March 14, 2019

Beto's in.

"Beto O’Rourke, the 46-year-old former Texas congressman whose near-miss Senate run last year propelled him to Democratic stardom, announced on Thursday that he was running for president, betting that voters will prize his message of national unity and generational change in a 2020 primary teeming with committed progressives. His decision jolts an early election season already stuffed with contenders, adding to the mix a relentless campaigner with a small-dollar fund-raising army, the performative instincts of a former punk rocker and a pro-immigrant vision to counteract President Trump’s."

The NYT reports.

ADDED: This post gets my "Bernie-Beto-Biden triad" tag. Back on the last day of last year, I wrote "I've been seeing the simultaneous crushing of the white male triad — Bernie, Beto, Biden — and I get it..."
2 days ago, I was strongly impressed by the NYT article that promoted the Senate Foursome (Harris, Gillibrand, Warren, and Booker) and, on their behalf, gave the BBB triad a shove:
For the Senate foursome, moving quickly into the race is also a pre-emptive effort to undercut the early advantages of a duo of universally known contenders, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who may enter the race in the coming months. Mr. Biden and Mr. Sanders would start off with important advantages....

But as white men, Mr. Biden, Mr. Sanders and Mr. O’Rourke do not reflect the gender and racial diversity of many Democratic candidates and swaths of the electorate that dominated the 2018 midterms. Ms. Harris, Ms. Warren, Ms. Gillibrand and Mr. Booker, by contrast, would instantly make the 2020 Democratic field the most diverse array of presidential candidates in history. And they might well scramble the early polling leads held by Mr. Biden and Mr. Sanders, who benefit from strong name recognition but would be in their late 70s by Election Day 2020, at a moment when some in the party are agitating for generational change....
The NYT was trying to crush the BBB triad in one fell swoop, for the sake of The Foursome....
I thought the triad might get the message and stand down, but Bernie went it, and so did Beto. That eases the way for Biden.

92 comments:

Humperdink said...

Look up "All hat and no cattle" and you will see a picture of the smiling Beto.

Ralph L said...

What a Jolt!

Mike Sylwester said...

He promises to tear down the border barriers that have been built.

Will other Democrat candidates match him on that promise?

Michael K said...

John Kerry without the charisma. He does have the rich wife, though.

Humperdink said...

From the RNC: Beto's greatest accomplishment to date has been losing a senate race.

Which more than the latest media darling, AOC, can claim.

rehajm said...

his message of national unity

That message being: We all believe you're John Kerry 2.0!!!

Anne in Rockwall, TX said...

Between AOC and this sad guy I would like to know what the attraction to big horse teeth is. Beuller? Anyone?

Michael Fitzgerald said...

Hey, maybe this useless douchebag will do it for Althouse!

R C Belaire said...

The more, the merrier. Trump, I'm sure, is worried sick about this.

gilbar said...

Humperdink said...
From the RNC: Beto's greatest accomplishment to date has been losing a senate race.
Which more than the latest media darling, AOC, can claim.


yeah, but what about their other darling, the Stacey chick from Georgia?
She lost a Governor's race! Now, That's REALLY impressive!

whitney said...

Why not. I'm going to vote for whatever crazy leftist has a chance of winning. Let's go ahead and sink this ship

Known Unknown said...

So Robert O' Rouke is running. I suppose we needed an Irishman in the race.

Darrell said...

And just yesterday, he was shining on the receptive Media that people thought he was a Conservative Republican. The kind who support the Democrat's Green New Deal.

Imagine that.

Darrell said...

No borders, no walls. No America at all.

Vote for me!

rehajm said...

That eases the way for Biden

Democrats look for a diverse class of candidates, not a diverse candidate.

Tank said...

Might be fun or might be the end of America. That’s the way it goes.

Ralph L said...

Which B will grow a beard?
Brahms.

Skeptical Voter said...

Small dollar fund raiser? Why not just tap the father in law's bank account? I've come to believe that the New York Times is a fact free zone. I thought Beto's campaign funds versus Ted Cruz came from large out of state donations. Not a three dollar check in the bunch so to speak.

Pro immigrant? That's going to get a lot of votes in flyover country--yes indeed. The deplorables will be crawling over each other in a race to the polls.

traditionalguy said...

It's Roller Derby time. The blockers have to open the way for the star skaters. Beto is trying to learn how to put on his skates. And the Soros family is busy writing the checks.

David Begley said...

Beto’s touring the eastern side of Iowa. Hope he visits the west side.

Curious George said...

Bernie-Beto-Biden...

Battlestar Galactica.

Limited blogger said...

Clown car needs a trailer

John henry said...

It's a Feast of Fakes!

