Cruz vs Beto

[Bama Chick 28,596]

Well 100/100 asshole is pretty much a requirement to be a Republican on the Alabama so he’s got that option available.

[workswithseed 2,112]

46 minutes ago, Bama Chick said:

Well 100/100 asshole is pretty much a requirement to be a Republican on the Alabama so he’s got that option available.

Hey, being on Surly means your 100% with a marginal error of 5% 

[Fudge Nuggets 19,207]

18 hours ago, PenelopeWitherspoon said:

Straight ticket voting in Harris county was a lot of that.  It also ousted Ed Emmett for a 27 year old with no experience.  We are fucked in the case of a Hurricane.

You don’t think anyone took some notes during Harvey?

[horncyclist 1,391]

6 hours ago, burntorangebongos said:

Does it make sense for Beto to run after Cornyn's seat in 2020? I'd like him to be our Senator. This talk of presidential stuff just seems too early in his career.

 

Has Cornyn hinted at retiring at all? I don't think Beto could beat Cornyn but he could definitely take an open seat. I want him in the Senat too.

 

[Fudge Nuggets 19,207]

48 minutes ago, horncyclist said:

Has Cornyn hinted at retiring at all? I don't think Beto could beat Cornyn but he could definitely take an open seat. I want him in the Senat too.

 

No way Cornyn retires.  He's only 66 years old... a mere pup for the Senate.

[troph 24,873]

Cornyn is mega safe. He’d beat Beto by 10. I’d say run and win Lt Gov or Gov first before any national run. Way premature - he needs to win first. VP maybe. But I’d think not unless DNC thinks Texas is fully in play for 2020.

[Texas73 421]

25 minutes ago, troph said:

Cornyn is mega safe. He’d beat Beto by 10. I’d say run and win Lt Gov or Gov first before any national run. Way premature - he needs to win first. VP maybe. But I’d think not unless DNC thinks Texas is fully in play for 2020.

Not so fast. The urban areas which are in the biggest counties in Texas are growing quickly and are increasingly voting Blue. In 2 years Dallas, Harris, Bexar, Travis, El Paso, Fort Bend, Williamson will have a higher number of voters who will vote for Democrats.

It is a ticking clock that Texas will turn purple and Democrats will have the numbers to win statewide. It probably won't happen in 2 years but it could if Trump is taken down by his own ineptness or by Mueller. 

[Pescado_Rojo 19,425]

Nah, Troph is right. Cornyn would boatrace Beto. For starters, he's well liked both in Texas and nationally by Republicans and Republican PACs. That guy would raise 200 million if that's what was needed. He'd be running 5 minute infomercials every commercial break for months if he had to. 

[horncyclist 1,391]

I'm more to thinking Beto will head to Iowa. I like the idea of Governor or Lt Gov but that means sitting on the sidelines for 4 years. He has a good a shot as anyone in the crowded field and probably better than most. National profile, massive donor list, proven he can be competitive in red and purple states, retail politics style perfect fit for NH and Iowa. He would capture a lot of the Sanders support. I say go fo it. Seize the opportunity. Though I don't blame him if we wants to head back to Texas to just be a dad.

[Texas Jeff 1,945]

During the CNN town hall, Beto said he would not run for president. He may have meant just in 2020, but he did say no when asked.

[troph 24,873]

Nah, Troph is right. Cornyn would boatrace Beto. For starters, he's well liked both in Texas and nationally by Republicans and Republican PACs. That guy would raise 200 million if that's what was needed. He'd be running 5 minute infomercials every commercial break for months if he had to. 

 

Half of Republican policy positions are not distasteful and he focuses on those and while he follows the party line on guns, abortions, LGBTQ issues and judges, most moderates will tolerate that over the radical left positions Dems take on a variety of positions. When the battle is in the middle a guy like Cornyn will do well. Keep in mind the battle is to turn Texas truly purple and Cornyn has what it takes to win purple state elections. Texas won’t be reliably blue in our life time. Making it in play like Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and North Carolina is the only realistic goal. Back to Cornyn, I’m not even half upset with him and I’ve shook his hand and said “what about me?” and he responded with a classic deflection, “I’ll look into it.” He’s way too well liked to get beat by anyone in Texas politics for at least two more election cycles for his seat. And even then I think he manages the changing demographics well.

