe his own Great Lie currently in the Oval Office. It's one thing to believe in yourself, it's quite another to believe in yourself in the absence of commensurate achievements!
Obama got elected to the Senate. Beto O'Roarke did not. To run for President is... well... Narcissistic. A shovel is a shovel.
7
The younger, less comical Howard Schultz. Yay. Add Beto to the list of candidates without any core values or stated policies.
6
Should Trump being drawing attention and inviting comparison to another man’s hands?
1
The more you know about him, the less appealing he may become....
6
Any Democrat who thinks of himself, or herself, as a real progressive who would vote for O'Rourke is just uninformed.
The same Hillary Clinton cult members that gave the country to Trump are now aligning behind this new candidate that voted more than any other Democrat in Congress to support the Trump/Republican agenda and has taken more money than anyone else (second only to Ted Cruz) from the oil and gas industry.
Maybe they are fooled because of Beto's delivery over TV that is as if he's studied Obomber's mannerisms ? The Dems don’t need another haircut, with nothing to add to the conversation. He talks pretty in empty platitudes, but says absolutely nothing and everyone swoons. I thought we were over candidates like this?
Centrists at MSNBC and the Chuck Todd media complex are trying hard to sell him and I’m sure he’ll get the low info Democratic voter but most people that follow actual policy positions will see him as style over substance, the ideal DNC candidate who will maintain the current ship of state right back into tRump's hands, benefiting the DNC's corporate focus.
Big-Oil Beto, sounds almost as good as Frackenlooper.
Voted to deregulate banks
Loves AIPAC
Supports fracking
Voted with GOP a lot
Voted to fast track TPP
Broke no fossil fuel money pledge
Doesn’t back Medicare for all
Didn’t back FightFor15
Lost to Ted Cruz
This guy is an empty vessel, a copy of Obama with some John Edwards thrown in for good measure. Ultimately worthless.
7
Beto O'Rourke is like the young guy at the office who has been vaulted into a high level position without the chops everyone else around him has. But he looks good and smiles a lot. Trump will eat him alive.
6
@ladyluck
"Trump will eat him alive."
No he won't. Trump may not even survive the Republican primary. And the Republican Party under Trump is a shrinking pie, losing droves of people on a daily basis.
In the 2020 general election, Trump won't get enough votes in Pennsylvania, Michigan, or Wisconsin to be elected dogcatcher.
---
That all said, don't mistake my comments above for complacency. I'm all in for whomever the Democratic nominee ends up being.
1
Amazing to see so many criticizing Beto for embracing capitalism. Regulated capitalism is what makes society work the best, socialism doesn't work. Beto is the kind of center-left candidate the Democrat party needs. With Beto you can get good ideas promoted by Sanders like medicare for all without all the other garbage like breaking up Amazon and 70% tax rates.
2
@Dave,
Your "regulated capitalism" Is just another form of "regulated socialism". We live in a blended economy.
Your 70% tax rate is on any earnings over $10,000,000.
I think they'll be ok. Amazon is a monopoly, America has a valid tradition of breaking up corp. that are too large, too dominate, for our regulated capitalism.
I haven't seen anyone criticizing Beto for embracing capitalism. But I might have missed some. They do have a valid criticism with Beto voting along Trump/Republican lines more than any other D. congressperson. Along with his Oil-money, didn't back $15. min. wage, didn't back M4A.
But hey, it is a big primary, may the best person take Democratic's to the promised land.
1
I found myself feeling a bit unsettled by Beto's rather scattered launch. Though I am interested to see if he is able to put together a cohesive and meaningful message, my gut is telling me Biden's experience will probably be the ticket in the end.
1
has profited immensely from gentrification of traditional Hispanic neighborhoods in El Paso. Shameful and elitist privilege.
6
This is so exciting. Doesn't he remind you of Bobby?
It's going to be Camelot II or Camelot Returns or Camelot Revisited.
My thinking is that Democrats and Republicans have this in common.
Some Republicans do not want to be labeled "Tea Partiers"
Some Democrats do not want to be labeled "Progresses"
2
Beto is unqualified. And "the greatest challenge in living memory?" I'll bet those who lived through WWII might disagree.
6
@Citizen
"'the greatest challenge in living memory?' I'll bet those who lived through WWII might disagree."
Fair enough. But there are very few people alive today who lived through WWII.
1
@MidtownATL
I was born six years after WWII ended, and that war and those who risked their lives and sacrificed everything fighting in it are always with me and will remain so until I take my dying breath.
Trump demeans their enormous sacrifices and accompliments whenever he attacks our allies and derides the value and validity of NATO. He is anti-American and a national and international disgrace.
I want a president who is steeped in our country's history and has the stature and expertise to restore our global leadership role, right our course and lead us forward wisely with policies that will protect our environment and establish economic justice for al economic and social classes in this country.
Beto appears to be a nice guy, but he's a bantam weight and not what we need at this critical juncture.
I don't care about Biden's age. I'm for him and so are many members of my family and friends who voted for that treacherous, narcissistic madman who's currently residing at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Please say it's so, Joe. Run in 2020 and lead this country out of the darkness that's descended over it since January 2017.
Run Joe, run!
3
I honestly don’t think Beto is ready for prime time. But, I will admit, he has the best hair of any Democrat since Kennedy. After that, it starts dropping off fast.
9
"Beto" - not his given name - reminds me of the homecoming king who accidentally caught the winning high school football pass - and thus is a bright, shining object for those who relish such.
The idea of yet another inexperienced wanna be joining the overcrowded Democratic field chills me.
8
Well, I was born to kvetch and moan. Fortuitously, I'm in Kansas.
This IS getting interesting, let the Games Commence. I'd be o.k. with Beto running as VP, with adult supervision. Warren or Klobuchar or Harris.
Thoughts ???
1
I supported Beto last year with money and block walking.
I would prefer that he turn his 2018 momentum into a campaign against Texas' other Senator, John Cornyn. He's not repulsive, like Ted Cruz, but is nevertheless terrible.
5
Call me jaded, but I'd prefer a candidate who at least won a major race. Besides, what's his platform? He's young? He's a uniter? Sorry, but he was a flash-in-the-pan candidate against Cruz. Wait a few years, win an election or two, serve out a term, and then maybe run for president.
47
@David Bertan which of the democratic candidates (including Joe Biden) would have fared better than Beto did in Texas?
5
@David Bertan
He won two elections to the House of Representatives. Do those not count as winning a major election?
3
Yes. Put your energy and talents in a race to beat John Cornyn; a race that you could win. And by so doing help the Democrats win the Senate. A Presidential victory is not realistic for you in 2020; bad, immature decision.
1
Beto is exceptionally impressive. His great charisma is widely known and recognized. But the question has been what're his ideas?
The answers he gave have been immensely impressive. He gave a capsule summary of the issue in question the questioner was asked, and gave an impressively fitting, if I could say so, answer! That was the distinguishing characteristic of him of today.
I thought somebody out in the audience would take a "bullet for him," if it's necessary. Beto is the kind of leaders that capture our imagination & dedication.
I hope he will get the nomination. Until this morning, I wasn't that sold on Beto O'Rourke.
3
Beto can grab what Hillary couldn’t do effectively: the middle and moderate Republicans dissatisfied with Trump, as he did in Texas, a red state. This should suffice to win nationally, even if some Bernie’s Bros and others in the extreme left try to boycott him, as they did to Hillary in 2016.
24
@Gian Piero
I totally agree.
I find Beto an anecdote to Trump's toxicity. I am not sure someone like Bernie can fill that role. I think Bernie and AOC are too extreme. Beto is a left of center moderate which is where a lot of people are.
3
@Gian Piero
If O'Rourke was a strong candidate he would right now be the Junior Senator from Texas.
He out-raised Cruz more than two to one ($80 mil!) - and couldn't win because he has no accomplishments (unless "number of FaceBook posts" is considered an accomplishment)
Cruz lost a ton of credibility when he wouldn't even defend his own family against Trump's personal attacks! How do you think that played with conservative Texans?
It was all set up for the taking in Texas but the Dems had the wrong candidate.
9
@Gian PieroIf If you want republican voters, just run as a republican, Hillary proved that you can run as a democrat and then lose because all she was was a republican who did not hate gay people.
7
I just hope and pray the candidates stay clear of nasty negative campaign adds that will harm their final choice in the general election! Ok to disagree on policy or point out weakness in civil terms but please stay away from ranting and raving about each other.
2
This is pure madness. Democrats have been telling the US public that the chaos emanating from the White House is due to the fact that Mr. Trump did not (and still does not) possess the right qualifications to be the POTUS. Then what does it say about democrats when many of their own candidates are similarly unqualified? Wouldn't that legitimatize Mr. Trump's candidacy for another term?
I suggest The New York Times consider publishing a list of qualifications it regards essential for a POTUS and assign a relative weight to each qualification category. Then let its readers, as well as a group of independent experts, give marks to each candidate for each category. The NYT can then publish (before the primaries?) for every candidate an overall mark as well as average marks obtained in each category; thus, sharing with general Public the views of its readers and independent experts on how qualified each candidate is.
I wonder how Mr. O'Rourke will score on such a list.
4
Democrats who are skeptical about Mr. O'Rourke's strengths as a candidate should consider that $80 million his Senate campaign raised--the most in U.S. history.
And when Mr. Trump asks if you're crazy, it means you're not only sane, but a potential threat. Good work!
2
@Grennan
Democrats who are impressed by Mr. O'Rourke's strengths as a candidate should consider that $80 million his Senate campaign raised--the most in U.S. history, all of which was wasted because he lost to Ted Cruz, who is positively reviled in his own state. This is the functional equivalent of Hillary losing to Trump, who spent half as much money as she did.
4
It’s more important to me how the candidate raises money and who exactly is donating, than the amount raised. If a candidate has many small donors I am impressed. If banks and big business are donors, I’m out.
1
I hate--hate!--to even slightly agree with Trump's critique, but as a media and communications professional, I would advise Beto to tame the use of his hands and gestures while he's speaking, at least for a national audience. Focus is lost. Subtly can be powerful. Less can be more. Vary it up but don't make it your brand. Otherwise, I guarantee he'll see the inevitable (and perhaps unflattering) Saturday Night Live caricature and play right into Trump's (small, sorry, couldn't resist) hands.
3
Seeing lots of comments that Beto is "like us" or somehow, charisma are what matters, not who a person actually is or how they have actually voted (now, people are even saying experience doesn't matter: look at Trump)!
Egads!
He's not like us, at all.
He's cute, it's true...but he is untried, and frankly, what may be popular and politically expedient in Texas is wrong for our times now. Let him run for Senate agains Cornyn. We need that almost as much as the Presidency. But this kid, for President?
Please.
4
Beto looked like a very good presidential prospect to me. That is, up until all of the game-playing he seems so much to enjoy.
"Maybe he'll run!" ... "Maybe he won't!"
Maybe this ... Maybe that ... Maybe, maybe, maybe!
Who knows, it's anybody's guess!
Stay tuned, "I'll let everyone know soon!"
The one main thing we've already learned about Mr. Beto is, he so enjoys keeping us in the dark and guessing!
Isn't that what we ALREADY HAVE IN THE WHITEHOUSE?
3
Here’s a quote from the, let’s face it, elderly lady who cuts my hair at the town barbershop.
“Isn’t he lovely? He’s just lovely. Isn’t he, though? So lovely.
Can’t win, though! Hasn’t grown up yet.”
She’s probably right.
5
He’s more like a teenager than teenagers are.
3
" ... President Trump also swiftly weighed in, using a photo opportunity in the Oval Office to ridicule Mr. O’Rourke ... " I don't know if Mr. O'Rourke is the right choice for the Democrats, but having Mr. Trump insulting him has to be a plus. Still, as an Independent voter who is disgusted by Mr. Trump, I don't think Mr. Biden is a good choice for Democrats. He comes across as an old line, big smile politician who craves attention, and makes too many goofy comments in that quest. And he has a lot of baggage from past decades. Now, after collecting $200,000 to address a Republican-leaning audience last November, he reminds me of Ms. Clinton's exorbitant "speaking fees" from Wall Street firms and major campaign contributions from Mr. Rich's wife. How about a serious, thoughtful, ethical candidate interested in representing all Americans?
2
I don't know much about O'Rourke so will start researching him now but I do know this: I like his age. I am finished with the leadership that white men over 70 have to offer, no matter which party they're in. A section of the Baby Boomer generation - mainly white, male CEOs and politicians - has brought this country to its current state because of their greed, selfishness, egos and the policies to match. I'm thoroughly sick of what they have to offer.
2
Many of these comments are just as disappointing as the article itself, and the fact that O'Rourke is running at all. Very few of them point to anything other than his charm/charisma (both of which I'll grant he has).
What are his values? His priorities, beyond vague platitudes about togetherness or rising above?
Who knows?
We need a Dem nominee in 2020 who will not only beat Trump, but also take serious, immediate action to address the climate crisis. Even if it requires some eggs get broken.
O'Rourke seems like a nice enough guy. He's welcome at my barbeque.
It just also seems like he's a 100% centrist wimp. I have a hard time imagining him telling the extractive industries their subsidies are gone, or the thousands of people who make their livings denying healthcare to people that he's going to make them obsolete by guaranteeing healthcare as a right. We are running out of time. Even if he gets elected, I can completely see a repeat of 2008, where we have a POTUS winning on his personality and smile, and Republicans picking up a thousand seats nationwide in the following years as President O'Rourke makes charisma-laden speeches full of bright-side buzzwords and people's actual lives fail to improve in meaningful ways.
52
@Shirley0401 I have a great idea, let's just do it your way---wipe the slate clean--Free Health care for all, which I'm all about---how do you administer the plan and who is going to pay for it, while we’re at it--$1000 a month basic income--once again who gets it and how do you administer it and who's paying for it---Wall Street Reform---how do you do it and who will administer it, oh and by the way what's the negative impact considering most companies are now publicly traded---Free college for all---once again what's your plan--who is eligible for it--what's your metric to decide who is eligible--does the student need to maintain a certain grade point average or are we ok with everyone going to college to be a bar tender at Buffalo Wild Wings---See where we’re going here—sounds to me like you want to do it the Trump way---except all the way to the left---be careful making promises you can’t keep like Macron did in France—and let’s continue, if you want change---impliment term limits, eliminate lobbyists, and eliminate all corporate donation money—that’s where you start!!
3
@Shirley0401 I hear you on climate. Have you checked out Pete Buttigieg? He and Jay Inslee are the two that seem to be talking most about climate among all the candidates, and I think Buttigieg is the best communicator - which is critical.
2
@Reality Joe
The same people who paid for a $1.3 trillion defense budget in FY 2019 are going to pay for it -- us, the American taxpayers. If Sweden can do it, we can do it. It's all about priorities.
5
O'Rourke raised $80 million dollars, outspent his opponent by more than two to one and lost by a quarter of a million votes to a Republican who isn't anyone's favorite.
Three terns in the house without an accomplishment to show for it.
This can't be where the Democratic Party is resting its hopes.
"There is no there, there"
7
@TDC
Losing a winnable race against an opponent most people hate, and spending twice as much money as the loser did in the process, is the new Democratic "killing it."
Whatever... Pretty much any citizen 35 years or older can run for President.. Good to see a lot of people getting in the mix.
- See how things go when people actually start voting..
Perspective is one of the skills I discuss with my students at NYU - constantly. I am delighted that he has entered if nothing more than to drive the conversation where it should be driven in the next 20 months. The survival of the planet and our very existence demands that. Big bold ideas are required to repair the damage caused by the GOP and the extraction industries over the years. The centrist DNC agenda has to end. I am neither a lefty or righty, but for once can some common sense prevail. Don't judge him or any of the candidates yet, all of them are required to prove on the campaign trail that they are ready for the awesome repsonsibilty of governing, uniting and making our future on planet earth possible. The rest is just window dressing.
He is a natural campaigner, I look forward to watching to see if he has what it takes. Regardless, his entrance will make for a livelier debate as we focus on who can beat agent orange!
I had the pleasure of volunteering for The Beto Senate Race. I was impressed by his strong gun control stance in the heart of West Texas, his push for Dreamers and no fences in meetings on the border, and his willingness to confront strong Republican opposition head on over and over again across the state.
It is early to make a final decision, but I will volunteer and support him at this time. He is a bright, new voice, sorely needed in this country.
So, good for Beto that he shares positions on many issues with his Democratic rivals, but how will he lead? If he brings only personality to government, how would that improve anything. In the very short time that the Democrats reclaimed the House, we have seen what real leadership looks like in Nancy Pelosi. Which prospective candidates could we count on for strong leadership?
1
A very like-able cipher. I'd happily empty my Paypal account to donate to his campaign against a Texas Republican Senator and I'd be happy to buy him a beer, but I would not give him my vote in a Democratic primary until I see where he stands on the issues. Of course I would choose him or any other Democrat against Trump in a general election.
4
O’Rourke has never won a statewide race, which is an institutional reason why members of the House are less qualified than senators. He is plainly too inexperienced for the job. One lesson of Trump is that lack of experience in large administration jobs is not a positive.
3
He is telegenic enough and family money to win this carnival of a beauty contest. It could be 1960(JFK) all over again. It strikes me as so much image, little substance as the missiles pointing toward the U.S. growing more numerous, and more than one Khrushchev to deal with. I'm sure he has hired a surrogate to write (of course he'll add a touch or two), to write the 21st Century, "Profiles in Courage". Chances no more than 1 in 20 but he'll have plenty of campaign money for his family, friends to work in his campaign. With little accountability, he will be able to keep the remaining balance to add to his speaking and public appearance fees. He is set for life.
The fact that the Republican organization 'Club for Growth' was running negative TV advertisement against Beto before he even announced his candidacy tells me that the big Republican donors know Beto can defeat 'bone spur' Trump. There is the message we need to known. On to victory with Beto.
I’d have thought that if we’d learned anything from Trump, it would have been to be very, very skeptical about charismatics who don’t really have much by way of accomplishments in their backgrounds.
I’m oretty sure this is a good guy. I agree with a lot of his views. I can see he’s a great campaigner. And then...what?
No, Obama wasn’t like this. Beyond the 15 years of work and accomplishments and stuff actually done, the guy stood up for things: I want to see Beto stand up, not when it’s easy but when it’s hard. And I want to know what should. Ake me okay with having him the the Oval Office answering that famous 3 AM phone call.
I do think he worries Trump, though. Loved seeing that Hizzoner immediately started painting him as vaguely gay.
1
@Robert you really don't know much about Trump saying he doesn't have much by way of accomplishment in his background. The man nearly singlehandedly saved New York in the early 80s with some very adventurous projects (Hyatt Grand Central, Trump Tower, 40 Wall Street) that pulled the city out of its funk. Trump had accomplished quite a lot before he got on television.
1
It's embarrassing that someone with a thin record of legislative wins and unimaginative policy ideas and is almost completely devoid of any ideology is running. While Bernie, Warren, Harris, Klobuchar, and the governors in the race have earned the right to run for prez, Beto has little to recommend him but his good looks and glib use of social media. The democrats have to distinguish themselves from the GOP by nominating a candidate of substance.
2
Consider this, folks. Do we want Beto face to face with Putin? There are actually much bigger issues in the world than the damage Trump's administration has done to domestic affairs and society. I am not wholly comfortable with any of the Democratic candidates so far, but I do know that the best former residents of the White House were up to the task of dealing with the world and the US's vital role in it. The jury is definitely out, but right now and despite all the obvious baggage, I would put early money on a Biden-Harris ticket for having a serious chance to overcome Democratic in-fighting - win back the White House - and deliver a restorative productive healing administration.
An excellent video .Other candidates should study this and do the same. Simplify and prioritize. Don't try to make all the points you want to make in every speech. Concentrate on motivating and training door-bellers.But don't start door-belling until you have had sufficient exposure and enthusiarm in key states like the upper Midwest and Texas. Learn from why Bernie was successful in fund-raising, No corporate or PAC money.
Haven’t we had enough of inexperienced presidents: three in a row. Mistakes follow. All of us are affected.
3
@Mel
George W. Bush had been governor of Texas for several terms. Trump had been a successful developer and businessman for decades. Each was very experienced when he became president.
Obama? A first term senator and former "community organizer" - you're right, not too experienced
1
Your news analyses of Mr. O'Rourke overlooks his strength as a candidate among latino voters. Rather, you repeat the superficial claim that his ethnography as a white male might be a poor fit for a party that needs enthusiasm and turnout from minorities and women. While that is certainly a non-trivial point in a race that features excellent female and minority candidates, you fail to acknowledge that "Beto" has special appeal among hispanic voters who, according to my latino friends here in Tucson, claim him -- based on his cultural upbringing -- as one of their own. As a westerner, it sometimes seems to me that the east coast and beltway media behaves as though African American voters, and perhaps Cuban voters in Florida, are the only relevant ethnic minorities to voter analysis. Here, in the Southwest, latino voters represent a much larger percentage of the population than black voters and they represent an equivalent voting block, by percentage, nationwide. And, if you are going to "horse race" Beto's potential appeal as a retail politician in Iowa and New Hampshire, you should not overlook that Texas and California have moved their delegate-rich primaries to Super Tuesday. In these states, Beto's popularity among latino voters should serve him extremely well.
Fellow NYT readers. Please take a look at Governor Jay Inslee of Washington state, the announced candidate for the Democratic nomination for president whom I have chosen to support. Resist the notion that he is a one issue candidate. The issue he speaks more about than anyone else hoping the be POTUS, climate change, warrants a singular focus, he also has the depth of experience and the temperament to be an effective president of the USA and is the kind of man other countries would respect as leader of the free world.
He is in the low single digits in Iowa polling, but so were others who went on to be president. Be a part of grass roots effort needed to make him the party's nominee.
I wish he would run for Senator in 2020 instead. He’d be much more likely to change Texas than win the primary.
1
Mr. O'Rourke stands no chance in winning the presidency in 2020 but could become a contender in some future race. The truth is that his brief political life works very much against him and unlike Trump, who had ZERO political experience but had middle American appeal by the boatload, O'Rourke will not appeal to a large portion of the population any more than many of the other Democratic candidates. It's unfortunate but that's the reality. If the Democrats do not find a candidate whose appeal is more widespread than to only other liberals, the current POTUS will not be defeated! As depressing as the notion is, without a candidate who can appeal to middle Americans, the democrats are doomed and so is the country for at least another four years of Trump nonsense.
"Mr. O’Rourke enters without a signature proposal that might serve as the ideological anchor of his bid."
His signature is, "I'm Beto."
That is very much how Hillary ran her campaign. It is an anchor, but not a good one.
4
This man is fine to run for senate just because he has a chance beating Ted Cruz in a state where the word Democrat defines an almost extinct species.
He voted with republicans when he was in congress pretty regularly.
I want to see the list of his donors. I want a full disclosure of his family finances (his wife's in particular).
I want to see his straight views on medicare for all, free public colleges, citizen's united, gender equality, environmental policy, finance/Wall Street reform, infrastructure funding, economic plan to reduce income and wealth inequality.
I will then look at the rest: his boyish good looks, his guitar playing, his fake Texan accent, his Columbia days on Morningside Heights etc.
Nice guy, evidently smart, but no real accomplishments in his life. No evidence of leadership or organizational skills. Just can’t see Beto as a candidate with any chance of winning.
I think it has been established that President is not a good job for those without executive experience. That eliminates all of the current Democrats running other than Biden, including, and especially, Beto.
1
@DRS
And how much executive experience does Biden really have? Senators really don't use executive skills as in taking responsibility for producing a tangible result. And what do vice presidents really do? So I would argue that Biden, for all of his years, has little real executive experience.
@DRS Inslee, Hickenlooper, Cory Booker and Buttigieg all have executive experience as either governors or mayors. Maybe you think there are no other candidates but women. I believe even Bernie Sanders was a Mayor in Vermont somewhere.
Sounds just like another President who had soaring rhetoric and no experience. I liked Obama. I like O'Rourke too. I know his heart is in the right place but he needs ten years in the trenches to put skills on top of latent talent. It only speaks to how little he understands himself or the role he seeks that he believes he's ready for it now.
1
Look, I know pretty well where Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren stand on issues. You know where they are coming from. But so far in this article about Beto, I just see very broad generalizations, e.g., "this is democracy". What are O'Rourke's policies on health care, climate change, tariffs, jobs, infrastructure? Where are his priorities in specifics?
