Just dropped · Trial Balloon · Ep. 192
November Surprises
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.
President Trump will star at a rally in Houston on Oct. 22 to help Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), the Dallas Morning News reports.
The president said that he would hold a “major rally” for Cruz at the biggest stadium they could find in Texas.
“This rally is set for the NRG Arena, which has an 8,000-seat arena — a far more modest venue than the one Trump had promised. Nearby NRG Stadium, by comparison, is home to the NFL Houston Texans and tops out at around 80,000 people.”
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) “rode an anti-Washington wave into the Senate in 2012, became a disruptive outsider in the chamber the next year, and ran against the establishment when he sought the presidency in 2016,” Politico reports.
“But when his reelection campaign wobbled earlier this year under pressure from upstart Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke, Cruz leaned hard on a new strategy: the inside track.”
“Cruz’s TV ads have touted his record bringing home billions in federal relief spending after Hurricane Harvey, highlighting ‘bipartisan’ tax relief for those affected by the storm. Cruz’s Texas colleague, Sen. John Cornyn — whom Cruz declined to endorse in 2014 when Cornyn, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, faced a primary challenge — headlined a six-figure fundraiser for Cruz in Washington. And Cruz has leaned on help from the highest echelons of the Republican Party, campaigning with Vice President Mike Pence and Donald Trump Jr. in Texas recently and getting a commitment from President Donald Trump for a future event.”
Daily Beast: “Michael Avenatti on Thursday tweeted a link to Democratic donation platform ActBlue that appeared to be an O’Rourke donation page, but the fine print on the page noted that, by default, half of the money donated would go to Avenatti’s Fight PAC.”
“Rep. Beto O’Rourke raised an astonishing $38.1 million in three months, as Democrats in Texas and nationwide showered him with donations for his bid to oust Sen. Ted Cruz,” the Dallas Morning News reports.
“The haul smashed previous records for a U.S. Senate contest, and assures that the hard fought race, already the nation’s costliest, remains on top of the 2018 list.”
“O’Rourke’s haul is more than triple the $12 million that Cruz said he raised from July through September.”
A new Quinnipiac poll in Texas finds Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) leading challenger Beto O’Rourke (D) by nine points in the U.S. Senate race, 54% to 45%.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) declined CNN’s invitation to participate in a televised town hall with challenger Beto O’Rourke (D), the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.
So O’Rourke will be featured in a live, one-hour town hall on October 18.
Rolling Stone: “The ad — which was paid for by an anti-Cruz PAC and was not endorsed by his senate opponent, Beto O’Rourke — is beautiful in its simplicity, and strikes to the heart of Cruz’s campaign, which has revolved around the idea that he is more authentically Texan than his challenger.”
Former President Obama “has endorsed 11 Texas Democrats leading up to next month’s midterm elections. But none go by the popular four-letter moniker Beto,” the Texas Tribune reports.
Said U.S. Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke (D): “I don’t think we’re interested. I am so grateful to him for his service, he’s going to go down as one of the greatest presidents. And yet, this election is on Texas.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) described Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX) as “cult-like” in the way that he’s garnered attention in his bid to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), The Hill reports.
Said Abbot: “He’s been a cult-like, very popular figure the way that he’s run the campaign, but you don’t vote on cult, you don’t vote on personality when you get to the U.S. Senate. You vote on the issues.”
The Austin American Statesman reports O’Rourke held a rally over the weekend attended by more than 50,000 people.
Beto O’Rourke (D) pledged in an interview with the Texas Tribune “to serving out the full six-year term in the Senate if elected, pushing down buzz that he might make a run at the White House in 2020.”
Sen. Ted Cruz (R) did not quite say the same. His reply, which went on for two minutes but did not answer the question, concluded with, “We should be standing up for who we are as Texans and Americans.”
Beto O’Rourke showcased his air-drum skills following his debate with Sen. Ted Cruz as he rocked out to The Who’s “Baba O’Riley” while waiting in a Whataburger drive-thru line.
Said O’Rourke: “This may be the best song ever written.”
Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX), the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, “took a newly aggressive tack against Republican incumbent Ted Cruz in their first debate Friday evening,” the Texas Tribune reports.
“Appearing at Southern Methodist University, the candidates exchanged rhetorical blows on just about every single question, showing off sharp differences that have long been evident in the race. But what stood out was O’Rourke’s combative posture toward Cruz after spending his campaign until this point largely ignoring the incumbent and his attacks.”
“Throughout the debate, O’Rourke repeatedly reminded viewers that he was the only candidate on the stage who has visited all 254 counties in Texas — and forcefully pushed back several times as he came under fire from Cruz.”
Taegan Goddard
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.
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