The race to the midterms in less than one month continues to heat up as the weeks drag on. In the era of President Donald Trump, that means that presidential jabs at political opponents have been intensifying too. He’s targeted Democrat Beto O’Rourke, who’s running to replace Texas Republican Ted Cruz in the U.S. Senate. In a recent television appearance, though, O’Rourke refused to get involved in the back and forth, instead insisting that his focus remains with pressing forward.
He illuminated some of the fault lines between Democratic and Republicans ways of doing things in the process that voters would be wise to keep in mind heading into November.
He told Paula Faris of ABC News of the president’s remarks:
‘I don’t know that it makes any sense to respond. The bitterness, name-calling, partisanship… you can add more to it or you can stay focused on the future and why you did this in the first place.’
Rep. Beto O’Rourke says he won’t respond to Trump’s attacks: “The kind of bitterness and the name-calling and partisanship that has unfortunately defined so much of the national conversation, you can add more to it or you can stay focused on the future” https://t.co/OzZ6qEX9cI pic.twitter.com/vu4ZxiHQvA
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) October 21, 2018
O’Rourke has sought to establish himself as the “people’s candidate,” setting himself apart through means including visiting literally every county in Texas during the earlier days of the campaign season.
He’s sparred with Cruz in multiple televised debates at this point, giving the pair the opportunity to passionately seek to position themselves positively in voters’ minds.
At present, Cruz still leads in the bulk of polling, but if there’s anyone who can tell you that polling might sometimes miss the mark, it’s President Donald Trump, ironically enough. O’Rourke helps leads the charge of inspirational Democratic candidates seeking to come into power on the heels of those Democrats already widely expected to win, like dozens and dozens in the U.S. House.
Featured Image via YouTube screenshot