Or is the media falling in love with him because he kinda looks like Robert Kennedy? Are we conjuring up another "Camelot" here?
44
@Red Rat
For me that's the problem. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders are too extreme. Yesterday Elizabeth Warren said Apple shouldn't be allowed to sell their apps in their own app store. WHAT? Beto is a centrist. I find that far more to my liking. He will support policies from the left when they are good policies, but will preserve the great things about the United States - like free markets.
@Dave
Yes, I think Elizabeth Warren is going too far if that is what she has said. However, I think the most important issues are health care, student debt, immigration reform. That is where I agree with Bernie and Warren. I do not believe that, we as a country, can't afford to make college education available to those who can qualify (Felicity and Lori, notwithstanding), that we can provide free health care, and end the immigration/illegals problem in some humane way.
I think all of this is doable! It means we must change our priorities. We must as a nation decide where our money is best spent. Here I think Bernie and Elizabeth are closer to where we should be than many of the other candidates.
1
Beto sells himself as a unifier, but Republicans and their base do not want to be unified. Obama sold himself as a unifier, but Republicans fought him and his unity. Beto must win over conservatives and also convince progressives that his quest for unity will not involve unifying around Republican programs, as Obama tried to do without success with Obamacare.
Republicans would not embrace unity even when a program they developed and tested in one state was involved. The call to unity must make enough converts that those holdouts not wanting unity can be defeated. "Unity except for them" is sort of self-contradictory and self-defeating. It opposes concrete resistance with whatever unity will produce but has not yet produced. Resistance to health care for all will be opposed by the unity of people determined to work together on supplying health care to more if not all -- in a specific program that is not yet fleshed out and may damage or shatter the unity as the fleshing out is attempted.
Beto's charisma will be at war with Trump's charisma, and must defeat it for his unity sales pitch to work even though defeat and unity do not go together.
1
If I might sum up Beto: Vision, Competence, family and the energy and desire to do the people's work.
He is not a policy wonk. He will not be elected because he has answers that no one else has thought of. He will be elected because he will realistically focus on the problems that we all face (that is, 99% of us) and assemble a team of experts and get the job done.
5
He looks real, talks real and looks like us, the commoners. He has gone through phases in his life as all of us did. He is going to be a UNITER and not a divider based on race, language and not who came here, how and when. United States is the home for all who live here. For skeptics, his very close lost in a very RED Texas should be an indicator to assure us that he is capable of running a youthful and vibrant campaign. Very glad that he is in.
70
@AB
O'Rourke is no commoner. He comes from El Paso's wealthy upper crust and is one of the wealthier members of Congress. His father was a judge. His mother owned a large furniture and remodeling business, a shopping mall and other properties. His father-in-law is a billionaire also with extensive real estate holdings. As a teenager he attended a prestigious private boarding school in Virginia. If you think he is a regular guy, it is because he has had the money to manufacture such an image.
7
@AB
It is fine that he is in but he has to clearly state his positions on the progressive issues:
Medicare for all
Citizen's United
Free public education pre-K to College
Income and Wealth Inequality
Gender Inequality
Wall Street Reform
Tax Reform
Military Budget Reform
Infrastructure Reform
Sane Environmental Policy (particularly important given his State)
Commitment to release all financial information (his and his wealthy wife's)
Will he take private money and have a PAC?
It will be then be a pleasure for me to consider him as a viable candidate.
Otherwise, fresh and youthful good looks doesn't cut it.
4
@AB...”He looks real, talks real and looks like us, the commoners...” But wait, we already have a guy with those qualifications and look how that’s working out.
For a change, maybe a candidate with substance, experience and electability.
3
All 15 or whatever the number ultimately is -- of those declared Dem candidates for Pres -- should meet in a room, lock the door, and remain committed to stay there until they can agree on which 2 are best qualified to stay in the race to beat Trump. Or, we have a repeat of the Rep race in 2016: 15 of them were stomped into pulp by Trump.
5
The Dem parry picked their candidate last time. How about a primary election rather than a coronation? Let the voters decide and not super delegates.
Hi NYT, how about digging into what he does and doesn't stand for, to give people a chance of forming an opinion?
Beto is the 2nd largest recipient of fossil fuel money in Congress (after Ted Cruz). So we already know where he stands on the environment and getting money out of politics to restore democracy.
Beto is a member of the New Democrat coalition, which has Clinton-esque views on healthcare, education and trade. Specifically on medicare-for-all, he uses vague terms like "guarantee quality healthcare for all", so as not to offend the insurance and drug companies.
Young people who are suffering due to "centrist" policies that exacerbate inequality and widespread corruption don't care about Beto or any candidate being young.
Working people want to know where he stands on policies that matter. They have been taken for a ride far too long by corporate politicians who listen to donors and pay lip-service to progressive policies.
25
Great comment. I agree!
1
Well, we Democrats have a lot of choices and a difficult decision to make. However, picking the one who can beat Trump shouldn't come into play until we've narrowed it down to two candidates, based on their policies, their philosophy of government, their track records, their level of commitment and character. We're electing a president, not a prom queen or king.
7
Beto is genuine, in a race full of imitators and lifetime White House plotters. Even his moments of indecision mark him as a real person--and that comes through in all his remarks. He has a vision of a better America, which can unite left and right. No one else does.
1
@alex abella
He is the "genuine" son-in-law of a billionaire. I'll give you that.
1
@alex abella "Beto is genuine..."
Yeah. In the same way southern hospitality is -- sincere insincerity.
Isn’t being a “unifier” a code word for neoliberal? Joe Lieberman comes to mind. Whenever we have a unifier type it seems that we have a de facto Republican that skews left on wedge issues. Bloomberg, Andrew Cuomo, and Biden come to mind. Not looking for another Democrat candidate that feels it necessary to operate politically in a conservative’s paradigm in order to win. I think of it as the politics of appeasement. It’s not consistent with a changing demographic that Is looking for leadership, and the nineties are over.
18
@Mickey
Are you interested in winning the Presidency, or just the primary?
1
Mr. O'Rourke did not "rise" to national stardom during his Texas senate run. He was pushed to the top by BIG money.
Beware, Good People. Texas politicans are owned by BIG oil. We have had enough of them as President of OUR United States of America - or cabinet heads. They look out for the 0.01%.
18
@njglea "Mr. O'Rourke did not "rise" to national stardom..."
In the sense Macron did.
The Democratic party needs to win this time.
If Beto doesnt get the top of the ticket, I will support
any candidate that gives him the number 2 spot.
Are you listening Joe Biden ?
1
Beto will add spark to the debate but I'd rather see a Biden Beto ticket. Bernie Beto. It's a bit too early to get bent out of shape. You all have to wait until Jan to see how things are going. I like Beto just would like more experience in the top job.
5
Best news I've read in a long time! Go Beto!
2
Happy and excited to hear that Beto has thrown his hat into the ring. He is smart, charismatic, eloquent, and carries an uplifting, positive message. His laid-back, friendly, personality and passionate, engaged attitude, really do make him a kind of anti-Trump, except for the fact that he is, like Trump, an outsider, comparatively speaking. I think that is an advantage in the minds of many, as messed up as Washington DC is these days,. Call me crazy, but I feel fairly certain he could Beto Trump soundly in a general election.
10
So disagree. He is in Texas parlance "all hat and no cattle." I will not support him.
1
I like Beto. I would LOVE to have a young President. But it does not sit well with me that he would run for President after losing his Senatorial election. I know it was by a small margin, I know it was nationally watched, I know he did better than anyone expected, etc., but Ted Cruz—the most despised man in Congress—is still in Washington. It's not Beto's fault. In fact, he did more than anyone could have hoped for; it was a campaign for the ages. But it wasn't successful. If he can prove he can deliver Texas to the Democrats, we'll be on the cusp of an unbeatable blue ticket for a decade; but he hasn't proven that. I hope to hear more from him, but the loss itself is a major tick against his candidacy in my book.
Too bad Sherrod Brown decided not to run. He would've won in a Reagan-esque landslide.
13
O’Rourke boasts of having supported Republicans on some issues, notably, on weakening The Affordable Care Act and strengthening policies favorable to the Fossil Fuel industry. In other words, he is positioning himself as a centrist and canceling whatever credence he might have with progressives. A pretty face will only get you so far. Dems should have learned something from Trump: Fire up your base. So far the only candidate on the Left who is doing that is Bernie.
17
Oh.
First, organize your mob; second, attack everybody else as a closet Republican.
Third, I imagine, will be sermonizing about how you’d never play politics.
Several influential centrists seem to be lining up behind Beto O'Rourke in an effort to stop the Democratic Party from returning to the New Deal policies it supported from the 1930s to the 1960s. That tells me all I need to know about Beto.
24
He seems like the perfect VP for someone like Harris or Warren who will have issues getting moderates on their side
6
Oh my G*d, Beto O'Rourke is another candidate for president with very little experience in government; not as little as The Imposter, but not much more either. Another candidate who wants to "go-it-alone." Of course he does; it looks so easy to be Clint Eastwood's "nameless stranger" character and attack evil with one motivating idea and a symbolic wagon load of dynamite. Who needs coalitions in a spaghetti western world?
So much has been destroyed by The Imposter; does O'Rourke even know what a healthy country looks like; what it will take to Put America Together Again? Has he not learned anything while watching a stumbling fool try to manage a country using only, at best, what little he learned as a businessman? I doubt it. What are O'Rourke and other candidates like him, both declared and not yet declared, thinking? If elected, Beto O'Rourke or another candidate like him will be yet another ineffective leader carrying some of the same problems as the Imposter, fortunately not all, but also requiring a lot of hand holding in order to perform. The country cannot tolerate another two or four or eight years of being on hold waiting for leadership and direction.
6
Question to Beto & other Democratic candidates: If elected, what can you get passed and what judges can you get confirmed with a Republican Senate? Without the Senate, the White House is largely a bully pulpit. Republicans understand this and are fighting for continuing Senate control. Need good Senate candidates, not more presidential candidates.
6
I did a search in the NYTimes for “Beto”. These are just from today.
Enough already!!
March 14, 2019: The Latest: During Iowa Stop, O'Rourke Pushes Bipartisanship
By The Associated Press
March 14, 2019: Beto O'Rourke Announces U.S. Presidential Run: CNN
By Reuters
March 14, 2019: Beto O'Rourke Leaps Into 2020 Democratic Presidential Race
By Reuters
March 14, 2019: Welcome, Beto
By David Leonhardt, Opinion Columnist
March 14, 2019: On Politics: Beto O’Rourke Enters 2020 Race
Good Thursday morning. Here are some of the
stories making news in Washington and politics today.
March 14, 2019: Beto O'Rourke Enters 2020 Race Attempting Bipartisan Appeal
By The Associated Press
March 14, 2019: Beto O’Rourke Enters the 2020 Presidential Campaign
By Matt Flegenheimer and Jonathan Martin
March 14, 2019: Who Is Beto O’Rourke?
By Sarah Stein Kerr and Meg Felling
March 14, 2019: Where Beto O’Rourke Stands on the Issues
By Maggie Astor
March 14, 2019: Beto O'Rourke to Seek Democratic U.S. Presidential Nomination
By Reuters
5
Steve Bannon and the GOP are licking their chops over the idea of Beto or any other Dem candidate who will talk about the wall. The only ones they are afraid of are Sanders and Warren because they focus on economics
16
Why all this negativity about Beto O'Rourke and his candidacy for president?
Have things gotten so bad that we must now also feed on our own, especially at this very early stage?
Has Trump's toxicity infected everything we now do in this country?
His run for the Senate was not in the least bit quixotic and very nearly succeeded.
This is no small feat, especially in Texas.
He served six years on the El Paso City Council and six years as congressman.
Thus, he already has 12 years of government experience; both local and national.
This was more than Obama had when he ran in 2008 and let's not even talk about Trump!
He is young, photogenic, well spoken and draws people in when he speaks.
He creates the kind of excitement that should not be underestimated in any kind of a political campaign.
At this point, I say the more, the merrier!
We will need a strong candidate to take on Trump and what will probably be the dirtiest campaign in US history.
If Beto O'Rourke has the innate ability to work his way through the coming political minefield, then we will find out soon enough and if he does, then he just might be Trump's worst nightmare.
7
Maybe. But I really wish the NYT published more info on his policies or lack of same. I will not be donating to his campaign, now or ever. I tried to opt out with STOP to the texts I received from his campaign today. Didn't work so I just deleted them all. I think he truly is an empty suit.
2
At this point - I think that for a lot of the democratic "candidates" it has become an ego trip. Granted, based on the current occupant, there is a pretty low bar for qualifications to be president; but I still think that the democratic party is doing itself no favors by having so many people running, and really, there are only a few who truly are qualified for the job. Especially given the mess that is going to be left.
7
Beto is a breath of fresh air for a party full of fake, scripted actors. I love his rawness and realness and the fact that he just says what's right and just. Moral clarity is the primary quality so lacking in the current occupant of the Oval Office.
4
@Casey Penk
He is a charming, eloquent, but ultimately hollow rich kid who married into an even richer family.
1
O'Rourke or bust!
If O'Rourke won't make it, then we deserve the Donald for four more years!
1
As we all agree, Trump has to go. Perhaps we should focus on Trump to see who to choose as his opponent. Seems the ones he thinks he can beat are those he praises like Biden and those he fears are ones he ridicules like Warren and Beto. When opponents say Biden can beat Trump what they are saying is that they want another Clinton/ Sanders or seasoned politician/ progressive split, which Trump can beat.
Shallow pretty boy is not what anybody needs. Cruz was the least popular senator in DC, and Betto, with lots of money, lost. Very little to show as a Cong (besides supporting a Republican friend over a Dem who almost won anyway). Unlike Gillum and Abrams, he didn't even put forward a platform worth fighting for and almost pulling it off. There are enough pretenders out there already.
21
@David
Supporting Will Hurd is a good thing.
“Dem” shouldn’t outweigh a candidate’s actual qualifications.
Although reasonable Republicans are getting harder and harder to find in this age of Trump, any that remain might well vote for Beto.
I tend to agree with other posts. Beto seems to me to be an opportunist. He is a superb retail politician but does have any background in a leadership position? No. I think he has mastered the concept of sprinkling angel dust on frustrated and fearful voters looking for a white knight. He sounds so sympathetic but is it real? Is his focus serving is country or advancing Beto? I'm not sure.
Right now he looks like a professional candidate for high office similar to John Edwards who in fact was the Democratic ticket with John Kerry in 2004. He too became simply a perpetual presidential wannabe until his world collapsed over his love child with a mistress unknown to his wife who in fact divorced him before she died of cancer.
I don't think Beto is that bad, but really, is he just another faux charisma guy? I don't know.
18
@Yankelnevich John Edwards did at least win a Senate seat from North Carolina. He wa in the Senate from 1998 until 2004. He had made a name for himself as well as a fortune by mainly representing clients fighting big corporations.
In the Senate he had a record of speaking up for workers and working to keep SS, improve schools, working conditions and health care. When he was running for president sex, lies and videotape would ruin a candidate and they ruined him. Now they don’t seem to matter.
Edwards has a pretty solid record as a lawyer and a Democratic politician, something so far lacking in O’Rourke
1
Sorry but I just can't take Mr. O'Rourke seriously as a presidential candidate. Anyone who posts a you-tube video of themselves with their mouth hanging open while getting their teeth cleaned is just too unserious for me. In other words not enough gravitas....
16
Oh, c'mon, give me a break about Beto's lack of experience. Compared to the Current Temporary White House Occupant when he first came into office, Beto is a seasoned politician.
However, he does have some 'deficiencies' - I will admit that he lacks experience with bankrupting companies, stiffing contractors, serial adultery, befriending foreign oligarchs, running fraudulent educational institutions, lying, lying, and lying, etc, etc. He reminds me of Obama or one of the Kennedys. He's intelligent, well-spoken, energetic, innovative, competitive, and runs a good 'ground game' (media campaign).
4
@Where seldom is heard... Why would you compare a candidate to Trump? Is that the best you think the Democrats can be? O’Rourke should be compared to other Democrats and assessed along with them for their relative ability to dump Trump. If he wins a primary, then it is the time to compare him to Trump.
who is surprised? no one. I really loved him but after NYT article about him I don't know. He was given chances after chances to be successful because he came from a powerful and rich family. Then he married someone rich. I have not doubt he is a great person but does he have the grits?
11
As a liberal, I'm surprised so many of my ilk swoon over this charismatic, egocentric, and center right candidate. I'm not buying what he's selling.
22
Beto,
Why run for the Senate and get more experience
before running for President, a position you are
not prepared for.
9
Another pretty boy with horrible Obama policies whose claim to fame is losing to Ted Cruz.
Do Americans really want the American version of Justin Trudeau, an inexperienced, privileged, empty suit pretty boy as their “leader” ?
Probably yes.
18
Trump wasted no time today denigrating Beto, making fun of Beto’s hand gestures. Translation: Trump feels threatened by him.
7
@J.
Umm, no. All that means is that Beto is alive and on TV.
Thanks but no thanks. He can give great heart-wrenching speeches about unity, but that does not work with today's Republican Party. It's naive to even suggest it. What we need is a solid progressive - Bernie - with defined policy ideas and the moral clarity to push back against the right wing.
10
At this point Beto appears to have the spark and freshness that the Democrats desperately need in 2020. Parallels to JFK may be premature but a message of determination to bring some unity to a divided nation should go over well with those of us who reject appeals to special interests.
President Trump's inadvertent advice to Beto should be heeded, though. Hand gestures may be useful for emphasis but when overdone distract from actual words.
My first reaction, especially after watching the documentary on his last (failed) campaign, was a feeling of sorrow for his young family, who clearly need him at home. Beto has never won even statewide office, and had few if any notable accomplishments as a member of Congress. This guy's ego has gone amok, and his family is paying the price. There are plenty of other far more worthy and qualified candidates who have already thrown their hats into the ring.
11
Beto's move may seem to some people as a quixotic quest, but a it's really just a fool's errand. He brings nothing to the table, but the potential to muddle, even more, an already overcrowded field. He has no experience or expertise at any executive level, and a following that was strongly motivated by a profound dislike for Cruz, more than love for his positions, or his endearing personality.
12
Beto O'Rourke lost. Stacy Abrams lost and was asked to rebut the SotU. This is some new strategy the Dems have for running people who lose? The strategy of unity has never been one the Democratic Party has excelled at. BTW when was the last time a congressman, from either party, was elected president? (Ford doesn't count. He was appointed VP and then acceded to the office). And this guy isn't even a sitting member of Congress. Let him host Saturday Night Live and then let's move on.
17
Beto has first name prominence (charisma), he applies his life to the lives of all of us (character), and he understands government (competence). I didn't realize any of this until this morning when he spoke at a coffee shop in Iowa. It was a wow moment for me! I very much like all of the dem candidates, but he gets a wow.
4
Beto has my full support. Pod Save America (former Obama speechwriters) have hinted that Beto's travels around the country were certainly soul searching, but really about producing a documentary to support his presidency. I hope they are right, that is a brilliant way to share your message. Candidates writing books is and should be important, but to reach the masses a documentary is going to be more effective. We need that creative thinking and we need compromise not a reactionary shift way left. A shift way left will continue the divisiveness. He is the closest thing I see to the person that this country desperately needs to heal and cleanse itself of the last few years.
8
I like Beto but my fear is that he may crack under pressure. It took him a while to decide which may mean he was coerced to run by his supporters. One thing for sure, this will be a good primary season with a lot of good people running. Let's hope the winner is one who can be inclusive and not divisive as Trump was to his candidate colleagues.
1
I’d love to see someone like John Hickenlooper but with Beto O’Rourke’s fire. We need a pragmatic progressive to win.
1
Another corporate "centrist" who votes with Republicans more often than not -- a no go (like Joe) who would guarantee a low turnout and another 4 years of the continuing GOP disaster. The question arises, did Democrats learn anything at all from the last election?
11
I supported his Senate campaign in Texas but that was Texas. Beto has no firm policy ideas that anyone can cite, is too far to the right and is unwilling to reign in Wall Street ("I am a capitalist."). His wife comes from big money. READ: He is not a progressive. His main appeal appears to be he is JFK like. Easy pass for me.
73
@GK I may be wrong but I believe many of his positions although not as "left leaning" were practical and allowed Democrats to gain some leverage in such a Red state. In many of his responses what you hear are the aspirations of a born leader that wants to bring everyone in the country under the tent not just some. As a National voice for Democrats (Republicans and Independents also). Like many I think the new progressive members of Congress are great and will help move the country in the right direction but they currently aren't "national candidates". Big money is not a crime. Greed and misuse of money at the expense of the rest in some cases could be a crime. For someone that seems to be a Democrat you sure toss around a lot of labels...
6
@GK So.... being a capitalist is a non-starter for you? Well that literally eliminates every person seeking the Democratic nomination. As I understand it, even the democratic socialism of Bernie Sanders does not wholly disavow capitalism. Rather, he subscribes to the Nordic model (Sweden, Norway, etc.), which means an economic system underpinned, ultimately, by free-market capitalism and private ownership, but tempered with a robust welfare state, strict collective bargaining mandates (with the government as intermediary between labor and management).
11
@GK are you then inferring that you are a socialist ? I do hope you realize that a true socialist wants government to control the means of production (ie own or fully dictate the production of all goods and control of markets with quotas etc.). Mere government re-distribution of wealth is not true socialism. That’s what all governments do, except for perhaps places like Somalia.
Capitalist markets encourage the amalgamation of private capital to invest in production. The role of democracy is to make sure that capitalism serves the people, not the other way around. Democracy must trump capitalism if you’ll pardon the pun.
Capitalism has lifted more people out of poverty and created more wealth globally than socialism could ever hope to....but it’s not a perfect system and must be controlled to ensure it serves the most people in the best way. So let’s look at our political system and the influence of money. Let’s look at term limits. Let’s address gerrymandering. We have met the enemy and they are us as Pogo once said.
I suggest you not throw the baby out with the bath water by throwing words around loosely. BETO has it right. He’s not a socialist and he shouldn’t be. He’s a fair minded capitalist with the people’s interests at heart.
2
What the Democrats need is someone with charisma plus the ability to incorporate a democratic message that includes all of the candidates messages into a platform that makes sense. Maybe it's Beto or someone else, but it can't be politics as usual.
2
During his Senate race, O'Rourke's response to what was intended to be a "gotcha" question about NFL players kneeling in protest spoke volumes on his qualifications for higher office. He did not hesitate, he didn't deliver a packaged line written for maximum appeal, he didn't skirt the issue with vague support. No, he delivered an answer from the heart with a full throated support of American values. That's what I want in my leaders. Shared values and the guts to speak of them loud and clear.
140
@Anine
It was his support of those taking a knee that decided me. I detest Cruz, but on this, Beto is simply unacceptable.
The flag and the anthem honors the millions who fought, the hundreds of thousands who died, to keep the American dream alive, to keep us safe, to exemplify to the world what devotion to freedom can attain.
Disagree with an administration. Dispute a policy. But never, under any circumstance, never! dishonor their sacrifice.
7
@Austin Liberal
If you think taking a knee in protest against the daily killing of African Americans by the police "dishonors" anybody's service you have been huffing the paint of Fox News.
To take a knee is to show respect, but also what players do when another player has been injured. It is a gesture that indicates that someone has been hurt. When Colin Kaepernick originally decided to protest police murder of Black people he did so by remaining seated during the national anthem. It was only after he was criticized that this showed supposed disrespect that he chose instead to take a knee precisely to indicate that his protest was NOT directed at US service members and it was only then that the gesture began to spread to other sports and into college and high school sports.
The right-wing claim that this form of protest somehow dishonors the troops was, along with the absurd idea that politics should besmirch professional sports, just another way of telling Black people to shut up about the emergency that is their treatment by the police.
Sports and entertainment are two arenas where African-Americans enjoy a degree of national prominence that is otherwise for the most part denied them. To insist that they refrain from using these positions to publicize the outrageous treatment of their communities is in effect to approve of the continuation of that treatment.
6
@Austin Liberal My whole family is military and we support the actual words of the Constitution and the Republic itself, not it's symbols. We do not support the majority telling the minority what they can and cannot say, whether they should stand or kneel. We support the fundamental American value of freedom itself, and that freedom includes the right to peaceful protest, whether or not you agree with what is being protested.
