O’Rourke supporters ready for turning point in Congress
Senate hopeful the ‘JFK of Texas’ at Katy rally
Borrowing sound equipment from a rockand-roll band performing on the courtyard stage of Katy’s No Label Brewing Company, U.S. Senate candidate and current U.S. Rep. from El Paso Beto O’Rourke got a crowd going on Saturday as he addressed campaign issues varying from universal background checks for gun ownership to clean energy jobs.
“This is the JFK of Texas,” said Constance Tran, 47, who came from Cypress to express her support.
O’Rourke’s grass-roots approach to his candidacy, namely avoiding any funding from political action committees, has struck a chord with constituents in the Katy area who have expressed dismay at Republican Sen. Ted Cruz’s stint in the Senate, including voicing concerns over his support for Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore, who last week found himself embroiled in a sexual misconduct with minors accusation.
In an interview with the Houston Chronicle, O’Rourke criticized the Republican House’s latest tax reform proposal, claiming cuts to programs such as Medicaid and university Pell grants for the sake of corporate tax cuts ultimately will serve as a disinvestment in the country’s economy.
“This is an expensive way to help people who are already wealthy,” O’Rourke said.
He said he finds no logic in the top-down approach to the House’s proposal, adding that it’s in line with the current administration’s lack of trust in science.
The Senate hopeful also delved into his support for the investment in stormsurge infrastructure in the wake of Hurricane Har-
“People (are) believing in something that perhaps before they didn’t think was possible in Texas: a Democrat representing the state in the Senate.” U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-El Paso
vey’s devastation. At the Saturday rally, one constituent thanked him for having co-sponsored an appropriations bill in 2016 meant to grant $311 million to the Army Corps of Engineers for flood control projects and storm damage reduction projects shortly after the Tax Day floods.
“Trump’s pouring the concrete in the wrong place,” O’Rourke said, referring to President Donald Trump’s continued call for the construction of a border wall between Mexico and the United States.
Addressing the recent shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, O’Rourke affirmed his belief in the need for universal background checks with no exceptions. Noting the Texan tradition of gun ownership, he added that he has found support from voters across the state and across party-lines for this policy. “Texans get it,” he said. Though it’s been over 30 years since Texas has had a Democratic senator, and while O’Rourke admits not accepting PAC funds poses a “very real risk” to his campaign, he feels the state and the country has reached a turning point that calls for leaders with his ideals.
“People (are) believing in something that perhaps before they didn’t think was possible in Texas: a Democrat representing the state in the Senate,” he said.