Media spotlight boosts long-shot challenger in Texas
AUSTIN, Texas — If elections were decided by viral videos and fawning media profiles, Democrat Beto O’Rourke would win Texas’ Senate race in a landslide.
Video of the candidate defending NFL players’ right to protest during the national anthem had been viewed by millions even before NBA star LeBron James called it a “mustwatch.” Another of him thrashing through a Whataburger parking lot on a skateboard is almost as popular, increasing the onetime punk rocker’s already considerable street cred.
National magazines are suggesting he could be a Democratic vice presidential pick in 2020 — or even a White House contender in the vein of a young Barack Obama. Sure, O’Rourke may lose to incumbent Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, the argument goes, but just staying competitive in Texas, which hasn’t elected a Democrat to statewide office in nearly a quarter century, would still further boost his political star.
The White House is taking notice. President Trump tweeted that he plans to stage “a major rally” for Cruz in October. Help from the president was long unthinkable in a race that for months looked like a Cruz cakewalk.
O’Rourke has largely welcomed the spotlight. His stance on anthem protests landed him a recent appearance on Ellen DeGeneres’ TV show. O’Rourke also hasn’t disavowed descriptions of himself as “Kennedyesque,” given his boyish good looks. He live-streams constantly, and in March, when he appeared on HBO’s “Real Time With Bill Maher,” the crowd in Los Angeles cheered so much that the host crowed, “It’s like when the Beatles came to America.”
“You can’t control it,” O’Rourke spokesman Chris Evans said of the attention. He disputed the idea that national praise could hurt back home, saying it’s “hard to say we’re not focused on Texas” since O’Rourke just spent 34 days of the congressional summer recess campaigning without leaving the state.
Texas Democrats have been down this road before. Wendy Davis staged a marathon state Legislature filibuster in the name of abortion rights, rocketed to national stardom and launched a 2014 gubernatorial bid. Like O’Rourke, Davis was a strong fundraiser and the toast of liberals from Hollywood to Brooklyn. Largely unable to define herself beyond abortion, which resonated nationally but not at home, Davis eventually lost by 20-plus points to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.
Bob Radnich, a retiree who lives near the Texas-Mexico border and donned an Uncle Sam costume to hold up a “Stand with Wendy Davis” sign on a street corner in 2014, is now backing O’Rourke — but trying to keep realistic expectations.
“He’s a real star,” Radnich said. “But we have to get the people to vote.”