10
I gave Beto money in 16 in the hopes of eliminating TC. Didn't happen but he did stir the pot.
We need someone who has a stake in the next 30-40 years. Tired of old white males like me.
5
Crazy B is kind of silly. He should run with AOC.
5
Should we really be worried about a lack of high level political experience? The last candidate the Democrats came up with had a ton of that experience, but her strategy was to insult her potential voters and then refuse to visit their states.
Beto visited every county in Texas before narrowly losing to Ted Cruz in Texas (very impressive he made it so close in that neck of the woods). He will visit every state in the U.S. if he wins a primary. He will not refer to anyone as deplorable. If the goal is simply to get Trump out (which it clearly must be), maybe we can swipe a bad orange guy with a good white guy. Then later on we can elect a woman and finally engage in the cum-bay-yah my lord moment I know you are all waiting for.
5
Very Irish, very male, very unlikely to reinstate Slavery.
Unusual!
Beto for President!!
Beto needs to stop this nonsense, stay home in Texas and take down Cornyn. We need better representation in the Senate.
10
What’s up New York Times?
Not everything is about race. College admissions bribery hurts all qualified applicants, no matter their color. And the ominous tag line at the end of this video in Beto O,Rourke suggesting that he should not or cannot be a viable candidate because he is a white male is unworthy of the NYT.
This kind of mixed news/analysis/commentary is dangerously Fox-like. Keep your high journalistic standards. Report the facts on the news page. Keep commentary on the editorial page. And, most important, do not fan the flames of identity politics in every major story you report.
Candidates like Cory Booker and Beto O’Rourke are wisely trying to bring people together, not divide them. For this, they have my respect and admiration.
9
Another rich white guy for president?
14
If O'Rourke were short, fat, and ugly, would anyone outside Texas know who he is?
24
@Scott Douglas
Don't forget poor. He could be just as tall, thin and comparatively handsome as he is now, but still a nobody if his parents weren't rich and his father-in-law wasn't a billionaire.
1
Beto, you should have decided to run for the Senate.
You do not have the substance or ideas to run for The Presidency.
You seem like an entitled egomaniac.
I look forward to seeing you trounced.
16
I am a huge fan of Beto. I don't believe in elderly governors or presidents, with very rare exception. Beto has six years of experience in city government, and another six years in the federal government as a congressman. He's 46, an optimist, a unifier, and a comes from a state where he can't take his values for granted.
For me, he is far preferable to Warren, Sanders, Biden, Booker, Gillebrand, and Klobuchar. It's not close.
But he's also a close second behind Kamala Harris. That's the ticket I want: Harris-O'Rourke 2020. City council & state attorney general, House of Representatives and Senate, Texas and California.
That's what I want, and I really hope it's what we get.
10
I would have preferred to see him run for Senate from Texas. As it is now, I think he will be an excellent choice for Vice President with Bernie or Kamala or Elizabeth Warren at the top of the ticket.
4
As I roll my eyes at this news all I can compare Beto to is the guy from high school or college who over explained and was annoyingly pensive over The Smiths lyrics.
15
Who is he? What has he done? What has he accomplished? What does he stand for?
Is he populist? Is he progressive? What is his timber?
Elizabeth Warren campaigned and worked hard on behalf of families, even when it wasn’t popular to do so, and is the reason for the creation of the Consumer Finance Protection bureau.
Bernie has campaigned for progressive policies all of his life - long before it was popular. His dedication to these principles is overwhelming.
Barack Obama campaigned on vague progressive statements, hope & changed, got elected and made the world safe for Banksters. The middle class fell below 50% in year 6 of his tenure, 90% of the growth after 09 went to the 1%. The median wage has been flat for 47+ years.
We can’t have another store front progressive, we need evidence of the real deal. Even if that comes from an 80 year old Sanders.
Beto is just a name to me. I know not what he has done. Please tell me.
23
Well said. We need to look under the hood.
8
@Tim Kane Here is information on Beto's voting record:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/dec/20/beto-orourke-congressional-votes-analysis-capital-and-main
1
He has me vote. Simple as that.
The press and pundit alike are going to chirp (they already are) that he does not have a ''signature'' issue, as well as decrying not enough experience.
The man is campaigning to deal with ALL of the issues we face, and to offer and all of the above strategy to deal with them. As far as experience, our current President had none, while this candidate has several years of public executive experience.
He is ready and so is the nation.
7
Seems like a personable and honest fellow who would be an asset to local government. But president? A fantasy concocted by the media, and they will abandon him when the race gets serious.
19
If a Trump or a Bush or even a Reagan can be president, then so can O’rourke. Losing his last election does not disqualify him. His style is refreshing, his positivity infectious. Let the professional Democrats withhold judgement for one dang second. I’ll vote for whomever ends up with the nomination, but by Zeus I want it to be more transparent than the Hilary fiasco. Let the sorting out begin!
5
The Vanity Fair cover quotes O’Rourke stating, “Man, I was born to be in it.” No, he wasn’t. Those who aspire to leadership gain experience through years of doing the work that prepares them for the ultimate job. I do not think being an El Paso city counciman and a brief tenure as a congressman from Texas has yet provided that experience. It’s a big country, and he knows little about it, beyond the platitudes and bumper stickers candidates adopt to convey an emotional appeal.
23
Find the emphasis on legislative accomplishments pretty funny. Other than Pelosi pushing through ACA there hasn't been any significant legislation passed in this country in 20 years by anyone. Congress hasn't done even the basics like pass budgets. All fund raising and posturing.
Sanders, Warren and Harris have done nothing but make unrealistic promises that will require huge tax increases to fund. Obama rode opposing the Iraq war about as far as anyone has ever ridden one vote but had zero legislative accomplishments as both a senator and president. The cerebral one refused to engage with Congress at all as evidently he found it beneath him. He wasn't even present most of the time as a senator.
Beto listens. What are all of these commenters so afraid of? That he'll shine in comparison to retreads like Bernie and Biden? That he'll crush them in the debates?
Interesting.
1
Beto is another pretty face but I don't see any substantial experience or policies that would get my support.
18
Beto has too little experience for the job in my view but might be more attractive as a presidential candidate if he identified highly qualified, competent people he would ask to be in the Cabinet if elected - committing to a return to competent governance of, by and for the people. His dream team needs to represent all of America.
2
Smiling away on Vanity Fair says it all - form over substance.
19
He's the most charismatic candidate since JFK. He seems to play well with others(read Repubs). And that will help bring the country together. We can't have America with all political sides coming together. And he's not too far left which will help win the blue collar Dems who need to be heard amid all the noise from the extreme right and extreme left. GO BETO... GO!
3
@marrtyy
We do not need charisma. We need someone with principles, a willingness to stand up to powerful corporate interests, and a record that shows this. That candidate is not Beto.
11
@Al M
Principle doesn't win elections. Neither does Frankenstein or oops... bride of Frankenstein. We need leadership not orthodoxy to move forward. Still Beto. Always Beto.
Stop. Get some experience in lower office(s). Prove yourself first. Then think about running for higher office(s). Until that happens candidates like O'Rourke won't be getting my support, money or vote.
13
A lot of these comments against Beto make me think about another charismatic Texas Democrat. This one had the entire South and its most cunning political leaders convinced he was "one of them" for decades. The moment he stepped into the Oval Office he pushed through the greatest civil rights legislation this country had seen since the Civil War.
Texas Democrats have to hold back on the "Democrat" part for pragmatic reasons, so I wouldn't short sell Beto for not being "liberal enough" or not having enough policy substance quite yet.
He may surprise us.
5
How can you beat Trump if you have never beaten a tough Republican candidate?
Why are the media and young voters so drawn to candidates like O'Rourke and Stacey Abrams who have never had a significant win in their own state; have no record of accomplishments and terat international issues as not worthy of discussion?
It is similar to the Times' boosterism for AOC, who has never beaten a Republican or anyone except a lazy Democratic incumbent in a district where the leftmost candidate wins, while ignoring Max Rose, who defeated an incumbent Republican for the first major Democratic win on Staten Island in decades.
10
Isn’t this in the end a bid for the Vice Presidency with whoever ultimately wins the nomination? Then all you have Beto do is campaign like mad in Texas and force the GOP to spend money and time there in the campaign, weakening their hand everywhere else. While they would be likely to win Texas even with Beto as VP, they would have to deploy resources to defend it. Because if there is even a small chance with Beto as VP that they lose it, and the 38 electoral votes that go with it, their path to 270 is toast. If CA, NY, and TX were Blue states that’s already 120 to the D’s before we even get started. The GOP would have to sweep FL, AZ, PA, OH, MI, WI, IA, NC, get 1 from ME, and win NH if they didn’t have TX. They would have to defend it with resources, time, and money. Beto as VP makes sense if the Dems want to force them to have to do this. It would also give Beto national exposure and experience to use as a stepping stone to aspire to the Presidency down the road. Everybody wins but the GOP.
3
I'd for sure give him a chance although at present Biden seems more likely to win the presidency. Don't discount Klochbarer either. Looking fwd to the contest
Beto lost to Cruz, Cruz lost to Trump...not to read inauspicious signs here, but this age sure does bring out the dreamers and pretenders; and who can tell them apart anymore? It reminds me of the subtitle of Dr. Strangelove...How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb. Indeed.
4
Beto's the guy we need. Great for that ' We almost won, but we lost' paradigm for which Dems are known.
8
Yes! He has my vote! Go Beto!
1
Love his energy and enthusiasm. Not sure he has the tested qualifications to be commander in chief. While he certainly is not a cruel conscienceless man as 45, lack of experience has been clearly a problem these past 2 years. We'll see how he does.
1
Anyone who would run for President with as thin a resume as Beto has begun to believe their own myth. That gives me real pause regarding his character. I hope he drops out early.
13
Beto couldn't deliver in his home state of Texas, so what makes him, or anyone else for that matter, think that he can garner enough votes for the presidency?
12
Saw him speak at the Tornillo detention camp last June and at the anti-Trump rally during the orange one's visit to El Paso last month; just growing in charisma and authority. Ultimately down to Kamala and him as Biden's VP pick, I'd say.
5
I'll vote for anybody who isn't Donald Trump.
I voted for Beto in the Texas Senate race, but I will not be voting for him in the primaries. Beto was about as good as a Democrat as you can get, much like Obama was, and that's exactly why he did as well as he did in Texas, scooping up minorities, young people, and disillusioned conservatives. He managed to do all of that by running a campaign on a nice smile, celebrity endorsements, listening tours in all counties, and not making too much noise about his platform -- which was incrementalist at most and said little about bucking the neoliberal order of things. If real change is what you want, Beto is not the right decision. If there's one candidate who's really addressed America's systemic issues at the national level, it's Bernie Sanders.
14
@Olan Thank you for your "on the ground" perspective. As a fervent Bernie supporter the last time around (and still like), I in particular appreciate your mention of "incrementalist". Decidedly un-sexy, but in my experience it's what gets the job done in the end, much akin to investing in the stock market. I think it's peoples' right to swing for the fences at every pitch, but at this juncture in history I'm more than content for steady progress in the right direction. My hopes are for Biden/O'Rourke. There will be a role for Bernie in a new administration, where he can play to his strengths on behalf of the people.
3
@Medhat I get what you're saying and very much understand that un-sexiness is what gets those moderate votes which, unfortunately (from my perspective), is where most of the voter base lies. I'm putting all my effort into getting Bernie elected, but for the sake of our country, I'll vote for whoever gets nominated.
1
@Medhat
Not much hope in that. Harper's has a good expose on Biden --
https://harpers.org/archive/2019/03/joe-biden-record/
Let's hear what the man has to say, then decide. Personally, I prefer someone with new ideas and someone who will respect and uphold the Constitution.
6
So much of the criticism hurled at Beto reminds me of the criticisms Bobby Kennedy faced during his truly inspiring 1968 run for the democratic nomination. Those on the left said he wasn't liberal enough and those on the right called him a radical. I'm not looking for an ideologue. I'm much more interested in someone who shares my values and my goals. If the goal is to end poverty and stop climate change, I'm interested in working with you to get to that end goal. Keep the end goals in mind people! Beto has what it takes to transform this race with a Kennedy-like voter focused race. I can't wait to see where he takes us!
8
O’Rourke’s accomplishments as a three-term Congressman mirror Sanders’—for decades in the Senate. But he brings to the Democratic narrative a Texan who nearly defeated Ted Cruz, a uniquely credible voice on border-immigration reality, and he draws support from the center of our Red country. A turn as presidential candidate could set him up for the Senate, possibly the better outcome.
7
I first became aware of Beto O'Rourke last year during his campaign for the U.S. Senate in TX against Ted Cruz, an utterly contemptible character who is representative of THE WORST in our national politics. I made financial contributions to O'Rourke's campaign and was sorry to see him lose last November by a close margin.
But I do not think O'Rourke is ready to be President. I am a firm supporter of Senator Elizabeth Warren who has proposed a variety of initiatives that I fully endorse, including the bill she introduced in the Senate last August for an "Accountable Capitalism Act" which would establish a program between employers and employees in corporations having over $1 billion in tax receipts similar to the successful co-determination ('Mitbestimmung') program that Germany has had for decades.
So, Beto, I will be keenly observing your campaign. But I will be supporting a Democratic candidate who has much more solid experience - both on the electoral level and as a law professor and scholar with close to 40 years of experience in the areas of bankruptcy law and economic justice.
8
@Wes, I'd like to see Warren?O'Rourke. Fear that our nation does not value intelligence.
1
I like Beto and voted for him in last year's senate race. His fund-raising prowess and ability to electrify voters are good things, but I worry that his lack of experience will handicap him. But hey, if he can beat President Pence in the 2020 presidential election, I'm all for him.
4
Look, as a "young voter" I'm not going to be swayed by Beto's "youth" appeal. I don't understand where he stands on issues and what I do he seems pretty middle of the road. Anyone's going to be progressive compared to Ted Cruz. I'll vote for whoever gets the Dem nomination, but I'd rather vote for a candidate that I can clearly see their history progressive policies. #Bernie all the way. Beto just looks like a young face on a corporate dem.
8
Imagine Beto winning Texas, California and New York in 2020. Even if Trump won Florida, Ohio and Wisconsin how many North Dakota’s and Wyoming’s would he have to win to make up the difference in the electoral college. What other candidate gives the Dems such a credible shot at winning such a large state? Beto is the complete antithesis to Trump and this will count for a lot. Sure he is inexperienced, as was Obama, and he was an excellent President and we were lucky to have him for 8 years. Go Beto!
7
Regardless of whether Beto or someone else wins the primaries, we do need to coddle young voters because they are the largest voting demographic but the smallest actual voting bloc. For all their criticism of older voters, it is indisputable that older citizens vote in numbers far larger than young people. So it is no surprise that older voters are rewarded for their votes. Hillary voters trended older than Bernie voters in the last primary, and she won the popular vote in these elections.
In the 2016 presidential election, young Democratic voters' reasons for not voting ranged the gamut of: a) couldn't vote their "conscience" if they voted for Hillary, b) had their feelings hurt that their candidate, Bernie, got fewer votes than Hillary, and voted for someone else, or c) just didn't care enough to vote. But their voting numbers were so low, compared to much older voters, that this clearly cost the Democrats the 2016 election. So we do need to pick a candidate like Beto that Millenials believe has charisma, or that they are "inspired by". And significant numbers of them had their feelings hurt in 2016 so badly that they voted for Trump.*
If this is what it takes to get Millenials to vote, I'll vote for any Democratic nominee. But I won't do what Millenials have done -- throw a tantrum when my favorite candidate didn't win the primaries.
*https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/bernie-sanders-was-helped-by-the-neverhillary-vote-what-does-that-mean-for-his-chances-now/
5
I'm looking for a strong, Democratic candidate with well-thought out policies - someone who is articulate, highly intelligent, thoughtful, measured and who possesses at least a modicum of charisma, ("rocker" notwithstanding), as well as the ability and mental facility to shut down the Trump juggernaut. To me, O'Rourke is just a nice guy, but he falls short in every way in terms of strong leadership. I don't understand the fascination with him or why anyone thinks he has a chance of winning a presidential election.
18
I'm not understanding all the Beto bashing. I think many people don't know his background. I'm a Texan, went to his rallies, and actually listened to him, and I think he has a lot to offer the country. Contrary to popular belief, he is an experienced politician. He wasn't born into wealth like so many other politicians. He worked low paying jobs when he was younger and went to regular public school. He is a younger candidate. I think it's a good idea to have a high energy president who is unlikely to have health problems while in office. And since when is being white a bad thing? And trying for higher office after losing the Senate is supposedly negative too? Persistence and being undeterred by failure are normally considered attributes. Is he the best candidate? I don't know. But I do think the comments are a bit harsh.
4
To the NYT and all of the commenters and readers of comments here: As Bill Maher recently admonished us, we Dems need to stop eating our young. And I don't mean that in the literal sense, because Beto is relatively young, compared with the field of septuagenarians in the race. I mean it figuratively. We destroy our future before we even have a chance to succeed. Let's stop telling ourselves and everyone else why this candidate can't win and that one has this baggage and the other one doesn't stand a chance. There is, in fact, an excellent closing editorial by Bill Maher on this. Let's watch these candidates for a bit, listen to what they have to say, note whether what they have to say resonates with voters, and where, and which ones, before we shoot now and ask questions later. Seriously. Please. Stop.
4
His “near miss” was because he had what seemed like almost every left leaning organization and celebrity pulling for him. Have you seen the money that was spent on this guy?
Those resources and supporters will now be divided across what could be a 40 candidate primary(half joking). Good luck.
5
At this point, the only person who can defeat Trump is a white male who is not affiliated with the Obama era or extremely left - Beto is the answer.
Republicans have gerrymandering leverage of the electoral map, and the only way a Democrat can win is to take away previous Trump voters by resonating with Rural America. Beto is the only person on the ticket who can do that, and is the only matchup nightmare for Trump.
3
I would like to set to rest once and for all the nasty rumor that Beto Sanders' wife Amy is the daughter (and presumed heiress) of a "billionaire" real estate developer, William Sanders.
Beto's father-in-law, William Sanders, is in fact a major real estate developer. However, according to an authoritative source that compiles an annual list of the wealthiest people in the world (Forbes), William Sanders is not a billionaire but is actually only worth about $500 million.
4
@Mal T
Oh, well then. That's very different. Are you serious?
Biden will be president and Beto will be VP in 2020. Beto will learn under and experienced, competent president for 4 years. Biden will step aside in 2024, and Beto will win two straight terms as POTUS.
3
@Billy
Hear hear! The older Democrats need to assume their rightful position as mentors to the young. There is something arrogant about Biden or Bernie hanging onto power, as much as I admire both. Part of holding power is assuring its future, beyond one's own tenure or death. The Democrats have obviously been remiss in mentoring younger generations.
The media is already anointing Beto as the new shiny object to beat Trump. The same media that had everyone believing Hillary had a walk in the park in 2016.Let us not put the cart before the horse. Beto might be The One but lets not measure him for his inauguration suit as of yet. People didn't vote in 2016 because they thought Trump had no chance of beating Hillary. Weren't they in for a rude awakening?
7
Is a white male nominee the right fit for the party? That's the most idiotic question I've heard in a very long time. Trump, a white male with zero political experience becomes PUSA while Hilary, the exact opposite, loses. Yes, by all means, put forth a multi-racial, pan-sexual woman for the nomination and see how far that gets you. Bannon was absolutely correct when he said so long as the Dems keep playing the identity politics game they're going to keep losing.
2
Small point: you write “…whose near-miss Senate run last year…”.
No, it was NOT a “near-miss”. It WAS a “miss”.
What you MEAN is that it was a “near-HIT”…a near success.
I say “GO FOR IT, Beto!”
2
"Near-miss" is an acceped expression and makes sense if you read it as near, but a miss.
1
Beto, with a Vice President named Michael Bloomberg, could possibly work.
2
@A. Stanton I like Bloomberg. Also Sherod Brown.
@A. Stanton Having observed billionaire Mike Bloomberg over a period of many decades, I am absolutely certain he will happily and willingly serve as Vice-President under a young whippersnapper like Beto O'Rourke, whose accomplishments can be listed on a postage stamp.
They might have something in common to talk about, though. Beto's wife Amy is the daughter of a half-billionaire, William Sanders, so maybe they can discuss mega-yacht lengths or compare/contract various types of private jets.
1
Words fail me.
4
It seems to me that many voters are looking for a candidate who is really a mirror in which they can see themselves. That favors candidates who can be idealized, who are physically attractive but not too attractive and who have little or no track record but express socially popular idealism in generalities. O'Rourke seems to fill the bill.
Yawn....big yawn! The women in the race have a lot more experience.
Beto doesn't just get a pass this time around. It was easy to support him when opposing the vile Texas Senator, but this time around he'll have to step it up a few notches and prove his bona fides!
11
Mr O’Rourke is a ton of ambition and one ounce of talent.
Do your country a favor, Beto, and actually do something in your still young life before you think you can lead a nation of 320 million.
23
Matters have come to a sorry state when it can be suggested in the NY Times that a candidate for President might not be qualified because he is a white male. Nevertheless, Beto O'Rourke, like Donald Trump, IS unqualified.
7
Texas needs Beto. The most important thing a president needs is a coalition. Beto would have to manage a cabinet of people that have tons more experience than he does. He'd be learning on the job. He'd be attacked mercilessly. Foreign leaders would walk all over him.
Unless we realize that the Presidency is one job but that there are a couple of dozen top jobs that are critical, we are just going to exhaust voters and pit them against each other.
Pick a dream team cabinet first. Then figure out who can best manage that top notch, stellar team. The problem is a president will pick his friends and loyalists and we need OUR friends. It will be a nasty political mess again.
I know who I'd pick for Health and Human Services and the Treasury. I have to think about the others and smarter people than I would have a better idea of who might be ideal in each top job.
It's the team, stupid.
4
Yes indeed and thank you for saying it!
One more clown in the car! To paraphrase a line from Jaws: Were gonna need a bigger car!
9
Beto would have done a better job for America in the Senate. Same for Hickenlooper, and Abrams.
14
Does this guy have a single idea? Looks like a fraud to me. The close race against Cruz in Texas? Exactly what one would expect in a race between two frauds.
8
Beto? What a goober.
He has no accomplishments to hang a hat on, 15-gallon or otherwise. He's a young face who knows how to overshare on digital media. He's an empty vessel upon which voters can project whatever hopes or aspirations they have.
I suspect he will do well.
16
B. O'Rourke = the white B. Obama. All he need do is make Biden his running mate, travel the country and flash his smile. ROFL.
There's still no one yet on the Dem side who is experienced and enough of a government policy wonk to do the job, other than Amy Klobuchar and Sherrod Brown, and Brown dropped out.
3
@Maggie
Biden-Booker 2020
1
@Maggie And Klobuchar has publicly admitted she abuses her staff.
Is it me, or is this guy just a well-spoken, likable, attractive person who shares my values but has very limited goverment experience?
5
O'Rourke looks like a Kennedy, and he has a Hispanic nickname, he's not 70, and he really wants to be president. Those appear to be some of his biggest attributes.
I look forward to hearing more specifics.
3
It's the fresh positive nature of Beto's outlook that I want. Just his take on immigration, as a "good problem to have" is a different and fresh POV. Give him a chance. He brings something to the table we need.
6
@Roberta S He definitely brings something to the table--a lack of experience and accomplishments.
2
I wouldn't count on female non white candidates taking the southern states. Sad but true.
@Zoned
Not sure they'll take the midwest either. Sorry ladies, it's more important to be strategic and win the presidency even if it takes two men, or two white men.
Biden-Booker 2020
Beto's chief accomplishment is visiting all 254 counties in Texas. He mentioned that six times in his debates with Cruz, instead of presenting positions and plans -- because he has none of those. Wonder how much time he spent in Loving County, population 78 -- (down from 134 in 2017).
He is a 45 yo child, with no accomplishments in office, no platform of goals he'd pursue if elected, nothing going for him but his charisma and faux Bobby Kennedy hairdo.
An empty charmer. The public will see that. If he is the nominee, we're in for another Trump term.
13
Is Mr. O'Rourke just the latest shiny object for Democrats? Name two of his significant achievements for his country ... name one.
