Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX) ended up raising an astonishing $80.1 million in his failed bid to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), the Dallas Morning News reports.

“The final tally, released late Thursday, is sure to intensify speculation that O’Rourke could mount a campaign in 2020 against President Trump.”

“Much of the attention on O’Rourke has focused on a frenetic campaign style that helped him come within three points of toppling Cruz — the best a Democrat has done statewide in Texas in years — and a social-media-friendly charisma that captivated liberals all over the U.S.”

“In a move that is being decried by several members of the Texas congressional delegation, the U.S. Border Patrol announced Monday that it would be conducting an Election Day crowd control exercise in El Paso, the hometown of Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Beto O’Rourke,” the Texas Monthly reports.

“The exercise will take place next to the Chihuahuita neighborhood, a cluster of about one hundred or so homes along the U.S.-Mexico border that is almost exclusively Hispanic. The exercise is planned to occur within half a mile from at least one designated polling station.“

A new UT Tyler poll in Texas shows Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) with a four point lead over Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D) among registered voters, 47% to 43% among likely voters.

When the survey is narrowed to exclude respondents who are “not sure,” Cruz leads O’Rourke 50% percent to 46%.

A new Quinnipiac poll in Texas finds Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) leading challenger Beto O’Rourke (D) by five points, 51% to 46%.

Said pollster Peter Brown: “O’Rourke is within striking distance, but time is running out in a race that Democrats have hoped would deliver an upset victory that would be key to a Senate takeover.”

The Fort Worth Star Telegram endorsed Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D) over Sen. Ted Cruz (R):

This endorsement did not come without some disagreement. Cruz is closer to Texas’ and Tarrant County’s views on issues related to faith and values, and also on energy policy.

But Cruz was elected with no experience in any council or legislature, and it shows. His intransigence prevents him from currying support or negotiating deals to help Texas.

This Editorial Board has recommended conservative Republicans such as George W. Bush and Mitt Romney for president, along with U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison.

But Cruz does not measure up. This office needs a reset.

A new University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll finds Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) with a six-point edge over Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX) in the U.S. Senate race, 51% to 45%.

The Dallas Morning News endorsed Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX) for U.S. Senate:

We have been at divisive political moments before, and we know those often end when leaders emerge who find ways to get along personally even when they are engaged in grand, tectonic political debates. That is one of the underappreciated stories of the 1980s, when President Ronald Reagan and House Speaker Tip O’Neill worked together. Even when they fought it out on tough issues, they fostered an enduring friendship.

For this reason more than any other, we favor U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke for U.S. Senate. The pivotal issue before our country is public leadership, and here we believe O’Rourke’s tone aligns with what is required now. This inclusive and hopeful tone, along with O’Rourke’s approach of starting with shared principles and working toward solutions, offset any policy differences we have with him. Leadership is more than policy, and whether we are addressing the very real challenges before us now turns on our ability to find points of agreement.

“On Tuesday, Sen. Ted Cruz (R) joked that his opponent, Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D), could share a jail cell with Hillary Clinton and spoke darkly of Democratic mobs,” the Dallas Morning News reports.

“A day later, federal authorities said they’d found seven mail bombs sent to the former secretary of state and others… Stumping in Dallas on Wednesday, Cruz denounced overheated rhetoric and political violence of any kind — and lay the bulk of blame on the left for poisoning the nation’s civic discourse.”

Said Cruz: “Violence is wrong wherever it falls in the political spectrum. This is a deep polarized and divided time. That division, that anger is not good for our country, and it is my hope that everyone can just — calm down a little bit.”

President Trump said he has buried the hatchet with his 2016 presidential rival Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) ahead of a campaign rally for the Republican senator in Houston, The Hill reports.

Said Trump: “He’s not Lyin’ Ted anymore. He’s Beautiful Ted.”

The Houston Chronicle endorsed Beto O’Rourke (D) for U.S. Senate in Texas:

There’s one more reason O’Rourke should represent Texas in the U.S. Senate: He would help to serve as a check on a president who is a danger to the republic. Cruz is unwilling to take on that responsibility. Indeed, the man who delighted in calling the Texas senator “Lyin’ Ted” all through the 2016 presidential campaign, who insulted Cruz’s wife and his father, is bringing his traveling campaign medicine show to Houston next week to buoy the Cruz campaign. The hyperbole, the hypocrisy and the rancorous hot air just might blow the roof off the Toyota Center.

While the bloviations emanate from the arena next week, imagine how refreshing it would be to have a U.S. senator who not only knows the issues but respects the opposition, who takes firm positions but reaches out to those who disagree, who expects to make government work for Texas and the nation. Beto O’Rourke, we believe, is that senator.

President Trump has moved his Texas rally for Sen. Ted Cruz’s reelection campaign to a larger venue because of what a top aide called “huge and unprecedented” ticket sales, Politico reports.

The Trump campaign originally chose Houston’s NRG Arena, which can hold 8,000, and then abruptly changed locations on Thursday to the Toyota Center, which can hold 19,000.

In his debate with Rep., Beto O’Rourke (D-TX), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) blamed the “rage” of the “far left” for the lack of “civility” in politics and then promptly barked at the debate moderator who tried to ask a question.

“He’s dishonest. That’s why the president called him Lyin’ Ted and it’s why the nickname stuck because it’s true.”

— Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX), quoted by the Texas Tribune, in his U.S. Senate debate with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).

A new CNN poll in Texas finds Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) appears well-positioned for re-election over challenger Beto O’Rourke (D), topping him 52% to 45% among likely voters.

Just 9% of likely Texas voters say there’s a chance they could change their mind about the Senate contest before Election Day.

These ads from the liberal-backed Fire Ted Cruz PAC are just brilliant.