[Texas73 421]

9 minutes ago, troph said:

 

Half of Republican policy positions are not distasteful and he focuses on those and while he follows the party line on guns, abortions, LGBTQ issues and judges, most moderates will tolerate that over the radical left positions Dems take on a variety of positions. When the battle is in the middle a guy like Cornyn will do well. Keep in mind the battle is to turn Texas truly purple and Cornyn has what it takes to win purple state elections. Texas won’t be reliably blue in our life time. Making it in play like Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and North Carolina is the only realistic goal. Back to Cornyn, I’m not even half upset with him and I’ve shook his hand and said “what about me?” and he responded with a classic deflection, “I’ll look into it.” He’s way too well liked to get beat by anyone in Texas politics for at least two more election cycles for his seat. And even then I think he manages the changing demographics well.

You should head to Vegas.

[Huckleberry 33,010]

Yes, someone like Cornyn only gets defeated if the electorate is massively tilted the other direction. A good analogy for what it would take to beat him is looking at Ed Emmett in Harris County. Emmett lost by 1% because Harris County was about D+11% overall in the election.

[Michael Knight 12,988]

On 11/6/2018 at 10:52 PM, slorch said:

Tell that to John Adams

[Huckleberry 33,010]

10 hours ago, TexasEd said:

It's called marginal cost

You seem like you'll like this post:

 

[Fozzz 152]

 

43 minutes ago, Pescado_Rojo said:

Nah, Troph is right. Cornyn would boatrace Beto. For starters, he's well liked both in Texas and nationally by Republicans and Republican PACs. That guy would raise 200 million if that's what was needed. He'd be running 5 minute infomercials every commercial break for months if he had to. 

Cornyn's approval rating among Texas Republicans is 46/18 while Cruz's approval rating is 74/9 per UT's Texas Politics Project.  14% of Texas Republicans strongly approve Cornyn while 42% strongly approve Cruz.  Cornyn might be able to get more PAC money due to his position on their Senate leadership committee, but Beto is much better positioned now than when he began campaigning for the 2018 election.

[burntorangebongos 10,747]

Well, I wish it were possible for him to run for Senate in 2020 but Cornyn would be much harder to unseat. Unless they find him in bed with a live boy or a dead hooker, I guess it aint happening. I don't guess it is a move that makes sense, other than the timing. Damn. 

[gmr548 16,580]

There is a reason he picked Cruz to be the target. Cornyn isn't losing in 2020. I do hope the Ds run a decent candidate and make him work for it a little bit - that pays dividends both downblot and nationally, and adds to the narrative that Texas isn't a gimmie. But he isn't losing.

 

I'd be pretty surprised if Beto ran in 2020. He didn't seem terribly interested in that, at least in the short term. As much as I'd have liked him to have been elected as a Senator for Texas, I would probably vote for someone more experienced in the D primary.

 

That said, a hypothetical Beto vs Trump choice is really easy. Cruz and him running it back for POTUS in 2020 would be funny.

 

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

 

 

 

[Bozo_Casanova 26,494]

Agree with much above- styles make fights and Beto isn’t the right candidate to take on Cornyn. Not enough contrast.

I think to take on Cornyn you need more of a funny, aggressive, folksy shit-talker of the Ann Richards variety (male or female) to goad him out from behind the veneer of decency.

 

I also disagree with people promoting Beto for national office. He’s like Charlie Weis the first year at Notre Dame right now. He might be great or he might not. He’s showing signs of promise but his signature win is a loss.

Until he shows the ability to win in a high turnout environment we shouldn’t be raising the stakes.

[Js1 85,428]

 

[Ghost of LL 15,539]

3 hours ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

Agree with much above- styles make fights and Beto isn’t the right candidate to take on Cornyn. Not enough contrast.

I think to take on Cornyn you need more of a funny, aggressive, folksy shit-talker of the Ann Richards variety (male or female) to goad him out from behind the veneer of decency.

 

I also disagree with people promoting Beto for national office. He’s like Charlie Weis the first year at Notre Dame right now. He might be great or he might not. He’s showing signs of promise but his signature win is a loss.

Until he shows the ability to win in a high turnout environment we shouldn’t be raising the stakes.

I don't think I agree with this.

Democrats need to put forth their best candidate.  Don't worry about match-ups--just put your best team on the field.