Would he has such luster if his first name were "Bill"?
7
Hey, Beto Baby! Wow, aren’t you something else? A great personal presentation with ideas we need now -- persuasive, forceful, etc. And a Spanish speaker.
Of course, let’s look at records, look at promises---are they enough for this perilous time, in this crucial election of 2020?
Get Trump out of the WH, but we need so much more.
US politics must contradict and reform the conditions that led to DT’s election.
We must set up protective guard rails against any future DTs swimming up to the swamp’s surface, and having a chance at power.
We have to stop the spread of the DT virus infecting our politics.
Beto O'Rourke's entry into the presidential field doesn't even warrant a minor headline. His announcement is lost in a small box under "politics." I certainly don't hope the NYT does to O'Rourke's candidacy what it did to Bernie Sanders in the last election cycle. There was little or no coverage of Sanders campaign and when anything was published I recall it was generally less than positive. I expect better from the New York Times.
1
Yes, but is he likeable?
Bernie/Pete
The face of a beautiful American !
1
@s.whether who is this Pete? Never heard of him and probably never will
Beto is cute and fresh, but he lost me when he drove around the country aimlessly as reported in this paper. He had to soul search and dig deep to decide what to do. Stay in Texas. Develop stronger decision making skills. Learn more about the world. Then run.
3
Nary a word about Mr. O'Rourke's family or background. I read somewhere (maybe in the NYT's, but I'm too lazy to confirm for this throw away comment) that his wife comes from an extremely wealthy family. Also, that same article cited how he's been less than present in raising his children.
Just like Obama - O'Rourke is all sizzle with no real meat.
I predict he'll flame out fairly early and then he'll pivot to running for the Senate. And, even at that he'll lose again to a Republican opponent, whether it's against Senator Cornyn or some other candidate.
5
@Common Sense Beto's wife is the daughter of a real estate mogul who is estimated by Forbes to be worth about $500 million.
1
O'Rourke has too many strikes against him:
1. White
2. Male
3. Straight
1
Democratic leaders, please, please stop stoking your egos with runs at the White House. Progressives desperately need the Senate.
7
I think that makes 15 Dem candidates for President? One more and I can set up my sweet 16 brackets. C’mon Biden !
2
Whoever can beat lying corrupt con man with intellectual challenge trump is fine with me.
With his youth, and lack of past scandal that we don`t know of Beto with his relentless energy should be able to change the mindset pf young white women and soccer moms to support him.
They are talking about lack of experience ?
Donald trump had absolutely none .
3
I like BETO’s youth and energy. I like his relentless campaigning style and his fantastic ability to connect with people. His best asset will be his 100% positive outlook, much like Obama’s. As the article says, this is a good antidote for Trump’s negativity and fear mongering.
BETO can stay above the fray, unify many and still pull in the votes. As “Nancy” has famously said “don’t wrestle with a pig on his turf. He’ll win and you’ll only dirty yourself in the mud”.
Indeed it’s not that time for Beto yet, but can anyone picture a better running mate than him?
1
Living for 2 years and 52 days with an unexperienced, out of touch, egomaniac, mentally unbalanced lunatic in that office has a way of altering one's perspective. The upcoming presidential election is about saving our democracy from decaying any further. It's about restoring our reputation on the world stage. We'll need more than Mr O'Rourke can handle.
1
I voted for Beto for the Senate, but this is a joke. It seems all the adulation that he has received has gone to his head.
4
Beto has my vote. Shucks, I'll even vote for Biden. Biden/Beto has a nice ring to it....and Bernie, enough already. You're not even a registered Democrat.
5
@billy pullen Bernie recently signed a pledge to run as a Democrat. (But of course he would rule as a socialist if elected.)
1
and maybe Pearl Jam will plat at next year's MTV VMA again next year...instead of Cardi B.
This guy would be "cool" if it were 1993.
1
Katie Proter/Bernie Sanders
Brilliant, for real!
They look like America.
Voted for Beto in the primaries and was enthused to see the momentum in TX with the possibility to turn Democratic. However, I find it very concerning that Beto is now yet another fresh face to try to swoon voters. We know that after four torturing, embarrassing, dividing years of Trimp rulling we need a unifying, mature, and most of all policy oriented candidate. Sorry, Beto having a real hard time with your actual resume of accomplishments, you are not Obama in'08, you are better off staying in the Senate races for a few more rounds and actually garnishing experience and accomplishments with legislation and policies that support your big talk. We do need the pendulum to swing far in the opposite direction of where our current pathetic pretend to be president has taken us, but we need it engaged by someone with concrete understanding of law, expertise and policy goals. Wait your turn and prove you can deliver by making a difference in the smaller arena first.
102
@BGinTX
Why pedal the myth that our candidate needs policy triumphs under his belt to be an effective candidate. Trump had zero political office experience, and yet took the Republican primary by storm. This is less about experience, and more about the persona of the person leading the campaign. Beto clearly has the personality to bring people to the polls, and he has the humility to treat American's on both sides of the political spectrum as countrymen, if not friends. He would bring to the white house an exact foil to Trump, and that has the potential to win an election.
10
@BGinTX: Yes. I sent some money to Beto but primarily it was because I wanted him to beat Cruz. I won't support him in the primaries. And I just got a text from his campaign. Asked them to remove me from their list.
4
@BGinTX I disagree, BG, though your points are well taken. Obama was mainly an academic--a school teacher with quite limited government experience. Beto and his big brain will be just fine as POTUS. We need a leader now who can lead into the future and take the newer generations with him (or her.) If Beto really is a good guy--no reason to think otherwise--people will see that intuitively and follow his lead. We oldsters need to let that happen. There is enormous energy in an invigorated population of young people who are properly led. I think they will see Beto and (if he really is good) take his lead for the good of the country. High intelligence and good intentions go a long way in this life.
13
I don't need my candidate to have a great smile, great hair or great optics.
I need my candidate to tell me: What are they going to do about military over-spending? What will they do about our unfair tax laws? What are their concrete proposals to end illegal immigration while protecting the dignity and lives of people who have been exploited by bosses (like Mr. Trump) in the pursuit of their fortunes? What will they do about Global Warming, how would they change our gun laws, how would they reform American electoral politics to privilege voters and majorities over acreage and money?
I wish the Times would cover personality less and policy more. I'm not going to dinner with the Democratic Candidate; I'm contemplating giving my support to someone with the best, smartest positions that support what America and its people need.
Tell me what Beto will do about Citizen's United. I don't care about his family or his grin.
12
There are some fantastic candidates on the Dem side. Personally, I love Warren and Buttigieg - two solid, smart, decent, hardworking, sincere candidates who’d let me sleep easy at night.
But the winning ticket IMO will be Biden/Beto, with Biden stepping down in 2024. This would give Beto 4-years of experience, which he needs.
Having said that however, recall that Obama did not have much experience when he ran the first time. I remember the primary debates; he was no competition for Hillary, but (!) he had the charm and the it factor. As does Beto.
NY Times, more light on Buttigieg would be great! He was very impressive in the recent town-hall.
8
The last president to go directly from the House to the presidency was James A. Garfield way back in 1881. Then again we live in bizarre times. That being said, Beto would make a formidable Vice Presidential candidate.
5
@John The Last person to go from no government job, Beto, to the White House is Donald Trump.
I supported Beto in his run for the Senate, both with my vote and my “speech.” I also supported Cory Booker in his run for Senate, even if I couldn’t vote for him. I really, really like Kamala Harris. I would support any of them as the Democratic candidate, and I will. For now, a year before the primaries get started, I hope they all do well and elevate the political rhetoric in our country today. I believe that one of them, and not Bernie or Biden, will be our nominee despite media handicapping. Here’s to a healthy, positive campaign that reminds us that we are Americans first, not partisans.
5
Sanders & Warren bring nation saving policy to the table. O'Rourke brings a glinting set of teeth & minor media frenzy. The sky is the limit & emptiness abounds.
5
Number 14, 15, 16? Not sure but the Dems are fielding a large group of qualified candidates that will be whittled down. I do not know about Beto's Congressional record yet but boy he can inspire. Maybe short on specifics now, Beto spoke in Iowa this morning with the first really inspiring words and ideas I have heard to date. Pie in the sky, aspirational, delusional? Don't know yet but asking us to reject the hate and division and work together for our country in a way no other candidate has done so far is okay in my book.
It's going to be a long slog to Milwaukee and A candidate will emerge hopefully well supported by the entire party. In the meantime, Beto O'Rourke will be injecting some loft ideals and some pragmatic policy that all the candidates should consider.
He will elevate the debate for good. His style and substance will be examined as it should be.
2
So here’s a candidate with very little experience, less accomplishment and without a definitive program. His primary attraction seems to be that he’s “refreshing”, good looking and personable. He also couldn’t beat Ted Cruz. Think about that for a moment. I’m sure the Republicans are. As long as the Democrats keep advancing people like this, they don’t have a chance.
6
Great event by Beto in Iowa coffee shop today.
Beto is refreshingly unguarded and normal. Took all questions, spoke long form off the cuff.
Impressive.
Happy to support him!
Let's send Donald Trump packing.
3
He adds interest to the race, and will provoke people's attention, so go for it. This can't be an election of also-rans.
2
Would he be considered a good candidate if he went by his given name:
Robert Francis O'Rourke?
2
Mr. O’Rourke is a decent man. He reminds me President Obama. But he needs to improve his leadership skills.
Mr. Bernie Sanders is the only one who can compete against Mr. Trump.
But Mr. Sanders is socialist. Socialist are already casuing damage here new york
@VOLTAIRE Really? You mean by standing up for what their constituents want and not being corrupt like most politicians who lie and cheat and steal. How dare the Socialists disrupt the game here by not taking bribes and being honest, what nerve! Thank God Cuomo understands how NY politics work and and fits right in with graft and dirty politics. " If you can be bribed and steal here , you can be depended to do it any where" Come through corrupt NY, NY." Andy for another corrupt president yes!!
4
O'Beto. Just in time for St. Patty's Day. Darling of the donor class. The same crowd who rails against Trump's dishonesty yet pay and/or cheat to get their kids into good schools. Ah. The hypocrisy.
Pete Buttigieg is the real thing. Refreshing, authentic. And. More importantly grounded with executive managerial success.
3
Beto must have entered the race with the goal of being considered for the Vice Presidential slot. After all, although he was a wonderful Texas candidate for US Senate, what qualities and what experience does he have for the Presidency, for the position of putting back together the position of leader of the Free World? Being young, attractively eloquent in a state-wide race and somewhat progressive are not, alas, sufficient qualities for the Presidency, a world-wide office.
4
Bearing in mind that a sitting senator has never beaten an incumbent president, but four governors have beaten incumbent presidents - I biased towards a governor as the Democratic nominee. I see potential successful pairings: Hickenlooper/Abrams and Inslee/Harris. But Biden/Beto is a logical possibility too. I'm not jumping up-and-down for Sanders because I don't like how Sanders supporters are attacking other candidates for not being liberal enough-he needs to start to show more leadership supporting the party, period, so that his supporters don't reelect Trump.
4
Has an African American paired with an Anglo candidate? Has an Anglo using an Hispanic surname run with an Anglo candidate?
@Alan Einstoss - Barack Obama/Joe Biden.
1
@common sense advocate,
You say you don't like Sanders supporters for attacking (a little strong don't you think?) other candidates for not being liberal enough.
Do you hold the same views about the mass of comments speaking out about Sanders being TOO liberal?
Or are you ok with those attacks.?!
As you have done in the rest of your screed. Kettle.
Sanders holds/has held many chair positions for/under the Democratic's. He chaired the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee as well as the co-founder of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. He is currently the chair of "outreach" as selected by the senate Democratic's. Sanders has always caucused with the Dems. Often being what the Dems should have been.
By the by, it was up to HRC to win votes. She and her campaign failed to do such. 80% of Sanders base voted for HRC. That 12% that went Trump were Red or Leaning Red. You know, those conservative voters HRC was pandering to. SHE couldn't win them. Sanders had/has NO control over whom does or doesn't vote for whomever. Just as HRC couldn't get millions of former Pres. O. voters. Just as HRC couldn't get half the population to the polls. Just as HRC couldn't stop over 10 million DINO's from flipping to Trump.
Yet you are ok denigrating Sen. Sanders and his followers. Gee, I wonder why those few didn't/ wouldn't vote for your candidate or your party.?!
Such a big open, welcoming tent.
Good luck winning over more voters with your comments.
1
As others have noted, Democrats need to put forward someone with at least a modicum of experience necessary to run this country. Our current president is evidence of why this is so. While Beto may offer enthusiasm and a fresh perspective, 3 terms as a US representative doesn't cut it in my view. I wonder whether Beto would even be as popular if he had run against John Cornyn rather than Ted Cruz. My suspicion is that all the money that poured in to support his senate run was directed more at defeating Cruz than electing Beto. Granted it gave him a large mailing list of donors compared to most other entrants in the race, but I don't see how he survives the primary process given the other candidates, many of whom have far more relevant experience.
2
Beto and Bernie attract younger voters who are the hope for reform in America. Their influence may extend to new candidates as we see---the campaign has a long way to play out, but the new trends are clear.
We must face that we are behind other advanced countries in equality and middle class security.
The young abroad are secure in their HC for all and low or free college tuition, plus union appenticeships and high school job training.
If their parents are laid off in their 50s, they still have medical care, not dependent on their job.
The US has let the GOP rw and it's FOX News media define what is too 'left wing'. So the media and politicians have too long worked within the confines of these definitions that are actually set by the wealthy mega donors and corporations.
That's why the US is the the lone holdout among modern nations in lacking affordable universal HC, into the 21st century.
The younger generation don't buy the GOP rw warnings about big govt socialism.
They know the govt is us, that's supposed to protect citizens against exploitation by profit seekers.
The young see through the absurd money as 'free speech' argument used by our highest court, that allowed corporate mega donors to dominate our lawmaking.
How many generations will it take for the young to become the majority---and for our politics to reach parity with advanced democracies in giving citizens representation for their taxation?
3
There are over 3100 counties or county equivalents (parishes/boroughs/independent cities, etc.) in the U.S.
Is it possible for Beto to visit them all?
He ran a good race against the very unpopular Cruz.
He will run a good race against a very unpopular Trump.
Can he run a winning race? The field is deep and talented.
Beto's legislative accomplishments?
What legislative accomplishments does Trump have?
One very unpopular tax relief bill that didn't play well in the 2018 elections.
Tune up the engine and gas up the truck. Beto will be visiting you soon.
6
If he becomes the nominee, I'll vote for him and do everything I can to support him. That's the same stance I take on Sanders, Warren, Booker, Biden, Harris, Hickenlooper, Gillebrand, Abrams, Inslee, etc., etc. I can say this even knowing how some of these candidates have expressed some views that would normally make me reject them. I also stand by this position in the event that the opponent is someone other than Trump. I suppose there may be good Republicans out there somewhere, but unfortunately the public record of their party's ideology and actions makes their defeat at every level the most important thing in which to focus. And I'm not even a die-hard Democrat.
8
Donald Trump and Republicans are emptying our wallets to enrich billionaires since 1980. They want to slash the safety net to enrich the billionaires even further. The 0.1 percent wealthiest in America are 400 percent wealthier than in 1980. The middle class has shrunk and made no gain. Then the GOP and Trump have increased our taxes by thousands of dollars every year with their 2017 tax bill, by increasing the SALT limit and cutting out the personal exemption to increase our taxable income. The higher the state, local and property taxes the greater the taxable income. Cost of living is higher in states like California because everyone in the world wants to live here.The demand greatly exceeds supply and pushes up the costs for everything here, including a home and car, and increases property and state taxes as well. State government has to pay higher salaries and pensions to teachers and state government workers, and incur higher costs to provide the same level of service as a low tax state. Climate change and getting away from fossil fuels is a matter of survival, an existential crisis in the making. Health care costs are marching upwards. The GOP tried to eliminate Obamacare and increase medical care costs for everybody, other than their billionaire patrons and constituents like Trump who they have enriched at our expense. Their goal in cutting the safety net, spending more on defense,and increasing our taxes is to enrich the billionaires and businesses that fund them.
5
Nope. I will be voting for the proper candidate that has a proven track record and does not accept money from oil and gas companies, or any special interest groups. Myself and many others will be dropping a donation to Bernie today, just watch Bernie raise more on the day Beto announces his bid then Beto does and you will see who the people want as their champion.
2
"Where's the beef?". Clara Peller and Walter Mondale made that phrase famous and it should be applied to Beto O'Rourke as well.
I voted for Beto against Ted Cruz but I was bothered by the dearth of policy statements from his campaign. Beto will have to be more specific than "Let's all work together".
It is unclear what his voting record was during his tenure in the House of Representatives, His proponents and opponents will surely reveal that.
He has personal baggage (a DWI arrest, very wealthy father-in-law) that Ted Cruz exploited. His opponents will use the same information against him.
Beto will have to start making specific policy recommendations if his campaign for President is to go anywhere. He can't just be the "anti-Trump" as he was the "anti-Cruz" during his recent run for the Senate her in Texas.
Beto may will end up being Gary Hart during this election campaign. A handsome young face making general statements that lack the "beef" that the electorate need to hear.
5
I see a very clear path to the nomination for Beto. I believe he will be a rockstar at the debates leading to him way over performing in Iowa. He may not win but easy to imagine how he would get the most attention with a top 3 finish. I certainly think he has an easier path than Biden, who has seemingly nowhere to go but down.
Best, Beto can win the nomination without having to take the leftiest positions, unlike some candidates. Not saying we shouldn't vote progressive, but a race to the left will hurt us in the general.
I will happily support anyone not named Trump. Beto is my early favorite. Hope this thing works out well for us.
4
I don't know much about Beto, but he has loads of charisma to spare. Beto didn't do particularly well in his debates against Cruz and remembering back to Trump during the debates, despite lacking any knowledge about policy ( which is still the case), he is tenacious, quick, and cold blooded.
For me, I would prefer a candidate who has experience running a state as governor where real progress occurred. Bottom line, whoever gets the nomination, democrats have to unite behind the nominee, not because she/he represents everything we want, but because the nominee is our best chance at soundly defeat DT and the GOP and get our country back on the right track.
2
Come on people — let each person run who thinks he or she offers us the best opportunity to return the Presidency to a place of honor, integrity, respect, and effectiveness. Let’s hear their messages, assess their merits and faults, and make choices when the primaries and caucuses come in 2020. Everyone who cares needs to be open minded and paying attention to each candidate. Then when a final decision is made — maybe really in Milwaukee at the convention — let’s enthusiastically unite to win the general election, whomever the nominee may be. This is what elections are for!
9
His lack of policy specificity, his refusal to accept a label and his unwillingness to endorse against a Republican friend are all plusses, in my book. And as for his lack of experience, we had a president who served not three but only one term in congress, lost a Senate bid and two years later became president. His name was Abraham Lincoln and some say he did okay.
2
After we saw that someone as unqualified as Donald Trump could actually become President of the United States, anyone with a strong ego now believes that anyone could become POTUS. Of course, like all those investment company recommendations always warn us, past performance is no indication of future performance. But, at least, past performance is an indication of just what an individual may be capable of doing. Without past performance what do we have to judge. Personality? Charisma? We got GW Bush instead of Gore because people thought they would rather have a beer with W than with Gore. And then we got the Iraq War, and ISIS and the Syrian debacle, with millions dead and and terrorists thriving in places they never were in 2000. So much for charisma.
1
Can he still run for Senate if he fades early in the primaries? Does anyone know the cutoff?
3
I'm a former Obama WH policy staffer and have spent the last two years in private practice. Every morning reading the fresh chaos coming out of the White House painfully reminds me of watching the 2016 results come in on a TV in a conference room at the EEOB. Beto's campaign in Texas was the first time in those two years I felt hope and excitement about a candidate. The criticism of his youth and positions or lack thereof are misplaced. It's hard to describe just how vital the personality and character of a candidate is once they are in office, political positions aside. Beto may not have all the answers or many concrete answers, but the right team can help get him there. Thats how the Obama administration got by. But none of it would be possible without someone who was willing to listen and accept help. I see those qualities more in Beto than any other candidate. The Democrats would be wise to give him some room and see how he goes forward.
13
I'll pass. Who is he and what does he stand for? Nothing as far as I can tell.
3
Perfect. Finally a candidate running without weird agendas. I for one am glad we get someone who is not swinging to any extreme. To me it shows a person willing to listen. Something most politicians seem to have lost somewhere on the way. The fact he has not stamped some ridiculous legislation will actually be good in the long run. Nothing for the party of evil to harp on. Hopefully he has always been decent and does not have scary skeletons in his closets. He is the perfect anti-Trump. Except for folks belittling his experience he has it all. Our 45th too had no experience in politics and it got him elected. Come on fellow democrats, let us throw our enthusiasm behind this chap who might appeal to a large cross section of folks instead of polarized or really old coots. We need to win 2020.
3
@Meena If you didn't want extreme suggestions for fixes to major problems then maybe you should not have allowed Republicans AND Democrats to allow things to get as bad as they are now. Incrementalism won't fix anything now. It's fair to say that inexperienced Beto would be controlled by people that won't want to change much of anything - because the corrections to today's problems are going to place demands on the wealthy - and Pelosi, Schumer and Beto won't want to do that.
1
Look at differently. He ALMOST beat Cruz, in TEXAS. Trump can't afford to lose Texas. If he has to pour resources into Texas, then he neglects the Midwest, enough to lose his razor thin edge.
And consider this. Trump can't afford to lose Pennsylvania. If Biden is top of the ticket, Trump loses Pennsylvania, and has to scramble in Texas. Game over.
Sure, all the hens and chickens of color would rather not vote for two white roosters. But their alternative is not Bernie Sanders--it's Colonel Sanders.
1
To the Editor:
Have we lost sight of the value of wisdom, maturity and experience in our politics?
Barack Obama was a “once in a generation leader” with the ability to lead this country, despite limited government experience; he was the exception.
Ever since then we’ve been under the illusion that any charismatic young guy is fit to be President, regardless of their character, maturity, wisdom, or experience. Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Paul Ryan lacked all of the above when they were initially touted as Presidential candidates
And now, Beto O’Rourke. Indeed, he is charismatic and his progressive ideologies are appealing. However, he too lacks experience and wisdom, and based on some of his media choices…perhaps maturity as well.
Politically, our nation is like a rubber band that’s been pulled far to the right; reacting by pulling it far to the left will only increase the tension…and perhaps break us.
We need character, maturity, wisdom and experience to guide us forward now more than ever.
6
I think his stridency is going to wear a little thin, but perhaps he will tone that down a little.
3
Mr. O’Rourke’s signature issue should be creating a country dedicated to real democracy.
4
To those who say Beto does not have enough experience because he is only a former Congressman who lost a US Senate race -
Does the name Abraham Lincoln ring a bell?
He had the same credentials and turned out to be an OK president.
4
@APB What were Lincoln's TV ratings like?
Don't look now, but this is the 21st century.
Hi: As a dual U.S./Cdn citizen,living in Canada, I've been a fan& supporter of Beto for some time now. I say to those too quick to criticize, please keep two things in mind: one, that our survival depends on the current WH resident being gone;and two, that you inform yourselves about Beto's platform before you start thrashing him. Never mind "young, handsome, leftie, white Obama", or any of the other labels. Just listen to what he has to say, and how he says it. I support his positions on climate change urgency, on women's rights, on judicial reform, etc. I believe he is earnest & will be a unifying force in this horribly divided, battered nation. Beto feels like the light countering the darkness of Trump's corrupt regime.
3
@harbour18 Hmmm. And exactly what are Beto's positions on the pressing issues of the day? Pls provide current links showing where these positions are stated; I couldn't find any.
As a former Texan I supported Beto for the Senate because he was the first decent chance to bring down that especially vile, oily snake TC. And Beto was a shining Saint George to face down Ted's ugly dragon. Too bad he lost, although I was happy to see him fight the good fight.
But charisma can easily morph into narcissism -- a occupational hazard for politicians.
Maybe he' angling for Vice -- or just name recognition for a possible run in '24 or '28. But I'd prefer a candidate who already has a job, a resume, or some ideas.
1
"Yet Mr. O’Rourke also comes to the 2020 race with few notable legislative accomplishments after three terms in the House representing El Paso."
