Beto Than Advertised: Has everyone been a little too hard on O'Rourke?

[Indygram]

Incredible article about Beto located at link. It is far too long and expansive to limit to only 4 paragraphs which apparently is required due to copyright. Thank you to whichever person reported the post for the violation. Bless your heart.

https://thebulwark.com/beto-than-advertised/

[bluewater]

1. There are lots more debates coming

From the OP:

"There is nothing dearer to the media than shaping the narrative of a presidential campaign—and finding a new storyline when the last one grows stale. It would be a form of rough justice if the same mentality that has put O’Rourke down helps him rise again."

So true!

[Indygram]

2. The article includes a lot more than I put in the excerpt

but the article is so true. The national media reporting does not even remotely match the reality on the ground. In the end their dismissiveness will just make Beto a better, stronger candidate...but as a Beto supporter...I know they are being very, very dishonest in their coverage of him. They haven't turned me off to Beto but they have led me to no longer trust their reporting as being truthful. Since Beto livestreams everything his supporters know when the press lies about him. It happens more often than it doesn't.

[dalton99a]

3. The anti-Beto fervor/schadenfreude is bizarre

If he’s so inconsequential, why the constant calls for him to get out and stay in Texas?

[crazytown]

7. Why the constant calls to withdraw?

That is something I have wondered about too. The negative coverage ramped up into overdrive from the moment he announced, culminating, IMO, in the most disgracefully dishonest coverage of his climate change announcement.

[Indygram]

11. A right wing PAC created a bogus attack Ad against him before he even got in

Attacking him from the left with propaganda nonsense. Much of it has been repeated here.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

17. Maybe because he primary'd a Democratic incumbent while talking about cutting social security.

[Indygram]

18. He doesn't favor cutting social security, that is dishonest

eom

[Hassin Bin Sober]

66. He should probably take this off his own YouTube channel

[hurl]

37. Many want him to run for Senate instead

They think he should withdraw so he can run for John Cornyn's senate seat, in the hopes that he would have a better chance than he had against Cruz.

Sure, we need every Senate seat we can get, but Cornyn will be harder to beat because he isn't loathed the same way Cruz is. Also, we have a great Senate candidate already in MJ Hegar, but she doesn't have Beto's name recognition here... So maybe they have a point? Not sure.

[brooklynite]

56. Because if you ARE going to run for Senate...

better to start now.

(Nb. MJ Hegar has already approached me for support, more likely to get it than O’Rourke)

[thesquanderer]

4. 95% of what I know about him is from the debate.

And I don't see anything "special" about him except he's a nice looking guy. I mean, if his words and delivery were unchanged except he looked like John Delaney, he'd have about as much appeal as John Delaney... who I actually thought was better in the debate than Beto.

[Indygram]

5. Beto just isn't a rude jerk and he doesn't attack fellow Democrats

The moderation in the second half was better than the first, which is what the problem was.

Everyone I have seen who gives him an honest look comes away loving him even if they support someone else.

[thesquanderer]

9. I had an open mind... the debate made me switch to Warren. Beto didn't impress me, sorry.

And it wasn't just me. Please see my post here and the replies people posted to it.

[DesertRat]

10. The polls also show that it wasn't just you. nt

[crazytown]

6. Beto turned down April 22 CNN Sanders Warren Harris ButtigiegKlobuchar

Town halls for young voters in NH. Yes it was a deliberate strategy but the wrong one.

[comradebillyboy]

8. IMHO Beto is suffering from a poor media strategy.

The country is too big to try to reach everyone personally.

[gldstwmn]

12. I like Beto but he hasn't exactly lit a fire under people in his presidential campaign.

Last edited Tue Jul 2, 2019, 03:43 PM - Edit history (1)

[dalton99a]

14. Not many people came out to vote for him in Texas

Last edited Tue Jul 2, 2019, 10:18 PM - Edit history (1)

[liskddksil]

16. Please tell me you're being sarcastic right? nt

[Indygram]

20. Yeah, over 4 million people are just nothing at all

Texans were not inspired at all.

[Skittles]

29. you have ZERO clue what you are talking about

[Indygram]

31. They are being sarcastic, lol

They like Beto a lot.

[Skittles]

33. well OK

strange way to go about it though

[Indygram]

19. Yes he has

I NEVER donate money to politicians, yet he inspires me to donate at least 5 or 6 times so far.