RIP Harry Cruise wherever you are.

Beto - Fake Mexican

Bernie - Fake Democrat

Kamala - Fake African-American

Liz - Fake Indian

Slow Joe Biden - Fake (just fake everything)


It's like The Village People reincarnated!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CS9OO0S5w2k

John Henry

tim maguire said...

Why do so many people who get a moment in the limelight think they need to leverage that moment to become president?

Is there really nothing "Beto" thinks he's better suited for?

Fernandinande said...

He's dreamy because he's a Mexican Irishman, and the "Irish used to be black".

Maybe next time we'll be lucky enough to have an Irishman who used to be a black woman.

John henry said...


Blogger Fernandistein said...

Maybe next time we'll be lucky enough to have an Irishman who used to be a black woman.

I knew they were missing something. A tranny. Now that is just what the mix needs. A fake woman.

John Henry

Curious George said...

"Michael K said...
John Kerry without the charisma. He does have the rich wife, though."

John Kerry is John Kerry without the charisma. And it's his wife daddy with money IIRC.

MayBee said...

How many election cycles in a row are we going to watch the left freak out about how horrible and criminal the Republican is, and then have their hero ride in on a ticket of National Unity?

The message I've gotten over the last 20 years is, we can let the country be unified if our Democrat is in charge.

Lurker21 said...

The Fearsome Foursome versus the Killer B's?

The Foursome are lightweights. Harris is probably the strongest contender because she seems to have a drive and possibly an intensity that Booker and Gillibrand can't match. Liz Warren has a lot of baggage and it looks like her support is slipping away. Harris seems like she can push through obstacles that would sink other candidates. The media help her to do that by not pressing her very hard.

Beto would have been a more formidable candidate in a Whiter Democratic Party and a Whiter America. It's not that a White man can't win the nomination. It's just that people who'd be impressed by Beto are a smaller part of the party now than they once were.

MayBee said...

Two days ago, the actress Christine Baransky was on CBS this morning saying in this political environment, who can really wake up happy and stay happy all day. And the CBS hosts all made agreement sounds.
It's insanity to not let yourself be happy in "this" environment. Why should I think electing your guy is worth it to me, if you are the one so wrapped up in being unhappy in your own life?

rehajm said...

And it's his wife daddy with money

Yes, his second wife's first husband's trust fund.

Wince said...

Instapundit had a great comparison between the image conscious Beto and John Edwards, down to the very same puff-piece writer.

https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/324361/

narciso said...

This pythonesque competition is getting very silly indeed.

MadisonMan said...

Won't last long. That's my forecast.

Birches said...

Now we can see how Obama would have done if he was only white. The gossipy press loves Beto as much as Obama. Althouse is right, the "serious news people" only care about intersectionality these days. But the daytime, vacuous press has a lot of sway. I bet the ladies of The View love Beto.

John henry said...


Blogger Lurker21 said...

The Fearsome Foursome versus the Killer B's?

Or The Five Fakes? Nice alliteration on both.

John Henry

Hannio said...

Pancho Vanilla rides again!

Andrew said...

@Ralph L,
Honestly, if one of those men grew a Brahms beard, I'd be tempted to vote for him. It's about time we stopped discriminating against white men with facial hair.

But a Brahms beard isn't that far from a Marx beard, which might be too on the nose.

I wonder if Trump is just champing at the bit to start destroying these losers one by one, or if instead he's relishing the blood bath which is about to commence.

Quayle said...

Its getting so you could throw a quarter in a crowd and hit a Democratic candidate for President.

Jess said...

Beto is no different than Obama. Unless the media makes an effort to vet him as a candidate, he'll be a shining example to the ignorant Democrats.

Rick said...

betting that voters will prize his message of national unity

Calling the 60% of Americans who believe enforcing immigration law is legitimate racist is a message of national unity?

What planet are these numbnuts on?

AllenS said...

Beto is John Kerry without the hat.

Henry said...

We should could have used these primary candidates in 2016.

narciso said...

When it gets to 24, hunger games rules.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Pro immigration = Get all the cheap labor and democrat voters in here, FAST. Never mind the drugs, crime and diseases. oh and do forget those pesky immigration laws. oh and please ignore our sovereign border.
Never mind the gains made in the African American employment situation.

Leland said...

I like Beto. He's a black hole for Democrat donor money, sort of like Jeb!

narciso said...

A 75 million dollar magic trick, did they write it off on their taxes.

MD Greene said...

Talk about breathless prose. You used to have pay a publicist to place a hack piece like that, and in a lesser publication to boot.

Darrell said...

Beto could help fund The Bulwark.
They'll dance like monkeys for the right price.

Johnathan Birks said...