I have now read this same comment in several news stories about Beto. Pray tell what Democrat did have any "notable legislative accomplishments” during the time Beto served as a Congressman. With Ryan and McConnell firmly grasping the total output during those years, did even a Republican have any accomplishments? Congress has been nothing but a vast wasteland since 2010. Beto shares that with 537 others.
1
Beto is clearly the most electable of the Democratic field. Perhaps Biden will drop his plans an endorse Beto. We must keep our eye on the ball,electing a new President in 2020.
1
The electorate swings from extreme to extreme. From the smart & educated & diplomatic Obama to the obnoxious hatred of Trump, and now we are heading into 2020:
I think a young well spoken candidate like Beto in whom a lot of voters can recognize part of themselves has a good chance.
Biden: too old.
Sanders: too extreme and too old.
Warren: reminds too many people of their mother in law.
Harris: great candidate.
So far, Beto and Harris are on my hot list.
Let's leave the old white male candidates behind, make this election about the future, and get young people excited.
2
@Pieter Harris has been presenting herself as an African-American, whereas she is actually of Jamaican-Indian extraction. I am not sure how many African-American voters she will appeal to since during her time as a district attorney and California Attorney General so many young black men were incarcerated.
Press him further on Medicare for All and he will disappoint.
3
It's so easy for intelligent people to shake their heads when thinking about the majority of Republican voters but I have to admit it startles me to see how little the average Democrat voter knows about what is actually going on in Washington, how the Democratic Party is complicit in it...and to witness the shallow criteria the average Democrat voter uses to consider a candidate good or credible. We're doomed if a young handsome status quo congressman can come along and be taken as seriously as someone that could not be louder or clearer about how far off course both Republicans and Democrats have taken us in the last 40 years. (Bernie Sanders) Meeting Republicans half way to terrible as they have drifted further and further right (Democrats) has brought us to where we are now...and you want to continue down that same path more or less?
Shaking my head.
Just no to the young handsome man. Stop being ridiculous and wake up please.
1
We need Beto to challenge Cornyn’s seat. THAT would help the country. He’s displaying far too much ego by throwing his hat in the presidential race.
4
"...Mr. O’Rourke enters without a signature proposal that might serve as the ideological anchor of his bid".
Translation: He doesn't fit into the limited confines of the media's expectations.
@LH Or perhaps he is a hollow vessel with no real ideology, waiting to be filled with ideas from his half-billionaire father-in-law.
6 months ago I would have whooped with Joy. But he backed away from Medicare for all, which he promised and ran his campaign on at the last moment. He broke his own promise and did take dark money with strings from the oil and gas companies.
I do not trust him. The status quo who are doing well with the giant tax cuts for the rich, and the mainstream media and the corrupt Democratic party , as well, would sooner
vote for a Republican than a progressive because a progressive would end their gravy train. They will love Beto. I expect NYT to embrace him as their long lost son while they are doubling down on their vengeance against Bernie, who of course is the most honest of all the candidates and would indeed drain the swamp and get rid of the corruption.
The corrupt mainstream millionaires thrive on the DC corruption. They even thrive during Trump.
Heck I even sent money to Beto. I think he tries to mean well but is weak and will be convinced by Wall Street and the donors to keep the corruption going, And like Obama who would not prosecute the wildly corrupt bankers he will hedge around the corruption and do a few good things when he thinks about it.
And yes he is far better than Trump, but again the working class and what is left of the middle class will be abandoned.
DC seems to be Vanity Fair on steroids. Only the Justice Democrats seem to be able to resist the big and shiny bribes so far. I no longer trust Beto to fight for us regular non corrupt folks.
3
@cheerful dramatist very well said, bravo! Beto is the guy the status quo wants so they can continue feeding at the trough. At democracy and the people’s expense.
1
@Robert M. Koretsky Thank you very much for your reply. It is not fun to stand up against the establishment. But I feel it is the only way to honor democracy and have this country benefit all of her citizens.
And also I am a Mark Twain girl and cannot stand hypocrites
1
The guy can't win a statewide election in Texas so he's going to win a national election? Come on, give me a break and give the American public a chance to vote out the current incumbent.
3
I think he has what it takes.
@Carl I suppose he has what it takes if that includes a winning smile and a father-in-law worth half a billion dollars.
I think I will take a 2000-yr old Sanders (or Warren) over this guy even if he remained at 46-yrs for ever.
3
My take away from this piece, he has few legislative victories and he has not assembled a team of advisors. trump got 50 million votes with no government experience period. He ran his own campaign his way. He had never won an contest.
Admittedly at this point I still am a Bernie fan but I welcome the energy and hopefully the new ideas that Beto will bring to the party and the discussion.
1
I listened to Beto O' Rourke speak to a group of Iowa residents today. He is a dynamic speaker who is smart, knowledgeable, and passionate about his beliefs. He clearly understands the needs of the people.
He also has political experience as he represented Texas's 16th congressional district for three terms.
He is exactly what we want as a democratic presidential candidate as a young, vibrant, and a much needed unifying force who can beat Trump.
8
It seems like American politics is operating at the extremes. Trump has his base, and Bernie has his but what about all of those who are middle left/right? There’s an obsession with being more revolutionary and radical than everyone else but wouldn’t most American’s want a President who unifies the quiet conservatives and progressives? In 2012, Romney and Obama were billed as far right-left by the opposing media, look at how the political landscape has shifted since then!
Beto fills the middle gap and fills it well. He doesn’t want to punish free markets and big business like Warren yet wants increased regulation unlike Trump. He backs comprehensive energy reform and renewable incentives, but not a strict roadmap to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. He plays the middle, case in point being his answer to football players kneeling during the anthem. Add that to his charismatic personality, what’s not to like? He’d be fantastic President, I’m really pulling for him!
8
hopefully most Americans want to catch with the rest of the developed world and stop trying to appease people who are hoping to see mining come back.
1
The state of the planet no longer allows for a "moderate" position on climate change. It's like veering a little, tiny moderate bit when your car is headed straight toward the edge of a cliff.
1
@Ben R But he wants to tear down the wall and have open borders. He also supports late term abortions. And let’s not forget he has no accomplishments.
This will destroy Biden and squeeze Booker and Harris mostly. I almost gave money to Beto to beat Cruz, because I dislike Cruz and thought it would be great to have a Democratic Senator. However, there is no chance I'm supporting his campaign. His fundraising numbers are hugely inflated by people like me, nationally. Due to the size of the field, this election will be all about turning out your base and core constituents. Sanders has a strong base. Warren could have a strong base. Everyone else's base is kind of fickle, and Beto just made a major dent in Biden's young rich white-college-educated Democrat voters, further splitting the moderate pool, in a manner that will further erode their already insufficient attempts at creating energy. This is great for Sanders/Warren.
6
Forgive me, but I am skeptical. The public soul-searching and those practiced totally rehearsed hand gestures are quite off-putting to me.
9
It was just great to support O'Rourke against Ted Cruz and I would have strongly supported him in a run against John Cornyn. But now he's running against Biden, Sanders, Warren, and Harris, and that's a good deal less appealing. Like Gillibrand's, his candidacy for president is mostly a concession to vanity.
8
So sorry to hear it as it isn't his time. He needs a good decade to gain some experience to prepare for the job of managing the country. Unfortunately, the skills it takes to become the President aren't necessary the skills required to BE the President.
5
That’s what the primary will determine. The best person for office. Let’s see how it pans out.
1
i really supported Beto in his senate run. i am disappointed that he won't be running for senate again. democrats need to be in control of the senate.
and please, Beto, i will support you for president, but don't have
Amy just sit if she is in the video. i am sure she can talk too. you don't need to read Becoming to realize that the partner who gives up much to help you run deserves a voice.
4
@peggy I am not sure how much, if anything, Amy is giving up by keeping her mouth shut and helping Beto run for President. After all, she is the daughter of a real estate mogul worth about $500 million.
Assuming Trump runs for re-election (not a given, in my opinion), the goal is to defeat him no matter what. We can't take another four years of corruption and divisiveness.
That being said, I'm not sure the "deep experience" card (which Biden owns) is as relevant as the character of Trump's opponent. (I'm not even sure that specific policy stands, such as the Green New Deal, matter because any Democrat is going to be better for the environment than Trump.) What matters is a candidate who can put forth an optimistic vision of the country, in contrast to Trump's crabbed and cynical worldview.
Whoever fits that description has my vote, regardless of age, gender or ethnicity.
4
@Cheeseman Forever It’s great there is no thought required for your vote.
He's running for president to clear his head?
I was going to say he could do more good by trying harder to win a senate seat for the Democrats in 2020, but maybe he does not have the maturity or substance even to be a senator.
3
I'm surprised by all the negative comments. A charismatic Democratic centrist from Texas with a good handle on immigration issues at least deserves some consideration. Remember, in the early 60s, JFK picked LBJ to be VP because he was from Texas, even though the two did not get along (see Robert Caro's biography of LBJ) because then the Democrats understood they needed to balance the ticket regionally to pick up the middle of the country, something they lost sight of completely in 2016 when Hillary barely bothered to campaign in the midwest. Beto would at the very least be a great VP, given his Texas credibility (it IS an accomplishment that he gave Cruz a run for his money in Texas--his "loss" was a quasi win that took everyone by surprise and he raised tons of out of state money).
3
He reminds me so much of RFK. I'd vote for him.
6
All of the press, including this article, are saying that Beto has a "small-dollar fund-raising army." I question if that is true. I know that I gave to Beto without knowing a thing about him because I hate Ted Cruz and had heard that Beto had a chance to beat him. I will not be donating to this quixotic campaign. I expect his first week fund raising numbers to tell the real story of his popularity.
4
@Nick Beto is the son-in-law of a real estate mogul worth about $500 million. I don't think the small individual donations will have much impact on his ability to run for President.
@Mal T In our political system, that is nothing. Bernie and Hillary each spent over 200 million on the primaries last time. Hillary spent 1.4 billion in total. I don't imagine his father-in-law is going to liquidate his assets and go all in on a losing campaign. At best, he might match what Sanders raised in his first week.
Beto is not a neophyte, newcomer, or naif who has decided to run for public office, the highest in the land. The comments about Beto's loss to Cruz reveal no one outside the state really knows the strength of the GOP in the state. Very few Democrats at all, and the GOP strong and w/lots of moola in their large war chest. He has high visibility now from running a race that was clean and not negative. Trump came to the party as damaged goods and nothing has changed those first impressions and instead he and his bunch have so polluted the water the swamp metaphor is long gone--swamped in fact by more creatures.
I was for Beto in the race against Cruz and his character and energy and life have impressed on me that he is the candidate for now to bring together our country by his mind, will, and example.
3
I'm thrilled O'Rourke is running! At this point in the election cycle, the more energizing democrats in the mix, the better.
Beto has that "it factor" of ability to connect with people, that ability rise above the nasty rhetoric that defines republicans. Refreshing to say the least!
To the naysayers, give it a rest! We Democrats are better than that. As a proud lifelong progressive Democrat, I'm excited by our diverse and intelligent roster of candidates. Beto definitely adds to my excitement.
We have 18 months to sort through the candidates, to listen to them, to understand not only their policy agendas but also their ability to unite vs divide. Let's listen and learn before casting disparaging remarks about any of our fellow Democrats willing to put country first. And beat that abomination in the WH!
6
I’m interested to see how O’Rourke compares to another ambitious young candidate, Pete Buttigieg. Mayor Pete has impressed me with his thoughtful intelligence, policy knowledge, and appealing demeanor. And we could all unify around around learning to pronounce his name correctly (Booda jedge)!
4
I believe that Robert Francis O'Rourke will be next President of the United States.
And that will be a good thing.
5
I'm rather fond of Beto, but this is a mistake. The Democratic primary field is already crowded, and Beto is easily the least experienced of the bunch. He did good work mobilizing and motivating Texas voters- wouldn't he be of greater use to the party in Texas than on the national level?
Though he certainly is likeable, he doesn't really have a coherent ideology behind his politics when it comes to the national level. People know what candidates like Sanders, Warren and Biden stand for- he'll need to work fast to stake out some territory in terms of policy if he wants to be competitive.
9
Read “A Guy From Brooklyn”s comment
Besides the fact that he's a rare politician who actually comes off as genuine, likable, and inspiring, the simple reality that he puts Texas in play, which would force Republicans to spend resources on Texas that could otherwise be used elsewhere and, if he can win it, would swing the election, means he should be on the ticket.
There's without a doubt no other candidate out there who would make as great an impact on the electoral college as Beto.
I'm not sure if he'd be my top pick for president given that he's coming off a loss and we don't yet know all the candidates, but if he doesn't headline, there is definitely no better nominee for vice president.
Beto is exactly the type of candidate who Republicans pray doesn't make it through the primaries.
17
I find mr. O'Rourke 100% refreshing. He is exactly what this country needs today. He is the total opposite of trump. He is a unifier. I donated to his Senate campaign even though I don't live in Texas. Frankly I did so because I was very impressed with this young man. He's got my vote
426
What exactly has he done to unite us? I’m confused.
55
Beto is definitely a uniter. Unlike many others, he doesn’t denigrate individuals who might have an opinion different from him, but he’s never shied away from speaking his own. He ran a campaign based on not taking PAC money that was pro-gun control, pro-immigrant, pro-black lives matter - all in Texas.
He may ramble at times and needs to refine his message (and certainly he does not have the legislative chops as Warren or Biden or even Harris in her short time in the Senate). But he’s as authentic a candidate as you can possibly get - flaws and all. I’m supporting him 100%, and hope to see an O-Rourke / Harris or O’Rourke / Buttigieg team.
60
@JJ
The statement was "He is a unifier." If you had watched any speeches during his Senate campaign you would have seen how he unified people in the crowd, even though they had differing opinions. That in itself if quite an accomplishment with today's volatile political atmosphere.
65
Side note to all this:
America: please stop insulting young voters like myself but saying we need a young candidate to attract us to vote. Please. Stop.
Stop patronizing us. We are not stupid. We don’t vote for someone because they are young. We vote for people who’s ideas we like. We really don’t care about age.
We DO care about people who actually believe in something, and believe in the words coming out of their mouth.
The whole “young candidate = young voters” is a simplistic and insulting argument peddled by, generally, people who think they know what’s best for my generation and don’t realize who patronizing it sounds.
551
@JW I remember how Millennials and Boomers cast aspersions on each other online during the 2016 election (though it may have been Russian bots behind the age-baiting). Then a Gen X-er said, "we hate both of you." So, enough generalization. I agree with you, and I'm also grateful to see someone use "simplistic" properly.
17
@JW, its a good lesson for my kids now in their late 20s, that when they grow up, they should never never diminish the youth, insult the young voters. It's very easy for baby boomers to forget they were young once and for the old elderly to broadly assign all problems to the youth of today. Ugh. Its time people acknowledge that young voters exist, that they have dreams and vision and that they own the future and the planet's future (however much their elders have ruined the planet for them).
22
@JW
And here I am, an old guy who isn't fond of the idea of an old candidate! I voted for Bernie in the primary, but I won't this year. Age 79 on his inauguration?
I voted for Beto. Maybe my bumper sticker will be good for another 2 years! It's funny, I see a lot of Beto stickers on cars still, nary a Cruz.
51
To all 2020 Democratic Presidential Candidates: Regardless of who becomes the party's nominee, all candidates must stand united with the nominee. Democrats won't win otherwise.
Given the Democratic takeover of the House in 2018, I think Beto is the candidate who will most appeal to Americans across the nation.
Shortly after O'Rourke announced his campaign to unseat Cruz, he stopped by a local icehouse late on a Friday afternoon.
He stood only a few feet away from me -- yes, he's young. He's also articulate when championing issues most relevant to average Americans.
He lost to Cruz, but he changed the Texas electorate. Don't waltz in and spout off a few well-rehearsed quips. Come to my community and listen.
13
Beto O'Rourke will make some of Bernie Sanders' supporters begin asking, "Is Beto going to get our "student loan debt resolved"?
After all, early in the run-up to the 2016 election, before Sanders started yammering away about Millennials' 'student loan debt', Millennials didn't know Bernie Sanders from Colonel Sanders.
2
@merc Bernis is a Dreamer.. Beto is a realist and has the charisma to Beat Trump..His message is balanced and has the power to bring ALL of US together.!! Progressives, Centrist and Blue collars..(I don't like labels)...!! Best Ticket would be Beto/Bernie.. just like Obama/Biden..!!
@jjpSanders will never ride in the back seat. But neither will O'Rourke. So, that'll have to be resolved.
And once it is, hopefully, Joe Biden will have accepted the role of cheerleader. His time has come and gone.
Bernie/Beto in 2020.
@jjp I'm pretty sure an ancient socialist like Bernie Sanders would be thrilled to run for Vice-President on a ticket with young Beto for President, particularly since Beto is the son-in-law of a real estate mogul worth about $500 million.
I will not be supporting Beto. The last thing we need is another inexperienced, charismatic good-looking centrist whose positions on critical issues are unknown. The times call for bold leadership and bold positions, not another Obama. Bernie is still the best in the whole Democratic field. We know what he stands for because his voting record is proof of his positions. Bernie, not Beto!
7
@georgia
Make America Venezuela!
Vote Bernie!
@EGD It's always easier to spout cliches than to offer a reasons or a reasoned argument.
I am excited for 2020 now!! Beto is young and charismatic. He could be the one who finally makes TX blue. If he can make that happen many of the other swing states will follow!!
2
I'm happy to see a candidate entering the race that is not pushing a specific ideology. "Ideology" is effectively a synonym for "I don't listen".
4
Beto O'Rourke has charisma, youth, and excitement. However, he does not have enough experience, which we as a country desperately need. He should gain more experience before jumping into the national arena. Biden is my guy.
3
@Connie
My sentiments about this align with yours. He should gain more national experience by running against and beating Cornyn for Senator in 2020.
And assuming that Biden is nominated and becomes the next president that year, an opening for Beto may emerge later: Biden, being 82 years old in 2024, may decide to be a one-term President. Beto would be poised to be Biden's successor that year.
But, apparently that line of reasoning didn't carry the with Beto....oh well.
Everyone commenting on his lack of policy ideas or achievements in Congress should watch his debates with Cruz and check out some of the excellent bi-partisan bills he authored and co-sponsored.
Medicare for all, immigration reform, and Climate change are big priorities for him.
BETO 2020!
7
Fantastic. A young JFK. Pick Kamela Harris as your running mate and we are on our way. Or pair up with Bernie as the VP. Both winning tickets.
4
@John Tapley
He's no JFK.
1
In so many ways Beto is the exact opposite of Trump.Basic values,credibility,intellect and basic decency Beto wins hands down. But will he be tough enough to handle the Trump insults and taunts and nicknames? Is he a battle-tested politician? At the very least he is a new generation politician and feels fresh.
4
It's interesting that Democrats debate merits of their candidates. The last 2 Republican presidents were elected by name only; they were were (are) intellectual nothings. The Dems have a tough decision; popularity and electability versus qualifications.
1
Finally, a breath of fresh air and a swath of fresh dare! A long road awaits but there are signs now that the Democratic Party has taken on a new energy. The imminent entrance of Joe Biden would in no way be a negative, however. His voice is welcome as well. The Democratic Party is about inclusion and voices joined in unison.
1
Beto running for president is a little ridiculous. He needs to win the TX Senate seat first.
I'd say he's only making this announcement to get a lot of gullible people to send him money. He's building up his monetary influence, so he can buy his way into something good.....with whoever the real contender for President might be.
That candidate seems to be marching down Market Street, in a San Francisco parade.......Gavin Newsome. And nobody is paying attention yet. the DNC has manuevered the CA primary, which really IS rigged(ask Bernie), to the front of the season, candidates only go to NH and Iowa to lose face...
Perhaps Gavin Newsome will select Beto to be his VP running mate.
He will be more proof, just like most of these comments, that most people have totally been sold the farm on the 2 party scam. Blind allegiance is what you have been told to be, and by golly you will obey like a lap dog. You want to "turn a State blue" or vote for free stuff or vote for someone you find attractive. Granted, the system only allows for wacky rich people to run, but you will shower them with money and they will turn right around and take as much of yours as they can when elected. Wake up America, vote for less govt not more...
1
I was born and raised in a different America...and a different Time.
We all used to understand.......Dont Believe the Hype.
4
Beto is a great guy. But I think he might be more suited to be a motivational speaker/life coach rather than President of the United States of America.
Support Sanders/Warren in 2020 to Restore Sanity & Save Our Democracy!
5
I don't know much about Beto but he's not Trump. That's a "plus" for me.
1
Pithy words of caution:
"Old age and Treachery beat Youth and Exuberance....every time."
1
Beto is an unproven light weight. No sale.
We’ve got long-term fighters for economic equality in this race like Sanders and Warren. Given that, why take a chance on this pretty boy?
9
Seriously? Have we learned nothing about putting people in charge with no experience? Whose only qualifications seem to be being able to talk a good game and use social media?
The argument seems to be that he can inspire Democrats to vote, so he can beat Trump, and it doesn't matter if all he has is some modest amount of charm.
If the Democrats can't be bothered to go out to the polls and vote for a qualified and experienced candidate simply because she is not the greatest at giving speeches, well, that speaks volumes.
Trump must be removed from office. Ideally that will happen before the election. But if it has to wait for the ballot box, let's not let that priority make us leave our senses. Beto O'Rourke? Come on.
117
@Mr. Mark Two words: Barak Obama. No one had heard of him outside of Chicago until he gave the keynote speech in 2004 at the DNC convention. I remember turning to my wife saying "this man will be president." Beto has a similar buzz and the same lack of legislative accomplishments as the greatest president in my lifetime did back then. For the record, I am a 71-year-old independent.
20
@Mr. Mark Really? You consider a member of Congress as having "no experience"? Oh, and for those who are compelled bring up the failed Senate race, might I remind you of the country's best president who also failed his Senate races (my guess is that you don't know to whom I'm referring).
5
@Rick Spanier Beto has been in the House for 2 terms. The lack of legislative accomplishments is NOT a badge of honor.
4
Former state legislative staffer here. I supported Beto to remove Ted Cruz from the Senate. But for President we need a person with fully-baked ideas. The devil is in the details. The Democratic hopefuls need to offer something more than generalities. While I support some of Senator Warren's positions, she is damaged goods. Mayor Pete Buttigieg has both executive and military experience. He has some thoughtful and specific strategies to approach the challenges we face. I also like Governor Higgenlooper. We need someone who is not part of the Democratic establishment/Clinton clique and who has a demonstrated track-record of governing.
118
@Health Lawyer Hillary had "fully baked" ideas. Her mocking response to the needs of people whose views did not enter into her cloistered kitchen were part of why we have Trump. We don't need "fully baked" ideas. We need leaders who LISTEN.
10
@Health Lawyer, a Buttigieg/Hickenlooper ticket would be excellent if for no other reason than offering the opportunity for the entire country to say "Buttigieg/Hickenlooper" over and over again.
13
I'm a non-Texan who donated to O'Rourke's senate campaign, not because I was enchanted by Beto so much as because he looked like he actually had a shot at unseating Cruz. I have yet to see anything that makes me think O'Rourke should be in the White House, though.
I agree wholeheartedly re: Pete Buttigieg. The more I see from him the more impressed I am. He has ideas and an ability and willingness to communicate them. He seems to have both a first-rate intellect AND a first-rate temperament. How refreshing is that?
14
Another clueless rich guy, married to a billionaire, no thanks.
10
@MDM Please get your facts straight. Beto is married to the daughter of a real estate mogul who is only worth about $500 million.
Another example of entitlement and privilege -- a tall rich white guy, who lost, thinks he should be president.
8
The new mantra of US Politics is ... "a fool and his money are soon parted."
It seems obvious to this impartial observer that so many DNC controlled candidates are announcing their candidacy....is not to actually become president........but to grab lots and lots of Cash.
That cash flows ... tax free....by the way.........from one Campaign organization to the next......buying and selling favors from one another. Keepin' it in the Family, so to speak.
Beto O'Rourke seems more "republican" than he does democrat.......but the public is hypnotized by the Media Hype....and, admittedly, he can pull off the Young Kennedy impersonation pretty good.
But Heck.....he just LOST to the most horrible human being on the planet.....and Ted Cruz isnt even Texan.
