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O'Rourke ends presidential bid

nota bene said:
What I said is that nobody (in Texas) outside of El Paso knew who Beto was, that he was a media creation.
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Hell I live in Texas and I didn't know who he was till he got a ton of outside money to run against Cruz. I have to wonder exactly how much donor money he has wasted with his failed senatorial and presidential campaigns.
 
Nalu said:
You did say that once, but that's not what I replied to. You said:

I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that this isn't what Nalu meant. But you only live and vote in Texas, so I can't imagine what you think you know.

I replied:

Huh. A snarky reply to a reply that had nothing to do with a post. Good work.

Then you said:

My point was that you don't live in Texas and are thus less likely than Texans to understand the "phenomenon" of Beto O'Rourke.

To which I further replied:

Oh. I must have missed your "point". The thread that you're in demonstrates that O'Rourke was not merely a TX phenomenon. And while a person who experienced an event has a unique and often better perspective on that event than someone who did not, even the person who did not can have a perspective.

And then you said:

What I said is that nobody (in Texas) outside of El Paso knew who Beto was, that he was a media creation.

So you appear to be having 2 different conversations at once. Once again, despite your snark (which frankly puzzles me), one need not live in and vote in TX to have a well founded opinion of O'Rourke. Apparently you don't like him, but I'm not sure what you think that has to do with me.
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For my part, I'm sorry that you think I was being snarky. I understand that O'Rourke wasn't only a Texas phenomenon; what I meant is that that he was a nobody with very fabu financial resources whom the media created a sensation about because he was "boyish" and, much more importantly, "Kennedyesque." It was a fabrication, O'Rourke is an empty suit (to be very charitable), and a fickle media turned away from its creation.
 
SLC said:
Hell I live in Texas and I didn't know who he was till he got a ton of outside money to run against Cruz. I have to wonder exactly how much donor money he has wasted with his failed senatorial and presidential campaigns.
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Ask his father-in-law. ;)
 
nota bene said:
For my part, I'm sorry that you think I was being snarky. I understand that O'Rourke wasn't only a Texas phenomenon; what I meant is that that he was a nobody with very fabu financial resources whom the media created a sensation about because he was "boyish" and, much more importantly, "Kennedyesque." It was a fabrication, O'Rourke is an empty suit (to be very charitable), and a fickle media turned away from its creation.
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Ok, I appreciate that and apologize if I inferred a tone that you didn't intend.

I agree with your post except that it omits what I think is the biggest factor. O'Rourke is a Democrat who almost won a TX Senate seat. One can speculate whether he almost won because he got a lot money and attention or whether he got a lot of money and attention because he looked like he had a chance of winning, but either way, the effect was the same among most liberals. There was talk about turning TX purple. It always seemed like wishful thinking to me (and still does), but Democrats in particular needed to look for good news anywhere they could find it after Trump was elected.
 
Nalu said:
Ok, I appreciate that and apologize if I inferred a tone that you didn't intend.

I agree with your post except that it omits what I think is the biggest factor. O'Rourke is a Democrat who almost won a TX Senate seat. One can speculate whether he almost won because he got a lot money and attention or whether he got a lot of money and attention because he looked like he had a chance of winning, but either way, the effect was the same among most liberals. There was talk about turning TX purple. It always seemed like wishful thinking to me (and still does), but Democrats in particular needed to look for good news anywhere they could find it after Trump was elected.
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True enough. And Trump's election showed that any candidate is possible. Take a look at the graphic of Texas here: Where Ted Cruz’s close victory over Beto O’Rourke stands in Texas history | The Texas Tribune

I went from "Who?" to "Oh, hell, no!" very quickly because of the stories of Beto's, ahem, checkered past and poetry. His handlers encouraged a sort of free-spirited kookiness that doesn't resonate with most small-town Texans (or Nebraskans, for that matter).
 
nota bene said:
True enough. And Trump's election showed that any candidate is possible. Take a look at the graphic of Texas here: Where Ted Cruz’s close victory over Beto O’Rourke stands in Texas history | The Texas Tribune

I went from "Who?" to "Oh, hell, no!" very quickly because of the stories of Beto's, ahem, checkered past and poetry. His handlers encouraged a sort of free-spirited kookiness that doesn't resonate with most small-town Texans (or Nebraskans, for that matter).
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That struck me too. I have a lot of good ole boy type relatives (not Texans) who think O'Rourke is a complete loon. That's before they even give a thought to his politics. If he ever runs for anything else, and I think he will, I would encourage him to improve/change his speaking style.
 
