On Wednesday night, former Democrat Texas Rep. Robert O’Rourke texted KTSM in his hometown of El Paso, TX, to inform the station that he is running for president.
O’Rourke made it official on Thursday morning with the launch of his website and video that urged “Americans to look past their differences in order to confront the challenges facing the country.”
O’Rourke released a video with his wife by his side to announce that he is seeking the Democratic nomination. From CNN:
“This is a defining moment of truth for this country and for every single one of us,” the 46-year-old Democratic former congressman from Texas said in a video announcing his candidacy. “The challenges that we face right now, the interconnected crises in our economy, our democracy and our climate have never been greater.””They will either consume us, or they will afford us the greatest opportunity to unleash the genius of the United States of America,” he added.
O’Rourke gained popularity in 2018 when he challenged incumbent Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. He raised over $80 million and showcased the power of social media.
He lost to Cruz by 200,000 votes, but Democrats pushed him to run for president. He told 60 Minutes that he ruled out the possibility of him running in 2020.
Yeah, that didn’t last long and did anyone honestly believe him? After he lost to Cruz, groups urged O’Rourke to run for the presidency. He kept up his presence on social media, live streaming a visit to the dentist and documenting his travels across the country on Medium.
O’Rourke ruled out challenging Republican Texas Sen. John Cornyn two weeks ago. He also said he decided on his presidential ambition, but only said he would announce soon.
He remained mum at SXSW when he attended a documentary on his 2018 senate run.
The 2020 Democratic presidential field continues to grow, but the leader in polls is former Vice President Joe Biden, who has not announced his candidacy. A Morning Consult poll from last month had Biden at 31% and Sen. Bernie Sanders at 27%. After them is a YUGE drop off. Sen. Kamala Harris is in third at 10% and O’Rourke in fourth at 7%.
A poll from CNN, the Des Moines Register, and Mediacom on March 10 revealed Iowans prefer Biden and Sanders with Sen. Elizabeth Warren coming in third. O’Rourke is once again in fourth.
I don’t know about the public, but the media has continued to fawn over the Democratic rock star. Vanity Fair ran an expose on O’Rourke, which came out this week.
Logan Dobson had an excellent thread on Twitter that showed the media love for O’Rourke in the past year. You can expect it to get worse.
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