4
OMG, just turned him off while he was doing Q/A on MSNBC. TOO hyper! I cannot stand white men shouting
6
Thank God.
1
Look--we have Trump Now-a Wet Mop is Better. Beto is a Good Candidate--Let's Not Overthink this.............
1
Wow. To have the confidence of a mediocre white man.
Does anyone really think O'Rourke has a chance? The guy who couldn't beat (checks notes)....Ted Cruz???
I would've had a lot more respect for Beto if he'd just declared he's running for VP, because that's what this is about.
8
Beto clearly has sizzle, but is there a steak?
And what's with the reporter writing that Democrats are "lurching" left? Lurching? Defined as staggering or awkward swaying.
Trending, moving, turning, swinging are all words that come to mind to describe the Party's progressive tilt. Lurching is a pejorative, and comes directly out of the Republican playbook.
C'mon, Times.
30
One significant thing you neglected to mention: His wife's family are some of the wealthiest people in Texas. And that's saying something.
5
@Craig Anderson To be more precise, Beto is married to the daughter of a real estate mogul who is worth about $500 million.
So many comments here echoing Trump’s “I thought you had to win” comment... Ha. Nevermind the hypocrisy of the source, or the questionable willingness to spread this insane ‘talking point’ ... but really, no one wants to point out the OBVIOUS?! That we’re talking about a Democrat’s narrow loss in Red State Texas? Are these trolls chanting this nonsense, or, are they honest commenters with a real lack of demographic knowledge? Anyway, Bernie lost. Joe Biden lost. I’m fine with that. I’m fine with ANY democrat. Divided we fall people.
17
When I think of O'Rourke I see an out of sync marionette with arms and legs dangling out all over the place. The words that come out of his mouth are similarly out of sync with his kinetics.
Beto needs a lot of seasoning (and choreography) before he can take center stage.
In any case, a Joe Biden and Kamala Harris ticket will demolish the Putin selected crazy presently in office.
6
Beto who? A wanderer who was lost is now found (without a plan)? Is their a national democratic leader (king/queen maker)? Fortunately we have 6 months to prune the trash before the primaries. No one is compelling, mostly just too old for the job.
2
He did lose to a man considered by many to be the most despicable man in the senate. Definitely a contender.
5
I became bored with the Times’s largely fawning tone... My God. :)
Unless I missed it (I skimmed), it appears the NYT decided not, in this overly lengthy article/oped, to report the fact that Beto takes money from the oil industry.
I consider that journalistic malpractice at a time when catastrophic climate change is among our biggest challenges.
We must pressure our media to *always* include the industries from which presidential and congressional candidates accept legalized bribes — there should be no ifs, ands or buts about it.
14
@Thomas D.
Thank you for bringing that up. I read NYTimes' coverage on him this morning looking for that, and his stance on climate change, as well.
I find O'Rourke to be a very gifted and charismatic politician. But in a piece covering where he stands on the issues, there was no mention of the Green New Deal which, given today's political climate, and the really big issue of climate change, I find negligent.
As a nation, we simply cannot afford to get it wrong, one more time. A centrist Democrat (which all the MSM are pushing for) is not only NOT the answer, but will be the final nail in the coffin of our country's future, our children's future and of planet Earth.
1
@wise42j
One more point I neglected above:
A "Centrist" Democrat is code for corporate-funded and owned. Wall Street, big-pharma, oil and gas being the biggies.
1
@Thomas D.
How does Brooklyn get its food? Usually driven in by trucks powered and lubricated by petroleum products? Don't forget truck drivers and refinery workers vote and where O'Rourke is from oil is big.
Wouldn't it be catastrophic for Brooklyn and the people living on this planet if there were oil shortages?
Yawn.....
Guys already worn out his welcome. All sizzle , no steak.
9
Inexperienced, unqualified, hubristic, naive. A danger to the party and the nation.
11
@Ethan Oh, and a loser to Ted Cruz.
You gotta ask: why? This guy couldn't even beat Ted Cruz.
8
I liked Robert Redford better
9
I’m a die hard Democrat. But this man is an Obama wannabe who has tried to analyze and exploit Obama’s populist strategy to seem the “cool” guy who is “just like you” - but he isn’t. He’s an arriviste, social climbing ego monster. In other words. A perfect fit for our government. A class of individuals who believe themselves the center of the universe. Caesers all. Hungry for only one thing. Their own aggrandizement and cashing in.
I’ve sickened so much - to the point of real physical illness - over the Trumputin Clown’s circus of travesties these last two years - yet it seems our government simply refuses to run out of criminals, cronyism, mendacity and we can already see the only price to pay for high crimes and misdemeanors is just a slap on the wrist for being career criminals.
I’ve quit faith. I’m voting AGAINST my abused and betrayed principles and accepting the fact that our country is simply a criminal enterprise that rewards the greatest sociopaths and narcissists and spits in the face of honest, decent, moral and hard working Americans.
I’m getting off the Merry-Go-around. After waiting for two years for JUSTICE to prevail only to feel the sting of an open handed slap in the face to see Paul Manafort cake walk his sentence.
So I give up, I will join the ranks of the mad and vote for Trump myself. America DESERVES him. I am rage-ridden with the mockery we’ve become and have decided to add fuel to the fire consuming us all.
Endgame.
5
@Rene Pedraza Del Prado
Oh. Bravo! And how logical.
Vote for Trump because you're sickened by his corruption, and 40% of our FOX-News lemming-like ignoramus American's lauding and applauding it.
Yes. By all means. What an intelligent move.
@Rene Pedraza Del Prado
The guy looks like the fresh air we need and to me, and many descriptions I read, he is unusual in his personality.
Still, if you are a die hard Democra, what’s wrong with an Obama wannabe? Obama was a freak ore president I think hunk he is a great person.
Bet Best--Bet Beto 2020. Reminiscent of Bobby Kennedy...
3
I'll play the role of cynical, blackhearted campaign manager for Beto O'rourke.......
Here's the winning strategy:
1. Switch Parties. Everybody in Texas does this. John Connolly, Rick Perry, long-timeDNC financial guru Bob Strauss was always accused of being Repub...cuz he was one of Nixon's pals.
2. As a bonafide Texas Republican, Beto can now team up with fellow repub congressman, Will Hurd.......without having the cynical DNC national agenda preventing him from doing stuff for his local constituency.
3. Beto.....run as a repub for US Senate!! Beat the tar out of JOhn Cornyn...in the Primary.
3.
2
This article mentions voters and activists who wonder out loud whether a white male is a good fit for a Democratic candidate for the presidency. But it fails to mention voters who are repelled by sexism and racism, and it fails to mention that there are millions of us out here.
5
I like to consider myself Yong about to be 40. I am a democrat from Staten Island NY, a piece of NYC that resembles a swing sate. Beto is the only appealing candidate on the democratic side. If the Dems really want President Trump out office they need to think who is going to appeal to the swing voter. Bernie looks great to the left but would a moderate vote for him? Beto is the only candidate that has emerged that has appeal to the center. I beg the Democrats not to blow this election it is yours to loose. I despise Trump more than anything, but I don' t think I could ever vote for Bernie or the rest. Remember 'better the devil you know than the devil you don't'
2
@Robert
I agreed with you until the last line. I think I would vote for almost anyone anyone get Trump out. He is destroying our country and he is a mean and ugly person. I dislike Bernie deeply but is still better than Trump.
I am so tired of a two-year Presidential race - this is in part why people are SICK of politics. When do we start talking about the 2120 race - it is never too early!
7
And the ranks of unqualified Democrats who would take our country towards outright socialism just keeps growing. Now it's O'Rourke who jumps into the seemingly endless list of far left Democrats running for the presidency. Keep it up Democrats, liberals and progressives. The farther left you go, the more middle America will reject your plans to reject capitalism in favor of free stuff for all.
9
@paul
The last two Republican presidents were (are) intellectual lightweights with no qualifications to hold the office. Through studies have shown that the base of the Republican party is driven primarily my racial animus and misogyny. Your talk of "plans to reject capitalism in favor of free stuff for all" goes straight out of 8th grade debate club. Follow the money. The game is rigged against middle America. Free market capitalism is a myth, and the free stuff applies more to the military budget than any other facet of our economy. You might be slow to figure this out, but eventually middle America will.
4
@paul
1. Beto O'Rourke is not a socialist.
2. Today's Republican Party has taken Reagan's "Government IS the problem" meme to a whole new level. They don't believe in government at all. "Deconstruction of the administrative state."
The GOP is the party of anarchists.
5
@paul If you take 10 minutes to read Beto’s biography you would know he is not a “far” left Democrat, actually pretty far from it.
1
Beto is a fledgling.
He's not ready.
I'll pass.
17
Oddly, pundits continue to question whether a white man is the best "fit" in this political climate. This provocation does not arise nearly as often with Joe Biden or Bernie Sanders.
Who predicted Donald Trump would be a good fit in 2016? Only Ann Coulter predicted a Trump victory, and since then they have had a falling out.
Why prophesize a political future based on identity politics--Beto O'Rourke is a white male, Kamala Harris is not black enough, Elizabeth Warren is not really American Indian.
Hillary Clinton bet the house on the woman card--"Deal me in"--and she lost.
Beto is a charismatic white male who majored in English and speaks fluent Spanish. His heart is in the right place. His only flaws may be the lack of a legislative record and a propensity to moody introspection, a quality that the current chief administrator would do well to cultivate.
That is good enough for me.
4
“Some voters and activists have also wondered aloud if a white male is the best fit for this Democratic moment...”
What a downright racist/sexist sentiment. In my Democratic Party, race and gender are not a factor. The best candidate is the only thing that matters and race/gender don’t factor into that equation.
6
@Stefan
Fine, but aside from race, gender--and you forgot age--he's a feckless pretty boy, without a plan beyond "choose me!"
Could we please have someone who has been planning how he/she would improve the lives of his countrymen for at least 10-20 years already? Somebody who has some concrete ideas beyond Kum-bay-yah?
I'm so sick of celebrities, instead of people who can make policies!
@Stefan
Nice idea, but not reality, even in the Democratic Party. And race and gender do matter. Being a female is an utterly different daily experience from being male. Being a non-white is different every day from being white. Those differences shape all of us who fit into those categories. One small example: would you like to live your entire life seeing a less qualified person consistently being paid more you simple because of their sex?
Will someone please explain the fascination with this guy. I would definitely vote for - anyone on the left - but I just don’t get his rock star status. Always remember your leaders will, in the end, disappoint you greatly. Stop with the worship already.
12
"Yet Mr. O’Rourke also comes to the 2020 race with few notable legislative accomplishments after three terms in the House representing El Paso."
Appears to be following President Obama's playbook.
9
@jj
People should strike while the iron is hot. Why wait? Hillary should have run in 2004. She waited until 2008 and met a rival on a hot streak who bypassed her, same thing in 2016.
The negative comments here remind me of why Clinton lost in 2016. No matter how smart her policies, she barely filled highschool gyms across the country the few times she ventured out. Beto may not be the absolute best policy person but you know what he is by far and away the best at; being a rockstar and drawing crowds; and he was willing to go to every county in Texas to prove his point. Have we forgotten why Obama won? You have to show up and you have to draw people. And say what you want about young people, he certainly inspires them and they will show up.
It is a gift thrown on the Democrats lap that they have someone who can be campaign like Obama, but meanwhile he is not perfect enough. We are going to end up with four more years of Trump because of liberal perfectionism.
20
If he wins, O'Rourke will be our first truly bilingual president in nearly 200 years.
5
This has prompted me to send more money to Bernie.
7
Of the "Young Democrats" getting into the run for POTUS, I am far more impressed by Pete Buttigieg and Rep Eric Swalwell than I am Beto O'Rourke. Buttigieg & Swalwell far outshine Beto in terms of substance, experience, intelligence and character (watch Buttigieg's recent Austin town hall with Jake Tapper on YouTube if you haven't heard him yet), and I feel Beto simply fills the outline of some Bobby Kennedy-esque archetype. All style, no substance, and a catchy name. Charisma? He leaves me cold. "It" factor? I scratch my head. I don't know if Beto was "born for it", but he was born for media coverage & sound bites.
I will say, though, the best thing about Beto entering the race will be to watch trump simultaneously implode & explode as the cameras train their sights on younger, more compelling human beings. It will drive him nuts, and it will be hilarious.
Popping my popcorn now.
5
Beto's got the star power of Obama and Kennedy. His message is from the heart. And, he's right, the wall is all wrong. They said Obama had no experience...look what happened there. As for Biden, I can never forget how he caved when it came to Anita Hill. Let's remember, too, that America is obviously not ready for a woman as commander-in-chief. Even here, at the venerable New York Times, she was described as the most qualified candidate to ever seek the office of the presidency and we know far that got her.
4
This comfy blend of Bob Dylan and Jack Kerouac and the teeth of Bobby Kennedy (he brought up his teeth) is not the person for the moment.
7
To those freaking out about the number of Democratic candidates: stop it. Just a few short years ago there was a boil of Republican candidates vying for president, and Dems thought they had a shoo-in Clinton. Yes, she won the popular vote, but Republicans strategized their way into an Electoral College win with one of the least prepared, least experienced candidates from their crowded field. So quit making predictions. None of you are seers or oracles, regardless of how politically savvy you may think you are. Life will take its course, and our actions and thoughts can influence it, but cannot predetermine any outcomes.
3
lincoln lost his Senate run against Stephen douglas and then led the republican party and our nation. Liz Warren is the closest to Lincoln in temperament and ability to state the facts.
Not Beto, Biden, Kamala, Amy, etc., etc. We need a leader who cares about the poor and the disenfranchised to lead our nation. . Warren 2020.
5
The DNC needs to understand that identity politics will not win the nation. In fact it's gone a long ways towards destroying the nation.
And the electorate is not nearly as infatuated with the PC moments of the moment as they are. Look at 2016. Yes, Mrs Clinton did win the popular vote. But not by a land slide. In fact excluding the centers of Socialism, NYC, Chicago, and the LA and SF areas in CA would have give Mr Trump a handy lead in the popular vote.
The electoral college did what it was designed to do. Prevent a few small geographical areas from controlling the nation. And they picked a twice divorced, old, white man with questionable ethics because he "got it". The DNC's choice, a never divorced, white woman, with years of political experience didn't "get it".
He knew they didn't care about genitalia or racial heritage or bathrooms. He did know that they cared that their lives have been swirling down into the commode for decades. And nobody else had even bothered to be concerned. While things have picked up for many urban areas across the country there has not been much improvement elsewhere.
Unfortunately President Trump has done nothing to help unite the country. Rather than striking an independent path, distancing himself from the swamp and it's inhabitants, he instead just fell in to the same old rut that his predecessors had. And there's no apparent change on the horizon for either party.
3
@Mark
Identity politics put Trump in the White House as David Duke publicly reminded him in the wake of his largely forgotten initial comments about Charlottesville.
who, from where and what did he win?
3
OMG you are already eating your own. What is the matter with you. Whether or not this young man becomes the nominee he deserves respect for throwing his hat in the ring. Democrats tend to have an overwhelming urge to self destruct.
6
It’s going to be so much fun watching all the progressive half wits beat each other up as the try to out do each other on who has the daffyest most pie in the sky ideas. Trump wins in a landslide.
5
I could go out and lose to Ted Cruz and broadcast my next dental appointment over the internet
Should I be president?
10
I like Beto and am open to hearing what he has to say.
But here’s what I hate. If you are a man running for president, that’s fine. Own it. Don’t rope your wife into your announcement video just to have her sit there smiling mutely. I have had enough of this particular image, this particular pattern, for 100 lifetimes.
I suppose it’s meant to show how much he respects women and is supported by women and what a partnership they have and blah blah blah. All I see is a man talking and a woman not — and, guess what? I just can’t stomach that anymore.
5
I'm a Texan and we have produced a lot of politicians for better or worse: Lyndon, the Bushes, John Connally...the list goes on.
O'Rourke, to his credit, has a level of appeal I wouldn't have anticipated and he came within two points of Ted Cruz in the Senate campaign with unprecedented campaign contributions, much of it from the east and west coasts.
Unfortunately, he's become the media's Pied Piper of the left...young, seemingly charismatic, with one national reporter breathlessly telling him, "You're a rock star".
He is definitely not that.
O'Rourke is a "not ready for prime time player". Until now he played bait and switch with the media as to whether or not he announce. Now the national media editors will be fantasizing about how they'll cover him and his candidacy.
Given some time and some significant experience then he might have the background and insight to step into a loftier position. Right now, he lacks the insight and experience. Just in the last month, he was driving around small towns "trying to find himself". In my state we are well aware he just lost the campaign to the "least liked person in the U.S. Senate".
Dems, to win 2020 you need a heavy hitter. Trump is a junk yard dog when it comes to competition and those withering debates. You will need someone of equal stature who can stand and deliver without being eaten alive like 2016.
O'Rourke is not it
182
@John
Junk yard dog. That's the best description I've heard yet! And you are so right. Beto's not nearly ready for prime time.
8
@John I agree. I like Beto and maybe at some later time, he can be viable. Your opinion of Trump is spot on. Trump eviscerated Jeb Bush in 2016. Can Beto get people in Ohio, Michigan, Missouri and Pennsylvania to vote for him? Can Beto's charm carry those states? Before we go over the deep end loving Beto should not we ask him what he stands for? He is not running for senior class president. I think to beat Trump we need a slugger who can punch their self out of the box Trump is going to put them in. There is a saying that almost only counts in horseshoes. Almost beating Ted Cruz...?
7
@John "Not ready for prime time" is exactly what I wrote to the camp when unsubscribing to Beto emails. I contributed, I texted, I hosted postcard parties for his Senate run, but... everything you say above.
7
To those Democrats who wonder "whether a Senate-race-losing candidate like Mr. O’Rourke should even be running for president so soon," another presidential contender springs to mind: Abraham Lincoln. And to those who might argue that Beto's legislative accomplishments have been scant, see how long that list is for Bernie Sanders. Beto seems to have the energy, charisma, and optimism needed to inspire Democrats young and old. He could be our best hope to defeat Donald Trump. I, for one, am thrilled that he's in the race.
19
@DbB And!......he looks like a Kennedy! How can any blindly loyal democrat resist that?
Beto
While I am much older
I know his type very well
I know his journey
Now things are getting interesting
Go Beto!
5
You don’t need to tear others down in order to build yourself up. Beto is the only candidate who understands that. He’s the polar opposite of the Sanders crowd, whose willingness to poison the well against anyone who is not “pure” cost is 2016. I could not be more excited for Beto. A unifying candidate who isn’t deeply tied to some label.
24
@BP The Bernie crowd understands what you don't - all other candidates wil continue to meet a Republican Party forever drifting into Crazyland half way. Look where it's gotten us.
Beto is too young, too inexperienced and too conservative - he will be coopted by the status quo and the middle and working class will continue to fall apart as the already outrageously wealthy continue to get even more wealthy.
5
He needs more experience. A pretty face and great intentions are pooling at the bottom of my requirement bucket this year. The democrats need to get serious about this one and pull this desperate country together deliberately and effectively. So far this looks like a real messy run for the glory to me. Biden needs to come forward, ready for an overtime battle.
3
He's a pretty face and likes to campaign and talk to people but we desperately need someone with experience. The US is not a 'start-up' and I can't imagine him talking global policy with world leaders. His entry makes me anxious.
7
To all those saying not to vote for Beto because he couldn’t beat Cruz, which of the democratic candidates (including Biden) would have even come close to beating Cruz in Texas?
With Beto, the GOP will now have to sink millions in Texas in 2020. I support Beto 100 percent.
22
Let's face it, a country that elected Trump over other qualified men and women will never elect either a President of color or a woman. As long as a small number of people from the electorol college gets to decide our next Commander in Chief, we will have to face a harsh reality and pick a candidate that is male, white, educated and sensible. If Beto can give Cruz a tough competition in a red state, I'm sure he can great on a national stage against DJT.
4
The comparisons to Barack Obama strike me as misguided. Obama was a State Senator who won a crowded US Senate primary and then the general election. His trajectory and his unique background catapulted him into the Democratic primary for President where he beat an opponent who appeared unbeatable.
O’Rourke, on the other hand, won a seat in Congress but couldn’t beat the entirely loathsome Ted Cruz. O’Rourke is personable, determined and capable. If he could beat Cornyn for the Senate I might believe the fantasy candidacy that he and his devotees are peddling. It strikes me as self absorbed narcissism.
7
I wish Beto had run for Cornyn's seat but the heart has its own hieroglyphics, as the great sage Woody Allen would say. The lesson of Barack Obama's presidency is that winning is one thing; having some familiarity with how sausage is made inside the Beltway in order to achieve your agenda is quite another.
That said, of course it takes ego to run for national office. But it's the best way for a politician to raise their profile. Beto's refusal to bow to negative campaigning will provide a great contrast to He Who Shall Not Be Mentioned. He also got a lot of voters to cross the aisle to vote for him in Texas, no mean feat. At worst, he would be a great running mate/cabinet secretary in the next administration.
2
I’m in it to win it and Beto being from Texas can win those massive 38 electoral votes. That would give Democrats California New York and Texas . An electoral motherlode and the defeat of Trump. Give him a chance and get over identity politics or any attachment to having a non white male President. Too early to tell but dont write Beto off yet. He may be are last great hope and Trump does realistically have a path to victory if Democrats are divided.
2
Robert Francis O'Rourke couldn't win his own state. There's no way he's going to win a national race against Trump.
Step aside and let the real contenders have a legitimate shot.
8
@KR Sorta like how Abe Lincoln lost his senate race in 1858??
Chill out, folks. He's angling for VP. Which would not be such a bad thing. I'd rather he go for the Senate seat in Texas, what we desperately NEED.
Hint, Hint. Also, HINT.
5
He seems like an awfully nice guy. I voted for him in his Senate race. But good heavens, what qualifies him to suddenly be elected President of the United States? A few terms in Congress? Being the son-in-law of a billionaire? Yes, friends say, "well what qualified Trump?" Good point. But Trump's lack of qualities should not lower our standards. What ever happened to deep experience?
136
@Kevin What qualified Trump? that he lied and stole money with no political experience
8
@Kevin It worked for Obama, and coincidentally, for the United States of America. Now we are involved in various quagmires, thanks to 45.
5
@Robert Yes, I made that point in my original post.
1
For all those that think that Beto‘s inexperience in national government will be his downfall, please remember that Barack Obama was only a senator for two years when he decided to run for president. Before that he had no national experience. He had been in the Illinois state Senate and almost no one had ever heard of him.
Beto was a U.S. congressman for six years, so he does know how government works on a national level. Possibly more so than Barack Obama did. Give the guy a chance. I think he’s exactly what this country needs in order to stir things up and get people excited.
And more importantly, to get rid of Trump.
193
@Geoff B
And sniffy, elitist Obama was not qualified for the job. The DNC cherry picked him in 2003/2004 strictly on the basis of skin color. That's how we ended up with 8 years of muddled messes in domestic and foreign policy, a corrosive race industry climate around the country, no Big Bankers in prison, and then Trump.
6
@Maggie
The reason race became such a hot button and dividing issue in this country was because the President - Obama - was a black man. So we should elect only white people because it will keep the status quo of oppression and keep white people happy? Think about what you're saying. Change is hard and messy, doesn't mean it shouldn't happen.
Big bankers not going to prison was a shame, but we also avoided another great depression, got healthcare for people with pre-existing conditions while curtailing out of control premiums, set up a deal to keep Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, took steps to combat climate change, and respect on the world stage. If that counts as a muddled mess, I'll take 8 more years of that.
15
@Maggie The DNC most certainly did not pick him. They were all for Hilary.
10
The Republican base is calcified and will not vote for any of the Democratic candidates regardless of who wins the nomination. The key to a Democratic win in 2020 is to give the rest of the population a reason to get excited, involved, and out the door to vote. BETO's Senate campaign was fueled by small donors, no special interest money and an army of motivated volunteers. Many, like myself, had never been involved in a campaign before. It was empowering going door to door and phone call to phone call, knowing that this is what Democracy looks like. Yes, he lost by a small margin but because of excitement he created, other Texas Democrats won in places that were thought to be unflippable creating a blue wave that is turning Texas purple. I do not see any of the other Democratic candidates, including Bernie (God Bless him), generating the same enthusiasm.