[essadaw]

13. K&R

K&r

[JI7]

15. it's a lot of jealous men. the beto hate comes from many men

who excused and continue to make excuses for Trump. sexist types that excused the misogyny against Hillary.

[Indygram]

21. To be perfectly honest, as someone not blinded by loyalty to either party/being an Independent

Beto is the only one on the Democratic side who I feel 100% confident will win. The least controversial candidate who is progressive enough to appeal to the left while not being too extreme on the issues that scare the hell out of moderates. He has the least baggage and the broadest appeal once people actually listen to/hear him. The media loves to report on Trump and I really think they want him re-elected for that reason.

[Celerity]

23. I would agree but would add (not that all of these have a chance) Klobuchar, Bullock, Inslee, Bennet

and Pete (although his racial issues going on with the SBPD are going to be hard to overcome atm, although I think if anyone can do it, it is him, but maybe it takes another cycle or two.)

Outrageous that Bullock, a goddamn 2 term incumbent very charismatic Democratic governor in a red state, who rammed so much good legislation trough even with a Rethug legislature, was excluded from the debates so far.

[Indygram]

24. Bullock should have gotten in earlier and I think he would be doing better

As for Mayor Pete, the race issue is going to hurt him no matter how well he does or doesn't handle it. That's just the nature of the polarized beast. My other concern with Pete is that right now the religious right doesn't have as much motivation to get out and vote as they did last time. The child abuse and kidnapping and cruelty on the border is softening at least some of that support. If he is the nominee they will go utterly ape-shit and claw their way over hot coals mixed with shards of glass to vote for Trump to ensure that a same sex couple don't move into the White House. I just think there is way too much at risk right now to chance that. He's still very young and he can run again when the orange skid mark and his band of enabling traitors are brought to justice. We will be fighting against right wing lunatics, racists nazis/white nationalists, sexists, other hate mongers and the worst religious zealots...and Russian interference. It's already an uphill battle and Democrats have GOT to nominate someone who can bring both the moderate and progressive Democrats/voters together to unite against Trump and his Hate Brigade. If the nominee is too far left or stirs up a lot of discomfort on the right then Trump is going to be re-elected.

I'm sure this post will annoy some of his supporters and that is not my intent. I don't oppose him or dislike him. I just don't want to take any risks at helping Trump, there is too much at stake.

[Celerity]

26. Bullock didnt have much of a choice,Montana's legislature meets for a very short time every odd year

The Montana Constitution dictates that the legislature meet in regular session for no longer than 90 days in each odd-numbered year.

He would have had to semi-abandon his duties as it was only in session from January 7th, 2019 to April 29th, 2019.

https://leg.mt.gov/content/sessions/66th/2019sessioncalendar4-19.pdf

Bullock announced 2 weeks after it ended.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/05/14/politics/steve-bullock-president-2020/index.html

[Skittles]

30. I agree

and watching the squabbling among the contenders is sickening

[UniteFightBack]

22. I like him and I like his positive attitude. I'm not sure he can take on rump though. nt

[Indygram]

25. He's actually perfect to go up against a Narcissist like Trump

No one is going to "win" in a back and forth pissing contest with Trump. All that does is distract from the issues people care about and ultimately leads to voters getting disgusted with everyone. Then they don't vote. Trump is counting on that. Democrats have to resist the urge to give it to him.

Does that mean ignoring the issues? No. You address the issues vigorously WITHOUT engaging Trump....at all. Narcissists crave and need "supply." That is why Trump is always picking fights and stirring the pot...that is his comfort zone and where he thrives. The Democratic nominee MUST starve Trump of the supply he craves by completely ignoring Trump and make everything about the issues. Don't allow distractions and stay focused on the message and bringing it to the people.

Democrats desperately want Trump to be punished and to pay and be beat. They can ONLY beat him by doing what I just described. Beto is PERFECT for that because that is exactly how he does things. He will call Trump out when necessary but he will NOT get defensive and reactionary.

[Merlot]

27. Agree with your points, Beto would be the best foil to trumpft

My feeling is that Biden will fall into the trumpft trap. Beto would probably win over more moderates and independents. I'm keeping an eye on Beto, he's my dark horse. He did dissapoint in the debate, but he can come back from that. He should also be doing more media, he may ramp up as things get closer.

[Indygram]

34. I don't think he did bad at the debate...the moderators in the first half did bad at the debate

They allowed interruptions without allowing rebuttals. Beto is not running against anyone...he is running FOR America. He's not going to attack Democrats because they are all on the same team.