"Former punk rocker"??
Dude was 4 when the first Ramones record released.
Everything about Beto is phony, beginning with his moniker.

dbp said...

"...whose near-miss Senate run last year propelled him to Democratic stardom..."

Beto lost by more than 200,000 votes. Missed it by that much.

Shane said...

"Jolts"? Really?

Paul said...

Run Beto run!!! Beto the Frito poor boy Irish fake Mexican! Lots of luck!

dbp said...

In fairness, Beto compares favorably to Obama. Sure, Obama won his Senate seat but Obama's victory was essentially sealed once he finagled the Democratic nomination. Beto had to run in Texas, though Cruz (for all his brilliance) is just viscerally off-putting for a lot of people. I am going to give the advantage to Beto: This is a low bar since I consider Obama to be the most monumentally over-rated politician of my lifetime.

stlcdr said...

Looking for someone who can run the country; the United States. Bueller? Bueller?

Known Unknown said...

"was on CBS this morning saying in this political environment, who can really wake up happy and stay happy all day. And the CBS hosts all made agreement sounds."

They all live in a fucking bubble. The economy is good and people are working. They cannot comprehend what it's like for average (I hate using that word) citizens.

I didn't like Clinton, but I accepted that he knew enough about the economy to mostly get out of the way so it could recover, and understood what it meant to most of the people.

mccullough said...

Beto is by far the best-looking. So his odds are 50-50 right off the bat since more women vote in Dem primaries.

Beto could beat Trump. He’d flip the white woman vote and that would be the end of the Trump Era.

And Beto is the smartest of the Dem crew by far. Bright boy is our Beto. He sorta reminds people of a Bush except he’s better looking and smarter than W and Jeb.

Beto is the son that HW wish he had.

NorthOfTheOneOhOne said...

Ralph L said...
Which B will grow a beard?

You know, it would be great if one did grow a beard. I'd look forward 27 year old NYT reporters writing articles about how the United States has never elected a President with a beard!

Sebastian said...

After O, it's not surprising that Dems might go for the handsome dude without any accomplishments or experience.

On the other hand, Robert's lack may be a plus, since the political experience of his competitors mostly shows how bad they are.

WK said...

Bernie-Beto-Biden
Veni-Vedi-Vici

mccullough said...

What about KKK for Kamala, Kirsten, and Klobuchar.

Michael Fitzgerald said...

Hannio@8:18AM LMAO!

Drago said...

Darrell: "And just yesterday, he was shining on the receptive Media that people thought he was a Conservative Republican. The kind who support the Democrat's Green New Deal.

Imagine that."

Yeah, there's ALOT of that going around these days....

Ken B said...

Empty Suit Privilege.

CJinPA said...

But as white men, Mr. Biden, Mr. Sanders and Mr. O’Rourke do not reflect the gender and racial diversity of many Democratic candidates and swaths of the electorate

What? No one person can reflect "diversity" (def: "a range of different things.")

Reveals the not-so-secret truth about "diversity": It means fewer white men.

rcocean said...

Yeah, that's just what we need, another Rich Left-wing Irish Politician who pretends to be the champion of the poor and oppressed.

How many times have we seen that Con-job? This one has a Hispanic nickname so people will think he's 1/2 Mexican. I'm surprised he doesn't walk around with a sombrero on.

tcrosse said...

Bernie-Beto-Biden

The B Team. The B List. B gone.

MacMacConnell said...

Nothing says, "I am man of the little people", like a wealthy prep school boy with an Ivy education on the cover of Vanity Fair.

Are you guys sure Beto means Bob? After seeing him on TV this morning I thought Beto meant buck teeth or Rat Boy.

Rumpletweezer said...

The ongoing legacy of the Obama Presidency: People with no identifiable accomplishments running for President.

mccullough said...

W was a worthless drunk who was the part time Texas Governor because people liked his daddy, who pulled every string to get his worthless son in into schools and get jobs. W would have starved of his dad were a nobody.

Once W was elected, Obana was possible. Obana was a lightweight like W, but he got where he did on his own. And he wasn’t stupid enough to start another disaster like the Iraq war. As bad as Obama was, he wasn’t as bad as W. Perhaps having to make your own way in life helps prepare you more to be President.

Unknown said...

"...the most diverse array of presidential candidates in history." With 2 white women, an African-American woman and an African-American man. I hate to indulge the "diversity" box-checking, but if you're going to say "the most... in history," you should pay better attention.