And right now, the Democrats' best candidate is Beto.  

Who even comes close?  A Castro?  I really don't think so.  

If you want to propose Colin Allred, I might be interested.  But you don't want to go any lower than a Congressman for a statewide run.  Beto was a Congressman, and look at the difficulty he had in gaining name recognition.

[Gil Bang 25,975]

I'm curious what Beto will do.  TV?  Radio?

[Hugo Stiglitz 23,367]

19 minutes ago, Ghost of LL said:

I don't think I agree with this.

Democrats need to put forth their best candidate.  Don't worry about match-ups--just put your best team on the field.

And right now, the Democrats' best candidate is Beto.  

Who even comes close?  A Castro?  I really don't think so.  

If you want to propose Colin Allred, I might be interested.  But you don't want to go any lower than a Congressman for a statewide run.  Beto was a Congressman, and look at the difficulty he had in gaining name recognition.

Has anyone looked at Abraham Lincoln’s political career before he became president?

I’m just saying these, “he needs a big win before...and he couldn’t win Texas (as a democrat)...” are really silly arguments considering Trump never ran for anything before becoming president.

[Mack Tripper 696]

Am I the only one who thinks Joaquin is a stronger candidate than Julian? 

[Bozo_Casanova 26,494]

I don't think I agree with this.
Democrats need to put forth their best candidate.  Don't worry about match-ups--just put your best team on the field.
And right now, the Democrats' best candidate is Beto.  
Who even comes close?  A Castro?  I really don't think so.  
If you want to propose Colin Allred, I might be interested.  But you don't want to go any lower than a Congressman for a statewide run.  Beto was a Congressman, and look at the difficulty he had in gaining name recognition.

I actually mostly agree with you. Right now he’s the best we have, I just don’t think he matches up well with Cornyn.

I hadn’t thought about Colin Allred. That’s interesting. Another interesting name that’s being floated around is shag favorite HPD Chief Art Acevedo. Let that blow through your mind.

[Huckleberry 33,010]

I actually mostly agree with you. Right now he’s the best we have, I just don’t think he matches up well with Cornyn.

I hadn’t thought about Colin Allred. That’s interesting. Another interesting name that’s being floated around is shag favorite HPD Chief Art Acevedo. Let that blow through your mind.

Welp, that's one way to keep O'Rourke as the only Democrat I've ever voted for in a Senate race. Ha.

[Ghost of LL 15,539]

8 minutes ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

I actually mostly agree with you. Right now he’s the best we have, I just don’t think he matches up well with Cornyn.

I hadn’t thought about Colin Allred. That’s interesting. Another interesting name that’s being floated around is shag favorite HPD Chief Art Acevedo. Let that blow through your mind.

Ok--I'll give you another: Adm. McRaven.

[NIUHuskies 504]

8 minutes ago, Ghost of LL said:

Ok--I'll give you another: Adm. McRaven.

Acevado hell no! Unless you want the Austin PD get exposed for its corruptness.

 

Give me some of that McRaven entree.

[Bozo_Casanova 26,494]

16 minutes ago, Ghost of LL said:

Ok--I'll give you another: Adm. McRaven.

Now you're getting somewhere. Senator McRaven.

Edited November 8, 2018 by Bozo_Casanova

[Ghost of LL 15,539]

1 minute ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

Now you're getting somewhere. Senator McRaven.

So how does a party that has been historically terrible at candidate recruitment recruit that 5*?

[Guest]

No way is McRaven pro-choice. But I'd vote for him in a heartbeat.

[Guest Lobo]

Which party would he run under?

[Mack Tripper 696]

Which party would he run under?

Democratic

[RPM 26,323]

Beto has popular appeal and he's one of the best faces the Dems have right now. I just don't know how he would do in a Presidential race against Trump or your generic alt-R that primaried him. Beto's gameplan of running positive is honorable, but an obvious uphill one armed battle. Debates are his only hope since he connects 1 on 1 with his audiences. He does need to control his anxiety on camera. 

Maybe keynote speaker at the next DNC and then a cabinet post if the D's win. THEN he would be in excellent position for a legitimate POTUS run.

If he wants to wait around for the next statewide races, I think Patrick and Abbott would be easy targets, but he's destined for something bigger.