Nalu said:
That struck me too. I have a lot of good ole boy type relatives (not Texans) who think O'Rourke is a complete loon. That's before they even give a thought to his politics. If he ever runs for anything else, and I think he will, I would encourage him to improve/change his speaking style.
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He also needs to have a platform with strong planks. There at the end, it seemed he was just tossing stuff out there in the hope that something would catch on. And he needs gravitas as well.

As for those who haven't considered that he just might be a loon, read his cow poetry. Read the reports about his trying to flee one of his DUIs and the breaking-and-entering and consider what these may suggest about his character.
 
nota bene said:
He also needs to have a platform with strong planks. There at the end, it seemed he was just tossing stuff out there in the hope that something would catch on. And he needs gravitas as well.

As for those who haven't considered that he just might be a loon, read his cow poetry. Read the reports about his trying to flee one of his DUIs and the breaking-and-entering and consider what these may suggest about his character.
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Ok, will do. I don't know about any of that. Frankly, when there were still 20 candidates and I tried to name them, I always forgot about him (and several of the others). I can't honestly say I know a whole lot about any of them except maybe Sanders and to a lesser extent, Biden and Warren. My caucus is a long way away and I'm waiting for the field to narrow before I try to memorize everyone's life stories.
 
Excast said:
If you had asked me a year ago I would have told you I expected him to be among the front runners for the nomination. He just didn't enter the race with much of a core message though and with this many candidates it is easy to get lost in the shuffle. We need a good 6 to 8 more people to leave the race so the people who actually have real support can fight it out.
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IMHO, his "core message" was look how young, rich and "woke" I am. Tear down all border barriers, lets round up all of those scary and icky guns, celebrate diveristy and the freedom (from responsibility) everyone can enjoy by spending other poeple's money. His "business" career consisted of being handed money and spending it faster than he could earn it - he then truned to politics where that is seen as a good (or at least acceptable) trait.
 
Nalu said:
Ok, will do. I don't know about any of that. Frankly, when there were still 20 candidates and I tried to name them, I always forgot about him (and several of the others). I can't honestly say I know a whole lot about any of them except maybe Sanders and to a lesser extent, Biden and Warren. My caucus is a long way away and I'm waiting for the field to narrow before I try to memorize everyone's life stories.
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Here's one poem: Beto O'Rourke's "The Song of the Cow' Poem / Psychedelic Warlord | Cult of the Dead Cow | Know Your Meme
 
Nalu said:
Ok, will do. I don't know about any of that. Frankly, when there were still 20 candidates and I tried to name them, I always forgot about him (and several of the others). I can't honestly say I know a whole lot about any of them except maybe Sanders and to a lesser extent, Biden and Warren. My caucus is a long way away and I'm waiting for the field to narrow before I try to memorize everyone's life stories.
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Actually, you SHOULD be hearing a lot more about them. Trump (or rather, people talking about him) is absorbing the entire news cycle. The Democrats are struggling to get even mentioned, much less get their message out. This is making it much harder to narrow the field on that side, much less fire up the base for the candidates. I'm sure it's driving their campaign managers bonkers.
 
dcsports said:
Actually, you SHOULD be hearing a lot more about them. Trump (or rather, people talking about him) is absorbing the entire news cycle. The Democrats are struggling to get even mentioned, much less get their message out. This is making it much harder to narrow the field on that side, much less fire up the base for the candidates. I'm sure it's driving their campaign managers bonkers.
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That's not new. Trump's been a media whore for his entire life. He just really turned up the volume during his birther insanity and after he descended the escalator.

As far as the Democrats go, even though I'm in a forum about politics, I like myself too much to get stuck in a 2 year presidential campaign. I'll worry about them when my caucus gets closer. I have no concerns about an active and motivated base unless they nominate another Hillary Clinton. As long as they don't **** up the primary again, only independents and moderates will really matter in the general election and they're not really tuned in yet. As an example, almost everything I could find about O'Rourke's poems was published by The Washington Examiner, The Daily Caller, and Politico. The average casual American voter isn't reading that stuff. Oh, O'Rourke also obviously triggered Tucker Carlson because Carlson seems to have had a virtual obsession with O'Rourke for a while.
 