Someone like BETO comes along once in a generation. We are lucky that he and his family are ready to make the sacrifices required to help our country move forward after the backward stumbles of the Trump era...
41
@Laura Shortell
I am about to turn 66, and Elizabeth Warren is by far my first choice in the primaries. My second choice, however, is BETO.
I say ENOUGH of my generation running the show. I am in favor of handing over the reins to the next generation and Beto has qualities that generate so much enthusiasm and excitement that I haven't seen since Bobby Kennedy ran. I'm glad Beto is in it and I will be happy to see him do well.
8
What is going on? The Democratic party have no leaders? Anybody can now believe could be a candidate?
The money that will be spent in the primaries will only benefit the other party.
The democratic party in order to win needs a true Presidential candidate.
And the worse we have others "candidates" exploring.
Is this the end of the chances in 2020?
4
Ok, so where's the beef? I get that he's charismatic, savvy on social media, and "doesn't like labels". What are his policies? Does he support Medicare for All? Or is he going to water it down with empty, centrist nonsense about "everyone should have access"? Does he support a Green New Deal? Or will he continue to take money from the oil industry? Does he want to fight for the needs of the middle class? Or does he want to sing kumbaya with a GOP that's tearing our nation to shreds?
I'm not enthusiastic. We are a nation whose problems are at crisis levels, and require bold and transformative change in order to address them before they become irreversible catastrophes. I'm also very dubious, given that he's drawn re-treads from the Clinton and Obama campaigns into his orbit. The same people, if you'll remember, who have spent years watering down progressive policies in their endless quest for "unity" and "bipartisanship" and "centrism".
Yes, this announcement has made me so excited that I just donated to Bernie. We need change, not charisma.
24
@Dominic
Change comes with charisma (think Kennedy, Obama); an attribute that Bernie doesn’t have. I’m really tired of old white guys pointing their finger at me and his followers wagging theirs when they discover I’m guilty of having centrist thoughts in my head.
1
I lost a Senate race against one of the most disliked politicians in the U.S. and I have no record of major policy success or implementation. I also have a handsome face and I like to talk to people.
Sorry, but I like my presidential candidates with a little more experience before I consider them presidential material.
I would prefer to see O'Rourke win a House or Senate seat to strengthen his chops. I like youth, but at least Kennedy had experience in Washington.
8
@Jonny Boy Beto doesn’t need to run for house. He already won 3 house races and served 6 years in a congress. He may be new to you but this ain’t his first or second or third rodeo. Another fact: Lincoln ran for president after losing for the senate TWICE. It has been done; it can be done again.
1
Beto served 3 terms as the Representative from El Paso in the US House. And he served on the El Paso city council for several terms.
1
I supported Beto's senate run. Why not? He was challenging one of the most disliked senators in Congress, and turning Texas blue would be a significant achievement. Being a newbie is neither rare nor dangerous in the senate. There are plenty of others in your party to mentor and advise you.
The presidency, on the other hand, is not an entry level position. Good presidents have had long resumes in public office and a deep knowledge of how government works, not just a donor list.
Beto is not ready for the presidency. Let him hone his message and stake out his positions first in Congress and then try for the Oval Office.
In short, I will not be cheering and backing Beto this time around. I want someone with more experience who knows what he/she stands for. Beto is over-reaching.
25
@nora m except one of the best presidents of all time, Lincoln, had lost for senate TWICE, and his only experience was 8 years in the house. Hillary Clinton also had more experience than anyone, ever, and look at all the baggae that came with that. We live in a divisive time and we need a unifier who does not pledge allegiance to some ideological label; who doesn’t have the baggage of decades in politics; and who can inspire people to be better than the garbage that passes for governing these days.
2
@nora m Perfect, but if he is the nominee I will vote for him.
1
And Obama had very little experience and turned out to be a good, popular president. Before writing any of the Democratic nominees off, let’s hear what they have to say and get at least one debate out of the way. In the end whoever the nominee turns out to be we need to come together and support that candidate and all Democrat candidates for all offices.
2
Good looks and speaking ability and what else?
Legislative accomplishments? No
Impressive private sector accomplishments? No
Military experience? No
Overcoming the kind of serious obstacles in life that build character? No
It's a testament to our national decline into shallow celebrity social media culture that this man is even in the discussion to be the next commander in chief.
12
@Luciano
Was enough to get Obama elected. Twice.
@Luciano For a minute there I thought you were talking about Bernie.
@Dakota T
Obama was light on experience as well
But not this light
He went to Harvard Law School and had written a book
He taught law school at the U of Chicago
He grew up bi-racial without a father (character building)
And he was a US Senator
1
Many of the Democratic contenders for President should not even be in the race for POTUS; it’s like giving Trump an automatic 2nd term. Many argue that Beto O’Rourke has limited political accomplishments within Texas and even less outside of Texas. I would argue it’s time for a dramatic change and out of the box political thinking in our government and in my opinion Beto fits the bill and represents change. I strongly believe he will drive home the unification of this country in ways we have not seen in years to start the healing process of a broken and divided government and the people.
For the Beto critics focusing on his lack of political achievements and prowess, the current POTUS had neither before nor after his election.
7
If Beto's still doing that "soul-searching", he should try running for the Senate again so we can defeat Mitch McTreason, and standing up for we the Sane instead of being a Republican. There are many other better candidates to become the 45th President, our first in four (or less) years, right now—especially Bernie.
We good, Beto (and Biden). We good.
7
the 2020 Presidential election is a long way off still; for many Americans to to far. I don't know who I will eventually vote for, but rest assured it won't be for 4 more years of this nightmare. There were many better qualified/suited choices in 2016 and i am talking about the Republcian side, of at least two I really liked and would have voted for. I feel that many didn't vote in 2016 because they didn't care much for either chocie offered by the respecive parties. Let's hope that at least one side has a candate that will have a stronger voter turnout and we will stop the nightmare.
3
@Ricky the nightmare won’t end if we keep talking about ‘lesser of two evils.’ That’s false and it’s that false equivalency that enables the republicans to continue the corruption and incompetence that’s ruining out country. The two parties are NOT the same. Trump and Hillary were NOT the same. Trump is a digusting incompetence bigot conman who conned a group of gullible Americans into destroying their country for his own person gain. Hillary was a lifelong politician who many men felt threatened by and created stupid excuses to not vote for.
At least, at 46, Bill Clinton was a seasoned governor of Arkansas. A one term Congressman going up against Trump? His qualifications? He looks young and has charisma.
At least one thing is clear, with 15 or so people running for the Democratic nomination; it puts on display how fractured and divided this party truly is. Not only are the messages scattered across the political spectrum, so are the divisions.
I will say this, if they do not get their act together; Trump could actually win a second term.
2
@Nick Metrowsky a three term congressman not one. Facts matter.
I don't think that too many people can get behind Beto because he represents a really blue district, but voted frequently for Republican legislation and opposed Democrats. If you haven't heard of that yet, there's a good article in The Guardian about it.
5
We will be witness over the next decade to the snowball effects of climate change as climate denial will be showing us the results of kicking the can down the road. This is the nemesis facing younger generations and it will be turbulent. The candidate with the ability to face climate issues and prepare us for this inevitable future which is no longer in our control will have my vote.
7
@Bella, Jay Inslee is terrific on climate change, including the economics around it.
Will Beto O'Rourke be willing to upset the apple cart in a big enough way that a) actually fixes many of the major problems that the American people are dealing with, and b) inevitably upsets the wealthy and the powerful in the process? I don't think so. I believe he will just resume the status quo more or less.
Bernie 2.020...IF we want to rebuild the middle class, give the working class a fair shake and finally say no to greedy powerful people.
3
I want Beto as a strong Democratic voice, but not yet as a candidate. For all his charisma and good intentions, he is still a national political neophyte. Let's hope that he takes a few weeks to figure out that he's tilting at windmills and then refocuses himself on doing something winnable (challenging Cornyn, perhaps) that will also enhance America's principles and the Democratic Party's ability to deliver on them. A lot of commenters have noted parallels to President Obama, but he was a sitting senator when he ran, not just a state-level politician. Beto has time; I hope he takes it.
Important point to remember: whatever the Democrats do and whoever we choose, we must stay on the issues, not cannibalizing our own and being super-cognizant of our messaging. Republicans will take any little gaffe and try to magnify it into the scandal of the century. Let's never forget that "the scandal of the century" is currently occupying the White House and our unifying goal must be removing it and all its tentacles in 2020.
9
@CP: If Beto is tilting at windmills, what is John Delaney doing?
I don't know enough about Beto to judge, but Mayor Pete Buttigieg is young, has charisma, is natural and has actually governed a city. I'll be watching both of them tilt at windmills. If Biden gets in, what happens then to all these youngsters? It could be that Biden and Sanders are just tooooo old.
Don't know yet. There's a (too) long time for all of this to be sorted out.
8
@sophia, John who???
I like Buttigieg too but am also awaiting the grand sorting before jumping to any conclusions.
I don't yet know if Beto will be my candidate of choice. Or if he is really ready for this. However, I truly believe that he will bring positive focus and direction to the scrum - and the scrum is absolutely something that has to happen to save the Democratic party from its own corporate oligarchy.
4
@Multimodalmama I have a new measure of "this" Trump proved anyone can be and Pete, or Beto or Bernie of Harris and the rest can rise to the cause
He would be better suited to be a VP running mate to get his feet wet in Washington. If Biden runs, O’Rourke will take away the votes from Sanders putting Biden as front runner.
1
Is anyone else struck by the audacity and arrogance of Mr. O'Rourke? With little (perhaps no) experience, he seems to think he can lead this country. That’s crazy! I felt the same way about Mr. Trump in 2016 and Mr. Obama in 2008.
With regard to Mr. Obama, I often wonder what kind of President he would have been if he had finished his Senate term or perhaps even two terms. He was such a gifted man, but he lacked experience and the wisdom that comes from experience, especially when it comes to international affairs.
7
@EME
no experience?
Robert Francis "Beto" O'Rourke is an American businessman and politician who represented Texas's 16th congressional district for three terms in the United States House of Representatives. A native of El Paso, Texas, O'Rourke served on the El Paso City Council from 2005 to 2011
I donated money to Beto when he was running for U.S. Senate, but this decision to run for the presidency does not thrill me. One one hand, he was a great campaigner in Texas. We'll see if that translates to the rest of the country. But I'll tell you, I wish he had held office longer. And his whole self-indulgent "finding himself" road trip left me cold.
6
"Some voters and activists have also wondered aloud if a white male is the best fit for this Democratic moment" but the article then goes on to say that Mr. Biden and Mr. Sanders are ahead in the polls. Haha. But seriously, if a white male means people who are more moderate, or who would otherwise vote third party, or who would not vote at all, might vote Democrat, then I am all for it.
3
Definitely changes the dynamic of the race. The possible outcomes are easier to predict in a three-way race. In the rolling sea of Democratic hopefuls though, I'm not sure how things will turn out. I will say this though: Beto puts Trump on edge. Trump doesn't go out of his way to Twitter bash people who pose no threat to him. He is right to be afraid.
Like all the other candidates, Beto has shortcomings. He can campaign circles around Trump though. The contrast in age is one obvious advantage. However, also consider the contrast in campaign styles. Trump with his rallies not so oddly reminiscent of fascism versus Beto with his Carter-turned-hipster flow. I imagine we'll see Beto announcing a 50 state tour shortly. I severely doubt Trump has ever visited Montana outside of the midterm elections. We only remember those visits because of Plaid Shirt Guy.
We got a sneak peak of this dynamic with the dueling El Paso rallies. According to police and fire marshals, Beto's crowd size was bigger...
2
Lots of people here in La Paz never took down their "BETO" yard signs or bumper stickers. And, since he visited SXSW, I've got to think BETO tattoos are next.
2
Help me understand this... can't win a statewide elections so now he is running for president. I guess Trump really has convinced some that literally anyone can be president.
5
What is it about men like Beto that makes them so certain of their greatness? What has he proposed, worked for, and accomplished in his life that makes him a suitable candidate to lead this country?
He is a celebrity symbol of the turn our culture has taken towards being aimless, lost, and vain. A culture that prizes the ability to cull fame on social media over a track record of consistency and results. There used to be meaning to the office and those who sat in it. Beto is the ultimate symbol of a race to the bottom.
His candidacy is an insult to all the hardworking and people who don’t look like him, and even those who do, who respect their fellow citizens and their country enough to desire experts to lead. Who could never imagine putting themselves up for a position they have no business in. These people are rife in many settings in this country (corporations, hospitals). Once in a while, they get through to the top, and everyone suffers for it. I will not be voting for him, and look forward to his eventual withdrawal of his candidacy.
5
The field is basically a mile wide and an inch deep.
Youth, blah, blah, blah. Running a country requires a lot of experience, as well as various other qualities. I would like many of these candidates better in 10 years.
3
Other than his good looks and being a good public speaker can someone please point me towards ANY private sector, military or legislative accomplishments this man has?
5
I think authentic candidates, i.e. with ideas and conviction, will do better than table jumpers this election.
Beto O’Rourke already seems like a candidate from the past.
2
O'Rourke ran an exciting race against a terrible Republican, but the question now is: What, exactly would he do if nominated and elected?
3
Beto O'Rourke stands out among the crowded Democratic field because he is authentic. That is precisely the quality we need in America right now, as an antidote to the rabbit hole of Orwellian double-speak and cynical transactional politics that Mr. Trump's Republican party has dragged our nation into.
Beto has my enthusiastic support to be the Democratic nominee for President.
15
@MidtownATL Is he authentic? Or is he playing authentic on TV?
Also, this: https://capitalandmain.com/beto-vs-democrats-texas-lawmaker-frequently-voted-to-help-trump-and-gop-1220
Excellent news. Hope he wins!
5
Ah, Yes, an old white guy and a young white guy once again representing not only the skin color, but the hopes and dreams, education, cultural diversity, economic realities, education, socio-economic status, histories, ethnicities, professions, backgrounds, political beliefs, family construction, religious ideology, philosophies, and, last but not least, the gender of all Americans.
May the best men win.
Again.
1
Even Obama had accomplished more and, not much at that, before he ran for president. But he was and is an intellectual, compassionate human. We have a Reality TV host in the Oval Office who is neither intellectual nor compassionate, and the nation is not improving. We do not need a middling-to-fair Rock Star to continue the spiral downward.
5
Not long and a 1000 votes lost per Democratic candidate that remains loyal to the neighbor costs teh party 70,000 votes nationally.
A few dollars from republicans for Democrats may pay off.
I see no gravitas at all and I can do without the Hamlet-esque live-stream soul-searching road trips and journaling. Assuming Trump is the Republican nominee this is going to be a bare-knuckles street-fighting campaign and no gauzy messages of togetherness are going to cut it. Maybe he'll show me something now that he's in the primaries - and if he's the candidate I'll vote for him - but right now, I don't see it.
1
He's crowding the already crowded field, that has a diluted message. My bet, he's positioning for a VP spot with the chosen candidate.
1
I think it is very good that Beto O’Rourke has joined the field of Democrats running for the nomination. If this keeps up corporate America will go bankrupt funding all their supporters running for office. As to O’Rourke it will take an awful lot of money to overcome the fact that this new candidate voted more than any other Democrat in Congress to support the Trump/Republican agenda and has taken more money than anyone else (with one exception) from the oil and gas industry.
I can understand how people can vote for Biden, Booker, Gillibrand or Harris, or any of the other corporate politicians, because they are now making all the right sounds even if none of them really mean it. In the meantime, any Democrat who thinks of himself, or herself, as a real progressive who votes for O'Rourke is just uninformed. I hope that people will read David Sirotas' article on O’Rourke so that the oil and gas gang ends up just wasting its (our) money.
4
A Democratic candidate who doesn't have a bold, clear agenda to oppose to Trump will lose to Trump. Democrats, you MUST have a progressive agenda to win. Even if you lose some votes because of it, you will lose a lot more if all you have on offer is politics as usual. And you should not dignify ANYTHING Trump does or says with an answer. Ideally, don't even mention his name. Treat his noises just as Trump noises, shrug or roll your eyes whenever he opens his mouth, and leave it at that.
2
If you have the opportunity to run a candidate who lost to one of the least charismatic and most disliked politicians in America - not to mention a guy who already lost to Donald Trump.
Well, what's not to like?
1
O'Rourke is like Obama. No one knew what Obama stood for. They projected their beliefs on him. He governed as a centrist but his supporters saw him differently. So did their press.
Obama however was a leader while O'Rourke is still questioning who he is. Would Hamlet make a good president?
Come to think of it he will legalize weed?
2
And now a brief update on the upcoming debates:
1. Each candidate will have two minutes for their opening remarks.
Then: A commercial break
2. Each candidate will have two minutes for their closing remarks.
3
Beto strikes me as a rich kid who doesn’t know what he wants to do this summer. That he is in his late 40s makes that image even more depressing. Do we really need another never-was, wanna-be President?
6
I'm gobsmacked to see so many critical comments here. Take a look at the rest of the field for a minute: Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren are covered in "Hillary dust", and Bernie Sanders can come across as an old crank. Kamala Harris and Amy Klobuchar are talented and accomplished, but do you think a country that elected Donald Trump over a state senator and former secretary of state would elect either of these women over Trump? I think as it stands today, a young, energetic candidate like Beto will get the young people out of their seats on election day. This party needs to come together and realize the #1 priority is to beat Trump. I think Beto gives the Dems the best chance of doing so, and I hope other challengers put aside their egos and realize this before taking pot-shots at him during the primaries.
186
@CentralAmerican If Beto can't take our potshots what chance does he stand against Trump? Let him withstand the heat of honest battle for the prize. Being nice to Beto will not prepare him for the battles ahead. Nobody laid any gloves on Jeb Bush and look what Trump did to him.
29
@CentralAmerican
Amen brother you are rite on Target. The Democrats better not mess this up like Hillary
12
@CentralAmerican - I’ll take a cranky ‘ol man with ideas a solid majority of Americans consistently approve of over a Beto.
Beto, who couldn’t come within 199,000 votes of beating perhaps the biggest right wing ideologue in the Senate.
Could it be as this article suggests that Beto comes with no vision for this nation? This Democrat needs ideas that lead to change we need, not emotions that take us right back to the Clinton era.
21
Another person trying to fail up.
Reminiscent of Carly; who failed up from a secretary's job onward to a failed presidential bid.
Athletic, rakish, somewhat charismatic - for sure. But if you cannot beat a reincarnate of Nosferatu, and a prodigy of Medusa in Texas, I don't give much much in the way of a chance.
I'd bet my money, as in send it to another candidate whom I think has a better chance.
28
@Kalidan
Ah, yes, another expert on Texas from New York!
I don’t know how Beto will fare in a larger stage, but I wouldn’t be in a hurry to count him out. Those who dismthim because he fell short of defeating Cruz simply don’t know the political landscape in Texas or the significance of his close loss.
6
@Kalidan
You don't appreciate how close he came to unseating Lyin' Ted in this very, very red state. A few percentage points. He swept the urban areas, it was the rural ones that came to Ted's rescue.
Yes, I would have liked to see him get a bit more seasoning before a presidential bid. Just like Obama. But he turned out to be one of the better presidents in my long life.
You need to get to know him better. Waking up to this announcement, I'm thinking, "Hmmmm........maybe he's The One." And not because I live in Texas. (Note, I do not call myself Texan.)
4
@Kalidan Who is that, Trump? Or Bernie? Both extremists although polar opposites.
2
Dustin Hoffman once said about Robert Redford that good looks were his albatross - the reason a good actor couldn't be more recognized as one.
Every pic published of O'Rourke shows the same sheepish, unthreatening grin, the casual shirt with sleeves rolled up, the aw-shucks, rangy, crinkly-eyed Marlboro man looking good-humoredly off-camera, the light playing just so. Makes me feel I'm being played.
There were things to criticize HRC about, but she wasn't marketed in a way that gave the impression of style over substance. Maybe that's why she lost.
If O'Rourke turns out to be as good a candidate as Redford was an actor, maybe I'll vote for him. Unless the albatross gets in the way.
10
@James
Yeah, i wish he'd display a bit more maturity and gravitas. That selfie video in the dental chair was a real turnoff - bad judgment on his part. Makes me wonder (and for the record I donated $$ to his campaign against Cruz.)
He'd be a decent vice presidential pick for Biden.
The Democrats if they had brains would coalesce now around a ticket and not spend the next year and a half fragmenting the audience and campaigning against one another.
Further, I really resent all of the elected officials continuing to take their salaries while moving to what will be near full-time campaigning and strategizing. We need people like Warren, Harris, Klobuchar in Congress -- not eating donuts in Iowa.
1
@James Its just simply deplorable, isnt it?
@James Beto's problem isn't his looks. It's his lack of substance and gravitas.
Abrams and Gillum can't be far behind, because everyone knows that losing a statewide race makes you an automatic Presidential contender!
24
@Richard....Didn't work so badly for Lincoln.
I’ll take either of those two over Beto.
1
@W.A. Spitzer
I believe that that was before the popular election of Senators.
You mention that he might not be the best candidate because he is white. But it depnds on how he identifies himself. If he self-identifies as a Hispanic-American from Texas, I think he has a great chance
4
@Pls
But he is NOT Hispanic. His correct first name is Robert. It is cute, sylish and trendy to use "Beto" but that's where it stops and starts.
My Mexican-American wife (who IS Hispanic) reports that persons with names like Gilberto, Alberto, Roberto often shorten their nicknames to "Beto", but in the case of Robert O'Rourke, she identifies his use of it as cultural appropriation.....for his own benefit.
1
Not my guy. I’ve read nothing about Beto that convinces me he’s fit to be president or that he can win.
25
@Greenfish
That was a profound explanation........
I am not being arch when I say that I think Biden just found his VP pick...
36
@Mark. Indeed, I think that is the plan. With his name on the ticket, we have a real chance to get Texas. Biden will be just one term- with an apprentice in training.
5
@Mark
Kobuchar+o'Rourke
1
@Mark. ....so why would Beto get involved w/ Biden? You can't put new wine in an old wine bag according to the New Testament....Beto has little in common w/ Biden who represents the old establishment corporate DNC/Democrats who are NOT Progressives and do not seem to be part of the grass roots desires of the people.....the Corp Dems are not the future. I hope that Beto aligns himself w/ strong contenders like Bernie Sanders & Kamala Harris....that is a dream ticket that I can totally get behind and support w/ AOC coming along in the next few years as well. Please say NO to Biden...his time has gone and his corporate baggage & actions are bottom heavy and out of touch w/ our needs. Eyes to our future not the corrupt past.
1
What has Beto O'Rourke done to unite us? What has he done at all?
He failed to defeat the much-despised Ted Cruz. He rides a skateboard for photo-ops. Oh, and he exercised his right to cultural appropriation by adopting the Hispanic nickname "Beto" despite about his privileged white upbringing.
What does he stand for? Is he a centrist? A liberal? A socialist? Will he eschew corporate donations? No one knows, least of all Beto. No one will really know for sure until all those surveys and focus groups provide instruction on what he needs to say and do to garner the maximum support for his candidacy.
I really don't get it. If Tracey Abrams loses the election for Governor and Beto O'Rourke loses the election for Senator, that obviously qualifies them to run for President--Not.
16
@Mal T - So run yourself then.
Look, I'm not saying that Beto O'Rourke is the perfect candidate, but I really don't understand people bashing him and other candidates like him for throwing their hats in the ring again despite losing in politics the first time around. And honestly, it's not like Kansas is giving us anyone to write home about. At least Texas and Georgia - and it's Stacey Abrams, by the way - are trying to produce better candidates for the national stage. Let us know when Kansas gets with the program and gives us someone to unite us.
4
@Mal T
Sounds like you have bought into Lyin' Ted's lies about Beto. He did not "culturally appropriate" his nickname. It was given to him by family when he was a toddler. He even has an old photo showing it on a shirt he was wearing.
Next objection?
4
@Lindsay K I am looking for the Democratic Party leadership to find someone--and a non-socialist agenda--to unite us. And, yes, I acknowledge that that person may not be from Kansas.
My apologies to Stacey Abrams for getting her first name wrong.
Beto is fair to middling and not exciting at all to me. Third Way Democrats, with their penchant for compromising with GOPs, is what has helped push the USA farther and farther right.