 

He's a good man with a future in politics. Time will tell.

[Zombie 284]

Beto has popular appeal and he's one of the best faces the Dems have right now. I just don't know how he would do in a Presidential race against Trump or your generic alt-R that primaried him. Beto's gameplan of running positive is honorable, but an obvious uphill one armed battle. Debates are his only hope since he connects 1 on 1 with his audiences. He does need to control his anxiety on camera. 
Maybe keynote speaker at the next DNC and then a cabinet post if the D's win. THEN he would be in excellent position for a legitimate POTUS run.
If he wants to wait around for the next statewide races, I think Patrick and Abbott would be easy targets, but he's destined for something bigger.
 
He's a good man with a future in politics. Time will tell.

Those are fair points, but I disagree with the notion that a good candidate should wait until all the little issues are ironed out. Obama wasn't a perfect candidate in 2006/07 when he began gearing up for 2008. There were a lot of people saying he should wait his turn and improve as a candidate.

The process of preparing to run, all those speeches he gave and events he attended helped to polish his rough edges. And frankly, there's not a candidate without significant issues. I think Beto has the fewest of the possible 2020 field. Ultimately, a politician has to strike while the iron is hot because they may not get a second chance. Beto's iron is definitely hot right now and I think it would be a shame if he sat out 2020.

[RPM 26,323]

1 minute ago, Zombie said:

Those are fair points, but I disagree with the notion that a good candidate should wait until all the little issues are ironed out. Obama wasn't a perfect candidate in 2006/07 when he began gearing up for 2008. There were a lot of people saying he should wait his turn and improve as a candidate.

The process of preparing to run, all those speeches he gave and events he attended helped to polish his rough edges. And frankly, there's not a candidate without significant issues. I think Beto has the fewest of the possible 2020 field. Ultimately, a politician has to strike while the iron is hot because they may not get a second chance. Beto's iron is definitely hot right now and I think it would be a shame if he sat out 2020.

I agree to a degree, but history has shown that the keynote speech is a springboard to the next nomination. I would love to see Beto make a POTUS run, I just don't think he could win it running a similar campaign. Dark money will swamp him. If you float to the top of a cesspool with righteousness, did you win? Beto is going to have to go on offense against the machine.

Personally, I expect him to take a year off and field offers.

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,515]

Patiently waiting for the right time can backfire.  The right time may never occur.  If another Dem wins the presidency, then it’s a minimum of a 8 year wait or maybe 16 as we frequently switch parties in the WH after every 2 term president.  Beto is then in his mid 60s and potentially has 1 shot.

run when you’re hot even if it’s not perfect.  

Running for President does require having more plans on what he wants to accomplish and how to get it.  

[Hugo Stiglitz 23,367]

 

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,515]

26 minutes ago, Hugo Stiglitz said:

 

Finding idiots on the street isn’t tough.  I have to shake my head at the “Robert Francis” woman not knowing that Ted’s name is Rafael.  She’s probably confused as to why the Dems don’t have ads about it.  Or her subtle racism in that she refuses to say Hispanics when Beto is pandering to certain “groups.”  

I do imagine that she suffered buyers remorse after learning Ted changed his name.  She can hold her nose and vote for Ted Cruz but Rafael Cruz?  That’s too ethnic for The Woodlands.

[horncyclist 1,391]

I'm absolutely certain Beto runs in 2020 now. He has a movement behind similar to what Sanders have and theres no establishment candidate everyone is backing to overcome. He can absolutely win. If I'm him I reach out to Bernie and offer to carry the mantle. They support a lot of the same core issues: campaign finance reform, universal healthcare. 

[horncyclist 1,391]

It's up to him and the sacrifice of family time must be gutwrenching but I think after taking time, he will see that America needs him and his message. His resume doesn't matter much, look at Lincoln, who btw, was a longshot when he decided to pursue the republican nomination.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/08/politics/beto-orourke-2020-democratic-presidential-race/index.html

Another source described having "very initial discussions" with O'Rourke in recent weeks about the prospect of a 2020 bid and what it would take to scale a Senate campaign that operated largely on the candidate's own gut, without pollsters or a massive team of consultants, up to the national level. But the source said it's too early for O'Rourke to have made any decisions.

Publicly, O'Rourke has flatly ruled out the possibility of a presidential run.