Nalu said:
That's not new. Trump's been a media whore for his entire life. He just really turned up the volume during his birther insanity and after he descended the escalator.

As far as the Democrats go, even though I'm in a forum about politics, I like myself too much to get stuck in a 2 year presidential campaign. I'll worry about them when my caucus gets closer. I have no concerns about an active and motivated base unless they nominate another Hillary Clinton. As long as they don't **** up the primary again, only independents and moderates will really matter in the general election and they're not really tuned in yet. As an example, almost everything I could find about O'Rourke's poems was published by The Washington Examiner, The Daily Caller, and Politico. The average casual American voter isn't reading that stuff. Oh, O'Rourke also obviously triggered Tucker Carlson because Carlson seems to have had a virtual obsession with O'Rourke for a while.
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To be entirely fair, Beto's antics made for entertaining news. Too many TMI moments--his trip to the dentist, the dirt-eating.....
 
nota bene said:
To be entirely fair, Beto's antics made for entertaining news. Too many TMI moments--his trip to the dentist, the dirt-eating.....
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Not gonna lie. I am entertained by this thread. Thanks, Beto.

I remember the dentist visit and thought that was strange at the time. It also, to me, seemed like a very transparent and forced attempt at using social media to appeal to his target demographic. I'm a millennial (not the bad kind, I swear) and at least half of my Instagram and Facebook feeds were pictures of food, gym selfies, and check ins at whatever hipster hot spot before I started blocking people. I think O'Rourke wanted to tap into millennials' fascination with the mundane and the "look at me doing stuff" culture, but he should have hired someone who steered him away from his gaping mouth under bright lights.

I had to look up the dirt thing. I have east Asian and Pacific Islander roots, so regenerative dirt doesn't really phase me personally. An American politician should know better, though, than to talk about it in public. Gabbard's into some unorthodox (by American standards) stuff too, but she has the self awareness not to mention it.
 
Nalu said:
Not gonna lie. I am entertained by this thread. Thanks, Beto.

I remember the dentist visit and thought that was strange at the time. It also, to me, seemed like a very transparent and forced attempt at using social media to appeal to his target demographic. I'm a millennial (not the bad kind, I swear) and at least half of my Instagram and Facebook feeds were pictures of food, gym selfies, and check ins at whatever hipster hot spot before I started blocking people. I think O'Rourke wanted to tap into millennials' fascination with the mundane and the "look at me doing stuff" culture, but he should have hired someone who steered him away from his gaping mouth under bright lights.
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I know what you mean about the hipster stuff and think you nailed it about "millennials' fascination with the mundane and the "look at me doing stuff" culture." I'll bet you're right.

Nalu said:
I had to look up the dirt thing. I have east Asian and Pacific Islander roots, so regenerative dirt doesn't really phase me personally. An American politician should know better, though, than to talk about it in public. Gabbard's into some unorthodox (by American standards) stuff too, but she has the self awareness not to mention it.
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Dirt-eating doesn't necessarily faze me either, but there are some things that need not be broadcast. The difference, I think, between Gabbard and O'Rourke is that she's authentic.
 
dcsports said:
That is awesome! One of the emerging leaders of the Democrat party folks!
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Anyone that ever thought that needs professional counselling.
 
Jay59 said:
Anyone that ever thought that needs professional counselling.
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Tell Willie Nelson.

No, don't. Willie is a national treasure, and I love him. Besides, he was a supporter of Kinky Friedman, and so was I. ;)
 
nota bene said:
Tell Willie Nelson. No, don't. Willie is a national treasure, and I love him. Besides, he was a supporter of Kinky Friedman, and so was I. ;)
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Hell, Willie's local. That doesn't mean he's entirely sane.
 
Jay59 said:
Hell, Willie's local. That doesn't mean he's entirely sane.
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Nope, it doesn't. If Kinky had won, he'd have been his energy czar. Can you imagine?!
 
Nalu said:
I always expected him to burn out in some sort of Howard Dean lapse in normalcy, but he was able to avoid that with his comments about firearms.
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The Dean Scream. YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEARGH!!!
 
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