[jcgoldie]

55. I think his style and strategy doesn't lend itself to a "debate" like that one...

...especially one with 10 people on the stage in which you get 30 -45 second responses to create soundbites. You simply cannot begin every response with an analogy in that format. Part of it is his style of speaking and part of it is his strategy of debate prep. I hope the 2nd of those changes before the next round.

[Skittles]

32. just his height alone would drive Trump NUTS

[RLG]

28. I think far too many people have been "hard on Beto".

He has progressive stands and I truly think de Blasio and Castro going after him without him being able to fight back was not helpful.

If he were as glib as Buttigieg, then the MSM would be creaming over him.

And to those who think he should run for the Senate seat, please stop. M.J. Hegar is running. Plus, even if he did run for the Senate, the GOP would be ready for him.

[customerserviceguy]

35. Yeah, he's a great guy, yada, yada

But he's not tough enough for this race, and it's showing in his declining poll numbers. Even Castro ate his lunch last Thursday. And the flaky stuff, live streaming a dental hygienist appointment, watching his barber cut off his ear hair, and eating "special" dirt, well, that doesn't get a lot of people to take him seriously.

[True Dough]

39. Marianne Williamson

likes his chakra. Whatever that means.

[customerserviceguy]

43. She and Beto

were in different debates, had they been in the same one, he would have looked marginally better. His numbers are heading for her territory.

[True Dough]

48. Oooooouuuch!!!

I hope no Beto supporters read your post!

[Indygram]

42. Agreed...wasn't the "dirt" part of a religious pilgrimage site?

And the "dirt" is considered holy with healing properties and is "sprinkled" into or onto something to be injested in minute quantites?

The attacks on him like this are so ridiculous. And yeah, I see a lot of the right wing and Russian troll nonsense posted to social media pop up on this forum. It's very foolish to think that this site hasn't been infiltrated as well, just like many other places have been. I wonder if the admins can see where people are posting from.

[customerserviceguy]

65. What you perceive as attacks

are valid criticisms of his campaign. We've got to get down to a serious few, and while I thought at one time that O'Rourke might have been in that smaller number, based on his polling from months ago, it is clear to me that his flaws as a campaigner are becoming evident. Don't believe me, believe poll after poll this week, O'Rourke's gone down in all of them, and by amounts more than the margin of error.

That's the universal answer, when someone says something I don't like, they must be a Russian troll.

[customerserviceguy]

44. Just because I don't eat dirt

doesn't make me a MAGA supporter.

Of course, he didn't need to punch Castro in the face, but he should have fought back verbally, and effectively. He didn't do that, and all of this week's polls show that he did poorly. For a further definition of what I mean by "tough enough" see this post:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1287&pid=186106

[Indygram]

47. We get it...you don't like Beto

For someone who dislikes him so much you sure do spend an awful lot of time on threads I start making dismissive and negative posts that are clearly made to try to instigate a negative reaction.

I'm putting you on ignore after this post and I highly recommend that any other Beto supporter do the same. Bye felicia...

[cwydro]

52. Lol.

[dlk]

36. After the First Debate, Nicole Wallace Commented on the Pervasive Media Snark Toward Beto

This post explains it.

[LakeArenal]

38. Beto needs more experience.

He’s going to be around awhile.

For me, a bit over zealous and effusive.

But a great motivator and speaker.

[RLG]

41. More "experience"?

The man is 47 years old. He was a city councilman and a congressman. He ran for the Senate when the Castro twins were too chicken to run.

[LakeArenal]

72. Well, I never said Castro Twins have enough experience.. Especially to be president.....

He is over zealous.. Apparently his experience hasn't covered that. Geez.. All our candidates are fine Democrats... It is nit picky to have a favorite. It comes down to personal thoughts and opinion.. That's mine.. Yours is yours.

[customerserviceguy]

45. He needs to win an election

in an area larger than a Congressional district. It's true that Pete Buttigieg hasn't won anything more than the mayor's race in a modest sized American city, but he brings a certain gravitas to this election that not too many of the other contenders can match.

[dalton99a]

46. Buttigieg received a total of 8,515 votes in his most recent election. Beto: 4,045,632 votes.

Did the mayor ever try to flip the state of Indiana?

Did he solve South Bend's problems using his gravitas? Nope. Eight years, and he still "couldn't get it done."

[customerserviceguy]

67. And that may be Buttigieg's undoing

At first, I figured he was just making a vanity run at the presidency, but the more I heard him, the more I felt that his intellect could really make him an effective leader. He seems to be able to avoid demonizing people whenever possible, which is important if we're not going to split into two nations after Trump is out of office.