"The answer is no," O'Rourke said at a CNN town hall in October when asked about the prospect of a presidential campaign.

"Our children are 11, they're 10, and they're 7 years old. We've told them we're going to take these almost two years out of our life to run this race, and then we're devoted and committed to being a family again," he said.

Pressed again, he said, "It's a definitive no."

[jimmyjazz 45,981]

Today's political environment is not that of the Reagan-Bush era.  It's not even that of the Obama era.  Applying historical rules of thumb is unnecessary and unwise.

The idea that an aging old-school Democrat like Joe Biden would be a better choice than O'Rourke is rooted in the past.  Nobody has a crystal ball, but O'Rourke is now a rock star.  He generated a massive amount of goodwill and excitement in this race.  It might not be the ideal scenario if an individual's goal is to someday achieve the White House, but it very well could be the best scenario for the Democrats to achieve the White House in 2020.  Those are two different things.

[RayDog 682]

39 minutes ago, horncyclist said:

It's up to him and the sacrifice of family time must be gutwrenching but I think after taking time, he will see that America needs him and his message. His resume doesn't matter much, look at Lincoln, who btw, was a longshot when he decided to pursue the republican nomination.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/08/politics/beto-orourke-2020-democratic-presidential-race/index.html

Another source described having "very initial discussions" with O'Rourke in recent weeks about the prospect of a 2020 bid and what it would take to scale a Senate campaign that operated largely on the candidate's own gut, without pollsters or a massive team of consultants, up to the national level. But the source said it's too early for O'Rourke to have made any decisions.

Publicly, O'Rourke has flatly ruled out the possibility of a presidential run.

"The answer is no," O'Rourke said at a CNN town hall in October when asked about the prospect of a presidential campaign.

"Our children are 11, they're 10, and they're 7 years old. We've told them we're going to take these almost two years out of our life to run this race, and then we're devoted and committed to being a family again," he said.

Pressed again, he said, "It's a definitive no."

Saying no in the middle of a Senate run is meaningless, particularly given Cruz's history.

[Ghost of LL 15,539]

4 hours ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

Patiently waiting for the right time can backfire.  The right time may never occur.  If another Dem wins the presidency, then it’s a minimum of a 8 year wait or maybe 16 as we frequently switch parties in the WH after every 2 term president.  Beto is then in his mid 60s and potentially has 1 shot.

run when you’re hot even if it’s not perfect.  

Running for President does require having more plans on what he wants to accomplish and how to get it.  

I agree with this 100%.  Just ask the Castro boys.

[FondrenRoad 4,378]

7 hours ago, RPM said:

Beto has popular appeal and he's one of the best faces the Dems have right now. I just don't know how he would do in a Presidential race against Trump or your generic alt-R that primaried him. Beto's gameplan of running positive is honorable, but an obvious uphill one armed battle. Debates are his only hope since he connects 1 on 1 with his audiences. He does need to control his anxiety on camera. 

Maybe keynote speaker at the next DNC and then a cabinet post if the D's win. THEN he would be in excellent position for a legitimate POTUS run.

If he wants to wait around for the next statewide races, I think Patrick and Abbott would be easy targets, but he's destined for something bigger.

 

He's a good man with a future in politics. Time will tell.

If you held the general election in 6 months, Beto would trounce Trump.  He brings a lot to the table that other candidates don't.

Positive name recognition and enthusiasm among supporters.

Forces the GOP to spend money in Texas since he will keep it close there.

His persona and ground game would work wonders in the Midwest where it is needed.

But all that is right now. After 2 years through the Fox News, Infowars, Rush, and Russian grinder, he will begin to have that Clinton, Warren, Obama perception. Whether its the DUI or wearing a dress, its all you'll be hearing about from the second he announces a run. 

[jimmyjazz 45,981]

He'll need to learn how to fight harder.  Of course he should own the dress, the punk band, and even the DUI and fence breach at UTEP.  All can be spun as"youthful indescretions".  Clinton smoked pot and was clearly a philanderer (if not worse).  Obama did coke.  Both survived the process.