2016 Republican field included 2 Indian-Americans (Bobby Jindal and Nikki Haley), 2 candidates of Cuban heritage (Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio), an African-American (Ben Carson), and speculated running of Susana Martinez (of Mexican heritage); most of the candidates were under 60, many under 50! Even despite the several white men who threw their hats in the ring, it was embarrassingly more diverse than the 2016 Democrat field, which was entirely white and painfully old, and with just 2 women among the 12 candidates: Clinton and Warren.

J2 said...


"performative" - ick

MayBee said...

My young liberal millennial girlfriends are wondering why they should vote for a white man. Of course, when he was running agains a hispanic man, he was all the rage.

I think conservatives cannot be minorities.

cold pizza said...

I can't believe the sobriquet "Sideshow Bob" hasn't been used for Beto yet. 'Cause, let's face it, what's one more clown in the car?

MacMacConnell said...

El Nino Rata! = Beto

Rick said...

Darrell said...
And just yesterday, he was shining on the receptive Media that people thought he was a Conservative Republican. The kind who support the Democrat's Green New Deal.


The Dems Diversity Fantasy:

We've got Puerto Ricans who support the GND, Blacks who support the GND, Muslims who support the GND, Fake Indians who support the GND, and oh year, even a few whites who support the GND.

Isn't diversity great!

mccullough said...

Nikki Haley didn’t run in the 2016 primaries. Fiorina was the only GOP female who ran.

Bunkypotatohead said...

Obama was the first black president, and based on his performance will be the last.
So the Dems will have to emphasize their diversity with some other POCs.
It's gonna be a Warren/O'Rourke ticket.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Even despite the several white men who threw their hats in the ring, it was embarrassingly more diverse than the 2016 Democrat field, which was entirely white and painfully old, and with just 2 women among the 12 candidates: Clinton and Warren.”

Warren didn’t run in 2016.

Freeman Hunt said...

Bleh. The Trudeau of Texas.

Mark said...

Still no clue as to who Beto Bob is.

Jim at said...

national unity

National unity according to the left = agree with us

To hell with national unity.

mccullough said...

W was the Trudeau of Texas.

Trudeau’s dad was prime minister like W’a Dad was President.

It’s probably fairer to call Trudeau the W of Canada.

Beto’s dad was some state court judge.

Freeman Hunt said...

I'm referring to other qualities.

Bilwick said...

Great! Just what the presidential race needs at this point in history: ANOTHER statist!

Liberty, we hardly knew ye. . . .

Achilles said...

mccullough said...
W was a worthless drunk who was the part time Texas Governor because people liked his daddy, who pulled every string to get his worthless son in into schools and get jobs. W would have starved of his dad were a nobody.

fair.

Once W was elected, Obana was possible. Obana was a lightweight like W, but he got where he did on his own. And he wasn’t stupid enough to start another disaster like the Iraq war. As bad as Obama was, he wasn’t as bad as W. Perhaps having to make your own way in life helps prepare you more to be President.

What Obama did to Syria, Iraq, Iran and Libya was far worse and at least as stupid as what W did.

Drago said...

Inga: "Warren didn’t run in 2016."

Not enough wampum.

This time around she'll take time out from plating up totally original and, like, totally "authentic", Cherokee dishes which include crab meat and mayonnaise, to make sure she's raising enough money to both run her campaign and finance the sharpening of her arrowhead collection.

I understand she has already upgraded the totem pole in front of her MA home in between casually swilling a brew or two in totally spontaneous and unrehearsed fashion.

Drago said...

mccullough: "W was a worthless drunk who was the part time Texas Governor because people liked his daddy, who pulled every string to get his worthless son in into schools and get jobs. W would have starved of his dad were a nobody."

W would not have been "W" in either outlook or background if his dad were a nobody.

Achilles said...

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Warren didn’t run in 2016.

But she was a proud native american. High cheek bones you know.

It is really too bad she is an absolute fraud. She had a sane answer about capitalism and breaking up Farcebook/Google.

Drago said...

Achilles: "She had a sane answer about capitalism and breaking up Farcebook/Google."

You can really see how Warren's advisors are trying to position her as the "sane" socialist.

It's funny to watch.

It's about as transparently false and calculating as Adam Schiff and his LLR followers asserting there is absolute evidence, "beyond circumstantial", of Trump-Russia collusion.

mccullough said...



As far as the Middle East, it’s a shithole. We can blame Obama for poor decisions in the Middle East. But he didn’t spend as much and fewer US soldiers were killed.

He was right to pull out of Iraq. He was a fool to send troops back there or to Syria.

And he was right to step up the drones.

W’s bring freedom to the Middle East was the delusion of a medieval king. He is an incredibly stupid man.

Michael K said...

As bad as Obama was, he wasn’t as bad as W. Perhaps having to make your own way in life helps prepare you more to be President.

Obama "making his own way" is pretty funny. Nice parody.