I give him credit for honestly admitting that he "couldn't get it done", rather than weasel out of it like most politicians do with denial or shifting blame. I used to live in northwestern Indiana, and getting black people and white people to trust each other is a task paled only by the Israel-Palestine situation.

[cwydro]

49. Lol, what an article...and what a sentence:

“ Perhaps that his relentless recourse to social media exposes him to the infinity of derision that metastasizes within.”

Talk about your purple prose.

[Indygram]

50. If you dislike Beto so much

as you clearly do...then why do you feel the need to go on every thread about him and make negative posts? It would be one thing if these posts actually contributed to a discussion...but they are just snarky drive by posts. If you don't like my posts about Beto, then by all means block me and then you won't have to see them anymore.

[cwydro]

51. My comment had nothing to do with Beto.

I was referring to the writer.

I don’t block anyone. Perhaps you should block me because I’ll post where and what I want.

Your devotion to Beto is endearing.

[Indygram]

53. Bless your heart

eom

[cwydro]

57. Why so thin-skinned about your candidate? Sanders' supporters get 100 times more abuse here.

They seem to be able to handle it. Biden folks are taking a lot of crap, so are Harris’ supporters.
I don’t seem them putting everyone on ignore. Lighten up, Francis.

Perhaps those of us who point out Beto’s shortcomings are hitting a little too close to the nerve?

[DesertRat]

58. +1

[cwydro]

59. Lol, it's kind of amusing.

[DesertRat]

60. Being blindly devoted to a candidate is what we can see in the MAGAt's

It's kind of amusing, but not very healthy. None of our candidates are perfect. They're just humans interviewing for a job!

The best we can do is make reasoned choice and be prepared to move on to support another Dem. if our first choice doesn't make it through the primaries.

[cwydro]

61. Well said.

I’ve got quite a few first choices!

[Indygram]

63. Bless your heart

Love your adherence to the Civility section of the TOS.

[cwydro]

70. ...

So, no answer?

[Indygram]

74. Bless your heart

eom

[Indygram]

62. Bless your heart

Love your adherence to the Civility section of the TOS.

[customerserviceguy]

69. You hit the nail on the head with that one

Thinning the herd during the primary process involves people feeling hurt because their expectations were dashed on the rocks. Now, few of Marianne Williamson's or Andrew Yang's supporters had really high hopes that their candidate would break through, but the O'Rourke fans thought of him as the Second Coming.

Yes, Biden supporters are disappointed from last week's debate, but their candidate is still at the top of the polls. Buttigieg supporters are dismayed that the shooting in South Bend has taken the wind out of their candidate's sails, but they are buoyed by his second quarter fundraising numbers. Of course, Harris and Warren supporters are jubilant right now, but when the two of them face off eventually, one or both sides made become disappointed.

O'Rourke is the first mid-tier candidate to be facing early elimination, and it's tough for them.

[cwydro]

71. She's blessed my heart three times now.

One was a complete duplicate lol.

[Tipperary]

75. You should feel very blessed.

[cwydro]

76. Oh my goodness, I do feel blessed.

I’m from the south lol, that person doesn’t really understand how to wield that phrase as an insult.

All good, and lots of lulz.

[customerserviceguy]

77. Hint

Down South, that's the polite way of saying FU.

Just in case anyone reading this thread was wondering.

[jcgoldie]

54. I still like Beto

And I still think immigration is his signature issue. I would like to see him rise in the polls and be competitive because I think he can be a great candidate even though I'm a strong Warren supporter and my 2nd choice is Harris at this moment in time.

[StarfishSaver]

64. I think.he was damaged by the over-the-top pre-launch buikd-up that portrayed him as

the second coming of RFK. Hard to live up to that kind of hype.

[LakeArenal]

73. Exactly.

[jalan48]

68. He's positioning himself to be a leading Centrist in future elections.

[DesertRat]

78. The Bulwark is a "conservative site unafraid to take on Trump"

The editor-in-chief is "never Trump" Republican Charlie Sykes. They seem to offer a variety of opinions, but I would take with a huge grain of salt anything written by Republicans, even those who don't support DT.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/01/04/media/weekly-standard-the-bulwark/index.html

[Indygram]

79. So having an appeal to moderate Republicans and Independents is only important if it applies to

someone other than Beto, then.

Gotcha.