But he would need to do more.  Much as I despise 'whataboutism", he would have to allude to the allegations of drug use by Trump in the Studio 54 era, his multiple marriages, his affairs, his "pussy grabbing", his legendary status as an absolutely untrustworthy businessman who would fuck over his own kids if it made him a dime.  He can't just let the right own the entire debate about personal accountability and moral compass, particularly when is is VASTLY superior to Trump in those ways.  That said, it doesn't appear that he wants to fight dirty, and it would cost him if he chose not to.

[babysdaddy 2,725]

29 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

He'll need to learn how to fight harder.  Of course he should own the dress, the punk band, and even the DUI and fence breach at UTEP.  All can be spun as"youthful indescretions".  Clinton smoked pot and was clearly a philanderer (if not worse).  Obama did coke.  Both survived the process.

But he would need to do more.  Much as I despise 'whataboutism", he would have to allude to the allegations of drug use by Trump in the Studio 54 era, his multiple marriages, his affairs, his "pussy grabbing", his legendary status as an absolutely untrustworthy businessman who would fuck over his own kids if it made him a dime.  He can't just let the right own the entire debate about personal accountability and moral compass, particularly when is is VASTLY superior to Trump in those ways.  That said, it doesn't appear that he wants to fight dirty, and it would cost him if he chose not to.

I disagree.  The whole reason  (and others like me....business first Republicans? Don't know what we'd are called) voted for him is because he didn't go dirty and his message was mostly about bringing people together.  Even though I disagree with a lot of his actual policy positions I'd vote for him in a heartbeat over every single discussed candidate out there other than McRaven or Bloomberg.....and especially Dotard.  

[jimmyjazz 45,981]

3 minutes ago, babysdaddy said:

I disagree.  The whole reason  (and others like me....business first Republicans? Don't know what we'd are called) voted for him is because he didn't go dirty and his message was mostly about bringing people together.  Even though I disagree with a lot of his actual policy positions I'd vote for him in a heartbeat over every single discussed candidate out there other than McRaven or Bloomberg.....and especially Dotard.  

That doesn't surprise me.  There are different levels of "dirty" and the switch flips for different people at different points.  That said, I seriously doubt O'Rourke could get as nasty as Trump, it's not in his makeup.  That doesn't mean he couldn't point out the hypocrisy.  Obviously it's about maximizing votes, not just reaching your demographic.

Seriously, if it came down to Trump VS O'Rourke and Trump was his usual gutter rat self while O'Rourke was 20% of the way there, would that lead you to vote for Trump?  I highly doubt it.

[Bama Chick 28,596]

I disagree.  The whole reason  (and others like me....business first Republicans? Don't know what we'd are called) voted for him is because he didn't go dirty and his message was mostly about bringing people together.  Even though I disagree with a lot of his actual policy positions I'd vote for him in a heartbeat over every single discussed candidate out there other than McRaven or Bloomberg.....and especially Dotard.  

I agree in theory that what makes Beto attractive is his positivity and hopefulness.

But, unfortunately, in practice and in this Twitter world in race against Trump, that nice guy shit won’t move the needle.

Trump is at his core a giant titty baby pussy and whoever the Democrats put up against is going to have to swing at him hard and low. You can’t give him a chance to be all quippy on a debate stage. You have to punch him below the belt and make him go whiny and unhinged.

He won because of 80,000 voters in three states. The midterms have already shown that bunch is pretty tired of his shit. Whoever is against him has to double down on the narrative that he’s a dangerous lying lunatic.

Being a nice hot guy won’t do that.

Anyone still preaching conventional wisdom in regards to what the Democrats should do in 2020 either haven’t been paying attention or are embarrassed Republicans concern trolling who don’t want to admit they’re still okay with Dotard over any Democrat.

Conventional wisdom with regards to presidential politics is dead and buried as long as Trump is part of the calculus.

[AtticusFinch 155]

8 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

Today's political environment is not that of the Reagan-Bush era.  It's not even that of the Obama era.  Applying historical rules of thumb is unnecessary and unwise.

The idea that an aging old-school Democrat like Joe Biden would be a better choice than O'Rourke is rooted in the past.  Nobody has a crystal ball, but O'Rourke is now a rock star.  He generated a massive amount of goodwill and excitement in this race.  It might not be the ideal scenario if an individual's goal is to someday achieve the White House, but it very well could be the best scenario for the Democrats to achieve the White House in 2020.  Those are two different things.

Running for the WH might kill Beto.  He went from a mane full of light brown hair to all grey in 18 months.