No thanks! However, I’ll vote for Beto, if he becomes the nominee, but I’ll be holding my nose... just like 2016.
14
Tall, thin and personal might be enough if you are also African American but for someone like Beto really need a bit more. After the teeth cleaning livestream he comes across as a Rick Perry level intellect and anyone who proposes tearing down existing border barriers is very unlikely to prevail in the General Election so Democrats had better hope tall, thin and personal is not enough for the Nomination or they will be screaming Russia again in 2020.
9
Please, please Democrats. Hurry up and nominate Joe Biden. He is the only one who can beat Trump in 2020. Beto could not even win in Texas against a terribly flawed incumbent. I fear the Democratic Party will rip itself asunder with egomaniacal clowns like this and hand Trump a second term.
19
Beto losing in Texas against Cruz on a pro-gun control, pro-immigrant platform should not be the litmus test. He came very close to winning despite the challenging positions.
How would Biden have done in Texas against Cruz? Far worse.
2
It’s not even 2020 yet, and Biden hasn’t yet announced his candidacy. Hold your horses.
Even if he does, there’s little to suggest he would be our best chance at beating Trump — besides some early CNN polls of older white centrists. Biden is essentially the male counterpart of Hillary Clinton. The DNC alienated a swelling portion of progressives in their party by picking Clinton over Sanders in 2016, and I guarantee none of us will be holding our noses for another moderate this time around.
6
I donated to Beto senate run last year in hopes he would remove Ted Cruze from office. He didn’t. I think it’s a mistake that he is interpreting people’s distaste for Ted Cruze as an endorsement to run for the White House.
If you can’t win your home state against one of the most detested men in the senate, how are you going to turn any red states blue and win the White House?
26
@Politphil
He lost to Cruz by a whisker !
Beto has youth, charisma, and wants the best for the US. After the last 2+ years of the dotard and the corruption and criminality, I think we could use a little charisma !
3
Few wars are determined by the outcome of but a single battle. By the same token, winning the presidency is unlikely to hinge on a single "signature" issue. Another major factor in prevailing in the race is personality, as the 2016 contest demonstrated in spades. Beto is one of those people who is hard to not like, in the main because he likes people for who and what they are. Your skin color, religion or lack thereof, political position on one issue or many, these are irrelevant as to his assessment of you as a individual. As well, and much like LBJ, O'Rourke has a bit of the horse-trader in him. It's not all "my way or the highway" when bargaining.
True, Beto lost in a squeaker to a snake oil purveyor in the Senate race last year. This in a state that is a huge and probably THE defining market for the concoction. John Cornyn will rest much easier tonight, I guarantee you.
Beto is at this point really only "word of mouth" famous across the country as a result of the Texas Senate run. Rest assured, he will run those in the race ragged with his personal campaign ethic and with an army of volunteers that has never been seen here before.
Bet on Beto.
41
@Glen
Let me just add that Beto is what Will Rogers, with his "I never met a man I didn't like" attitude, would have been had he become a politician: unstoppable. Rogers probably could have won any political race he entered, he was that popular across the entire country.
Beto has that potential.
8
@Glen Oh God I hope you're wrong.
@Lifelong New Yorker
Why do you hope that, Lifelong?
We have the opportunity to put in office someone who loves America and who loves people of all stripes.
Donald Trump actually wants people to hate him, and he is very good at getting that response. Particularly among our overseas and border-sharing allies.
6
an interesting guy for the future but for now we need experience and calm. Biden/Harris 2020
11
@Nate
The 90s called. They want their triangulator back.
3
@Nate There are times when experience, calm, stability and compromise are what is needed. Our time is not like that. What America needs is disruption, boldness, and clarity; and this is something neither Beto nor Biden is able to provide.
2
@Nate -- only if we're eager for Trump's second term!
Like Obama before him, O'Rourke is a blank screen on which Democrats can project their most cherished fantasies. He's personable, youthful, camera-friendly, and as best one can tell, devoid of any uncomfortable beliefs. In other words, another empty suit.
29
@Bunk McNulty - President Obama was no empty suit. He was and is smart, principled, hard working and capable.
6
@Bunk McNulty - Obama was not and is not an empty suit. Perhaps that is what Fox news is saying, but as someone from Illinois, and who knew what he did and was capable of, I disagree with the comment. Perhaps you meant George W. Bush, the president responsible for the Great Recession that President Obama pulled us out of and the current occupant of the Oval office is enjoying the fruits of .
4
O'Rourke/ Biden are the Republican equivalents of Kasich/ Jeb Bush from 2016 primary.
The antics/ over-the-top declarations and policy changes coming from Warren/ Castro will drown their sane voices out.
O'Rourke/ Biden: You are about to be Trumped in the democratic primary.
The Democratic primary will be a circus, just as the Republican primary was in 2016.
7
He’ll either build up momentum or crash and burn. Perhaps he’s running for VP. A Biden/Beto ticket would be unstoppable in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Florida. Trump wouldn’t have a chance.
23
The last thing we need is another inexperienced guy getting into the Presidency.
20
Remember folks it better be a strong , popular person. Trump's people still have the Electoral College Vote!!
3
Beto does campaign well -- with his ideals, enthusiasm and positive message on full display -- but if he won, could he govern? He's short on experience, has built no coalition in the Senate (which he would badly need if the GOP majority holds in 2020) by virtue of never having served in that body, and has no proven administrative record by virtue of not having been a governor, businessman, etc.
While he energizes Gen Millennial (and often me, a younger Boomer), he's not ready for prime time. Proof of that came last night when (and I hate to overemphasize this, but it shouldn't be ignored) he jumped the gun on today's scheduled video announcement by telling a TV station last night. Not good message discipline -- and we see the downside of that in the current administration.
The idea that a one-term congressperson, no matter how appealing, could beat an incumbent POTUS with a cult-like base of support in the crucial Midwest is not one on which the Democrats should hang their hopes. IMHO, Beto would do better for the nation and himself by supporting the 2020 candidate, working in that person's administration, and planning a more serious run in the future.
But what do I know? I thought Trump could never win.
16
@D Price Just to nitpick a little: a three term congressman with a business that has been operating for more than 20 years. He’s not the typical Governor/Executive of a Major Corporation but he has more experience than people give him credit for.
3
I predict that Beto will get the Democratic nomination. When he goes head to head with Trump it will be like a deer in headlights mostly due to his inexperience.
2
All the people ripping on Beto for running for President will be singing his praises when he wins the nomination. The Presidency should be about inspiration. The Warren / Sanders / Biden thing will not get people off their couches to vote. Go Beto Go!! Make it happen.
19
What the highest priority? I’m sure Texas Republican Senator John Cornyn is pleased by Beto’s decision to run for President instead of the Senate. Another Democrat with no strategic sense of collective responsibility to save this country. What are we to do?
9
I am trying to see a silver lining in this. Maybe he, Joe and Bernie will split the voters who think America needs another white male with an inflated ego, giving the more qualified (mostly female) candidates a chance.
3
A recruiter told me that men with half my resume get hired before me at twice the salary. That has worked will in the private sector. Not too sure it will work out for Mr. O'Rourke on the global stage.
2
I was all in for Beto until I heard Pete Buttigieg speak.
33
@Allan
I so agree. Pete Buttigieg is the real deal, and I'll support him all the way. He makes O'Rourke (not that O'Rourke needs any help in this department but...) look like a petulant teenager complaining about not having enough allowance.
4
@Allan I'm with you! I just wish he'd get some more coverage. He's so smart--not just politician smart, but the real deal. And he at least has some experience making things work on the ground.
4
@Allan. Not to sound like an owl, but Who?
His silly optimism is not what 2020 needs. Obama could be excused in 2008 for hoping for bipartisanship, but anyone using that hope rethoric today is just out of touch with reality. 2020 is going to be cut-throat mud wrestling and O'Rourke would get eaten alive.
Besides, he seems to have nothing else to offer than a winning personality.
But I guess he does not need to actually win the nomination to raise his national profile and position himself to either run again in the future or just make money. Whereas if he had not run now, he would have passed back into obscurity quite quickly. So for him this going to be a win either way.
5
The weakest Democratic candidates usually garner the most Republican money in primary races.
The winning ticket:
KLOBUCHAR + O’ROURKE
6
@Mkla - Ick. No thank you. High staff turnover is indicative of some serious problems.
@DR
once again the media hype is working- she's had key staff for decade plus - Obama hired many of her staff during his terms.
google it.
It is too soon, man. Go log a few more years of relevant experience and then beat Paul Ryan in 2024.
10
Can any vouch for what he will REALLY do when the ring is in his hands? How can anyone put faith in something so uncertain in the highest possible office?
8
This gentleman has minimal political experience, no political platform, no legislative accomplishments.
In short, he has nothing to bring to the table that would make him a viable candidate.
Kinda suspect this is a man with a large ego with a more than inflated sense of self worth.
Don't we already have one of those who is in the WH?
And that's not going too well right now.
Don't think we need to repeat the present disaster.
28
These 17 candidates should get together now and pledge that whomever wins the primary will receive unanimous and unrelenting support from the others.
43
@Scott B
Not really going to change what the voters do and kind of mirrors 2016. Unless I missed something Bernie stood next to Hillary many times after she won the Nomination so who was guilty of failing to do that last election? Didn't change the results did it? Why should that have any impact in 2020? Unless you pick someone the Voters find appealing you will lose. That's why you lost last time.
6
So the Dems are already forming their circular firing squad...how sadly predictable.
I welcome Beto to the race. He's got the intellect, education, work ethic, presence and wonderfully articulated patriotism this country desperately needs.
No one is going to get to the White House without significant ego, so I don't understand the criticism.
Furthermore, a far left leaning Democratic candidate will doom us to another 4 years of Trump or whoever the GOP candidate will be.
I still prefer Hickenlooper over Beto based on experience, but I can't muster any enthusiasm for the other candidates.
8
If he runs with Bernie at the top of the ticket, they would get over 70% of the popular vote.
8
@Corbin
I don't think Sanders would pick as a running mate someone with O'Rourkes voting record.
Abraham Lincoln became President of the United States after losing a race to advance from the House of Representatives to the Senate in Illinois.
Lincoln's opponent was Stephen Douglas. The substantive debates between the two men are legendary. Kentucky born Lincoln ran for President as a member of the newly formed Republican Party on the eve of the Civil War. Lincoln did not run against an incumbent President.
Beto O' Rourke is no Abraham Lincoln. Rafael Cruz is no Stephen Douglas. America is not on the verge of civil war. Trump.is an incumbent President. Growing a beard and debating is not going to make Beto the next Lincoln.
11
“You won't find reasonable men on the tops of tall mountains.”
― Hunter S. Thompson
As a Democrat, I sit here in Oregon and, while I welcome his voice in the coming campaign season, I cannot name one program or idea that he is keen on.
My ignorance, to be sure, but in this crowded field of experienced people like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, Beto is going to have to provide inspiration and energy by having at least two or three paths of passion he wants to engage the electorate on.
I love the entrance of youth to the debates (I am 72), and hope that Beto's voice, will bring many younger voters along to the voting booth in 2020.
"Whatever it takes" should be the motto of the entire Democratic field, as Trump has corrupted the Republican Party to a startling degree.
Hugh Massengill, Eugene Oregon
7
Beto does not compare at all to any qualified democratic candidate right now. He'll make the primaries livelier but no bet on Beto.
9
Beto may be popular locally and is no doubt attractive on the surface locally but he seems a phantom elsewhere (here in the Northeast). What is he about other than tearing down the wall and a really oppositional (to Trump) but admirable evolved approach to immigrants? Let's hear more.
Watch Pete Buttigeig for a young new face with gravitas and executive experience.
4
We just have to many people running in the Democratic party. Can't we just winnow down the field to a few good electable candidates. So many people running does not bode well for us.
1
@Rescue2
The Republicans had seventeen in 2015 when it all began. They got winnowed out to one. It will happen again and the last one standing will already have a taste of the grueling mess of the presidential campaign ahead. I don't fear a crowded field. Like any long race, it won't stay that way for very long, and Beto will likely be roadkill fairly early on.
1
He’s got this centrists vote. I love Bernie and Biden but we need this guy more.
2
@Chris McClure, he can garner the centrists votes for Bernie...or Liz..I love them both.
1
@Chris McClure We need a guy with minimal experience? Are you kidding?
2
Are the debates going to look like the basketball playoffs with a sweet 16, final 4?
Will there be pools to see who gets where?
Will you need a card to figure it out?
Is this illusion or delusion?
but, maybe this is actually a good thing so early in the process.
America: where never-ending war and never-ending Presidential elections have become the norm.
3
@RLG I was thinking we need another layer of primaries
He's young, he's charimatic, he has little baggage, he's not a creature of Wall Street and the Democratic establishment. In short, he's similar to Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama --the only three Democrats elected president in the last 50 years. Is he that person? I'm a 78-year old Democrat who looks forward to finding out.
22
I am am not sure what is the attraction. Seems the rules are vague.
4
He's going to be in for the Hillary Clinton shock in 2008 when the previously adoring sycophantic media suddenly dropped her for Obama. The media hated Cruz almost as much as the liberals so he drew in huge cash and accolades in his 2018 race and yet in an overwhelmingly blue year he couldn't manage to win. And this is what's exciting his supporters?
21
I don't WANT him to win. I don't think he DESERVES to win. But he's an Obama/Kennedy/Clinton turducken... so Beto 2020.
7
@Donald Hullerman
Why put Kennedy in with Clinton and Obama who were both Wall Street darlings?
I think the Democrats really need to slim down this field and focus on a solid lead candidate. Seeing all these potentials (with frankly little chance of winning at all) throw their hats into the ring is only leading me to think that the Republicans are going to be in the White House again after the next election. Sort yourself out, don't fragment.
9
@M
No, diversity and options are better. Many of these candidates have similar ideas, and I would rather see them get narrowed down through public debates and primaries than have a prime candidate - who was not that prime after all (Hillary) get picked apart.
2
Thank you for some good news
3
The Times continues its Target Practice approach to campaign coverage. Will they do again what they did so effectively in 2016... elect Donald Trump. Cliché-ridden reporting is such a disservice to voters. Hopefully citizens keep an open mind.
25
The Democrats are throwing everything they have at the wall, to see what sticks...
This is their "handsome youthful male" brand. Like "attractive young female" which worked for Ocasio-Cortez despite her absence of reasoning ability.
In fact, Robert Francis O'Rourke has no real agenda beyond getting elected, and no political power - perfect - so the party elite will orchestrate his every more.
I'm surprised the Polirical Correctness Police haven't run him off yet. If he used, Pancho, instead of Beto, wouldn't he be racially intolerant by their everyday application of Political Corectness Law ? So why get away with Beto ?
5
@Objectivist....Beto has been his nickname since he was a child....there is a photo of him when he was 2 years old wearing a T-shirt with “Beto” on the front. Why focus on insignificant things; focus on a candidate’s policies and opinions and what they will do for the country
Beto is a comparatively young man with the media-friendly combination of boyish “Aw Shucks!” charm and good looks to be a very plausible candidate.
However, if he couldn’t defeat someone as horribly unlikeable and arrogantly obnoxious as Ted Cruz, he’s doomed to forever being seen as a likeable loser, and the Democratic Party is similarly doomed to fragmenting itself in a series of fractious, divisive primary skirmishes, which might well ensure a second term for the Mar-A-Lago Mafia Don.
13
Too many choices. I welcome Beto but already the field is too heavy. Fewer candidates determined after a narrowing down will be the answer I seek.
4
Firstly, WoW, dems have a wide field of heavy hitters running. In my limited experience, everybody jumps in only when they think (and polling indicates) the other party is in weak shape. Though I'm a non-affiliated independent, that fills me with hope that DT's days are (oof, ugh, eew, finally) numbered.
Secondly, I've been pretty bullish about everybody who enters the race. The more voices the better, I believe. I appreciate his voice and I think he'll make a positive contribution to the conversation. Even so, while he may surprise me, I don't plan on boosting him. I think he pales in comparison to Kamala Harris, Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and, sadly Sherrod Brown, who I'd been very much looking forward to seeing run. I'll be examining these other candidates much more closely.
16
@Scribbles
Agreed. Can't imagine ever voting for him, along with the lion's share of the current Dem field. But doesn't mean that he and his supporters shouldn't have a voice, bring them all on and let's hear them out. I'm also sorry to see that Sherrod Brown (and Jeff Merkley) decided against a run, although i understand why they wouldn't. But those two would have had a very good chance of getting my vote.
7
“Have been stuck lately. In and out of a funk,” Mr. O’Rourke wrote in one. “Maybe if I get moving, on the road, meet people, learn about what’s going on where they live, have some adventure, go where I don’t know and I’m not known, it’ll clear my head.”
This isn't Bobby Kennedy. It's Studs Terkel.
50
@sthomas1957
Plus - doesn’t he have 3 young kids? Who has time for a soul quest?
5
I can't stop laughing.
I almost feel sorry for him.
5
@James
maybe that's why!
male midlife crisis.
2
I was hoping Beto would run against Cornyn in 2020, perhaps finally giving Texas an alternative to old school rural based Republican conservatism or as a counterpart to the odious Ted Cruz in the Senate, but I guess he felt drawn to a higher cause. To those critics who say he is an inexperienced young white guy with no overriding message but a broad one of hope and change (sound familiar?) for all, I say that is better than the old, corrupt grifter and Russian puppet we have in the White House now. He wasn’t supposed to get elected either, remember.
23
As the sayings go, politics "ain't bean bag," it's "the art of the possible." You can't govern if you can't win. Dems succeed most when their nominee is young and charismatic and able to appeal to more than just the "base." See: JFK, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama. Conversely, Dems fare poorly when they nominate candidates based more on policy specifics than leadership intangibles (e.g., Mondale, Dukakis, Kerry, HRC).
Of all the announced candidates, in my judgment Beto is most capable of building a coaltion of more than the bare minimum needed to win election. Sign me up.
24
Maybe he has jumped into this race so he will be picked to be Vice President.
5
Beto states "I was born to do this". If that statement doesn't scream "EGO TRIP" I don't know what does.
187
@Lifelong New Yorker If your last name is not Kennedy or Bush, GTFO with "I was born to do this."
2
O'Rouke reminds me of a baseball player playing Double A ball proclaiming in spring training that he will head north with the big club when the season begins. I do not think that O'Rouke can galvanize Democratic voters like Amy Klobuchar, Kamala Harris and some others can. The only white male who may be able to excite and unify the base is Joe Biden.
9
@Michael. Biden is not "exciting" and if the DNC forces him on to us as their candidate it will spilt the party again.....did not they not learn anything? Bernie Sanders is THE candidate, he has worked for years towards this goal of revolutionary change for Americans ie health care etc and he has totally changed the conversation and the Dem Party platform....Bernie Sanders & Kamala Harris is my dream team ticket. No to Joe Biden....he is not a uniter nor a leader of the party.....he is strictly a corporate Democrat and is out of touch w/ today. So no to Joe.
2
@Sandra Garratt- fair enough. But I do not believe Bernie can unify Democrats to win the nomination outright and he will seem overly radical and social for any Republican crossover votes.
1
I am committed to being open to all our candidates, from Beto to Bernie and Kamala to Kirsten. Time will flush out the frontrunners. Criticisms will be harsh but in the end I'll go with whoever the majority of my fellow liberals choose. Trump has to go, we must keep our eyes on that.
378
@Tom J I won't. Most are frauds. If Democratic Party voters get it wrong I see no point in voting for a Democratic Party that continues to meet Republicans half way every time they take gigantic steps to the right.
It's time to fight Republicans with the antithesis of Republicans. We need Bernie Sanders.
8
@Tom J So far, Beto is the only one I have heard to suggest that Trump's 5 billion for the wall would be better spent on helping fight the corruption in the countries those migrants are fleeing from, much of it caused by America's greed in the first place.
Foreign policy doesn't seem to be relevant to the average voter. But it should be. That's where it goes so wrong.
1
@Timothy Dannenhoffer
"It's time to fight Republicans with the antithesis of Republicans. We need Bernie Sanders."
Allow me to translate that into reality:
"I'm going to stamp my little feet and, in effect, vote for Trump."
If he runs for president, he needs a regent to hold his hand.
8
@C
Boomers got us into this mess. Maybe you don’t know it all. Maybe it’s time to let others speak.
1
Before everyone spouts, "he hasn't done anything!!"... remember Barack Obama was a Jr. Senator from Illinois and was able to pass the largest healthcare reform legislation since Medicare.
Should be a fun primary!
52
@Dan B, President Obama was a sitting Senator. Beto is a former state representative. But yes, interesting indeed.
4
Yes, with majorities in both houses.
2
@Dan B
Actually, Nancy Pelosi passed the ACA and made sure it was stronger than what the administration was ready to settle for. Obama gets the credit, but he didn't do the heavy lifting and he waffled on it. As so often, the woman does the work and the man gets the credit.
5
"Some wonder if a white male nominee is the right fit for the party in 2020." Wow! Is Fox News writing your copy now? Isn't that precisely the kind of identity politics that boxed Democrats into not running a challenger against Clinton in 2016? The only person who dared was a lifelong non-Democrat and socialist carpetbagger whom Clinton wouldn't even nominate as her VP though it would have clinched the White House for her.
The Times needs to do MUCH better than this. Even if you want to push a female candidate or a person of color, chances are they might see qualities in Beto for a VP, and he'll need the name recognition from a presidential run. So many reasons to write a more thoughtful analysis that this.
80
@Robert Do we know that Sanders would've accepted Vice-President?
1
@Dominic, Yes, we do. Have you ever read about walled cities succumbing to siege in the Middle Ages? Clinton may have failed initially in a private meeting to win him over, but if she named him publicly and he held out, that's when you start the siege. Sanders won fully one half of primary votes outside the super-delegates. Clinton had every reason then to make his initiatives one half her platform, and he'd have been on board. But she had no interest in his policies! She ridiculed his membership even within the party! There was no chance then that she was even going to hold together the democratic party — and she didn't. Clinton gave us Obama/Trump voters. That would never have happened with a Clinton-Sanders ticket, let alone all the Obama voters who stayed home. Clinton was an awful strategic thinker, but she didn't believe she needed to make concessions to democratic voters on the left. And she's right! She didn't need to, because she didn't need to win. There is no cosmic force that determines presidential elections. To recap, yes, Sanders would have accepted. You name him to the position. Period. No is not an answer. You make policy concessions and you appeal to his voters. When he doesn't show up for work, that's on him. But Clinton did none of that. NONE.
2
@Dominic
We don't know if Sanders would have accepted. But we do know that she didn't offer and that if she had it would very likely have tipped the scales in her favor, even if he had declined.
Remember, Bernie campaigned hard for Hillary after the Democratic National Convention. He did 38 major events for her. That is almost twice as many as she did for Obama in 2008 and in many cases they were in states that she chose to ignore and then was surprised to lose.
Clinton has treated Bernie as a spoiler for even running against her as if that isn't the very purpose of the primaries. Recently some of her staffers have tried to turn his energetic campaigning for her into a negative by complaining that he sometime flew privately when his schedule required it. This, her failure to offer him the VP slot, and the subsequent efforts to blame him for her losing to Trump were petty and spiteful. His response was by comparison more than gracious.
Tim Kaine was an awful choice for VP precisely because it deliberately ignored the significance of Bernie's challenge. It is noteworthy that nobody has suggested his name as a worthy candidate for 2020.
Even if Clinton couldn't bring herself to offer the position to Bernie, she could have chosen someone closer to the wing of the party that he had energized even if they weren't directly aligned with Sanders and it likely would have made a difference.
All of this is water under the bridge of course. But there are lessons to be learned here.
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Everyone else might as well pack up and go home. O Rourkes cool, looks like a Kennedy and speaks in endless platitudes about uniting us, this being a defining a defining moment for our country blah blah blah. Never mind a lack of policy specifics and a voting record, young people mindlessly lap this stuff up and the DNC will see him as a winner and a get out of jail card from Having to nominate one of the fringe candidates. It’s Game Over already!
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@Hjb
Honestly, I think it's my generation and older who lap it up. The youngins are overwhelmingly for Sanders, whose consistency over many years impresses them more than anything else. I think Beto and his boosters miscalculated.
"Make America United Again."
If Beto O'Rourke can do that, he's my candidate.
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