Gov. Greg Abbott vs. Beto O’Rourke: 1-on-1 interviews with each

DALLAS — While there is probably not one other gubernatorial debate earlier than the election, Y’all-itics has you lined.

In an indication of simply how aggressive the race has turn into, Gov. Greg Abbott and Beto O’Rourke each agreed to one-on-one interviews with Y’all-itics as we strategy the beginning of early voting. And simply the willingness of the state’s prime two candidates to talk to us at size within the closing weeks is just not misplaced on us.

So, even when you suppose you could have your thoughts made up within the race for Texas governor, hear them out. We requested them pointed questions. They answered some. And they tried to dodge others.

Watch each interviews beneath, adopted by the total recaps:

As Gov. Greg Abbott seeks to persuade voters to ship him again to Austin for a 3rd time period, the Republican can rattle off an extended checklist of main conservative accomplishments throughout his tenure, from permitting Texans to hold firearms with out a allow to a whole ban on abortion.  

And each points are enjoying an outsized function within the race for governor and the Republican incumbent lately sat down for a one-on-one interview with Jason Whitely to debate them and lots of others.

At least one distinguished conservative, state Sen. Robert Nichols, lately mentioned he would vote so as to add an exception for rape to Texas’ abortion legislation.

The governor wouldn’t reply particularly whether or not he’d assist a future exception for rape or incest, however he did inform us one thing that should be addressed is defining what it means to protect a mother’s life.

“And there’s been too many allegations that have been made about ways in which the lives of the mother are not being protected, and so, that must be clarified,” Abbott mentioned on Inside Texas Politics.  “We want to see if there are ways that we can make sure that the lives of both the mother and the baby can be protected.  That’s our focus.”

Abbott particularly talked about docs not caring for some girls with ectopic pregnancies and a few circumstances of miscarriage. But he says remedies for each are authorized below the state’s abortion legislation. 

Our skyrocketing property taxes and what will be completed to deliver them down is one other topic taking on a number of oxygen on the marketing campaign path.

Abbott says lawmakers have added properly over $10 billion in extra funding for faculties since 2019. That, he claims, has helped to barely decrease the varsity portion of the tax fee in counties all through the state. 

But that’s not been the case in Tarrant County typically and Fort Worth ISD specifically. 

That district informed us that the state contributed 45% of the funding the district wanted to function in 2015. By 2020, the district says that determine had dropped to 30%. And for this 12 months, the determine is 27%.

When we requested him if the funding components will ever get again to parity, the place the state gives half and property house owners present half, the governor informed us his final purpose is to remove the upkeep and operation part of the varsity district property tax invoice.

He says he would accomplish this by means of a property tax discount fund that already exists within the state of Texas. 

“Any time we have any session where we have any surplus, I want to continue to put money into that fund to reduce property taxes on an ongoing basis until that maintenance and operation component of school property taxes is completely eliminated,” Abbott mentioned.

With the present surplus we’re having fun with, as an illustration, the governor says he would use at the very least $13.5 billion of it to additional purchase down property tax charges.

The aftermath of the Uvalde bloodbath continues to tug down the governor’s approval scores. 

Our latest ballot, “Texas Decides,” a examine of doubtless Texas voters and a joint effort between the Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation (THPF) and Tegna Texas stations WFAA, KHOU, KENS and KVUE, discovered that 37% of Texans had a much less favorable view of Governor Abbott after the tragedy.  33% mentioned they’d a much less favorable view of the Texas Department of Public Safety, which had 91 troopers on scene that day.

We asked the governor if he would hearth Steve McCraw, the company’s director.

“Any hiring or firing decision will be based upon the evidence.  And we’ve got to get to the evidence, get to the bottom of exactly what happened to see who is accountable and why they did wrong,” Abbott informed us.

 As Beto O’Rourke seeks to persuade voters to ship him to Austin as governor, the Democrat is having fun with some momentum heading into the ultimate weeks earlier than the election, together with document fundraising and single digit polls.

The points within the race for governor are acquainted, from abortion to gun management, property taxes to the border.  And the Democrat lately sat down for a one-on-one interview with Jason Whitely to debate them and lots of others.

It rapidly turned clear in our dialog with O’Rourke that he’s relying on voter anger and their want for one thing totally different.

“People in Texas now want to vote for change and something better,” O’Rourke mentioned on Inside Texas Politics.

Republicans, together with the governor, have accused O’Rourke of supporting abortion up till the second of delivery. But the Democrat tells us it’s merely not true and is simply part of the continuing GOP technique to scare folks.

While O’Rourke wouldn’t inform us particularly what restrictions he would assist, he does say he’d wish to return to the usual set below Roe v. Wade, that held {that a} constitutional proper to liberty additionally included a girl’s proper to terminate her being pregnant. But the U.S. Supreme Court’s choice in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturned Roe earlier this 12 months.

“My position on reproductive healthcare freedom, which is that every woman should be able to make her own decision about her own body, her own future, her own healthcare, that is supported by the vast majority of our fellow Texans, including Republicans in this state,” O’Rourke mentioned.

The aftermath of the Uvalde bloodbath continues to play a major function on the marketing campaign path as properly.

Our latest ballot, “Texas Decides,” a examine of doubtless Texas voters and a joint effort between the Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation (THPF) and Tegna Texas stations WFAA, KHOU, KENS and KVUE, discovered that whereas an analogous share of Texans had a much less favorable view of O’Rourke as they did Governor Abbott following the tragedy, O’Rourke acquired the most important bump amongst political figures when it comes to favorability, with 31% viewing him in a extra constructive mild.

O’Rourke says if he had been governor, he would begin attempting to heal that group and restrict gun violence transferring ahead by calling a particular session.

And when it comes to coverage, O’Rourke reiterated his assist for common background checks, purple flag legal guidelines and elevating the minimal age to buy an assault weapon from 18 to 21.

“There is nearly universal support for those three ideas, raising the age, red flag laws, universal background check,” mentioned O’Rourke.  “Even folks who will never vote for me can agree on at least that much.”

As we sat down with O’Rourke on his entrance porch, we had been solely a dozen miles from the border.

While he tells us the Biden Administration isn’t doing sufficient to guard the border, he says nobody is.  And the Democrat calls Operation Lone Star a failure as a result of he says the $4 Billion effort hasn’t led to fewer encounters on the border, however as a substitute much more.  And O’Rourke calls the busing of migrants to cities within the northeast a political stunt.

He gave Jason Whitely an instance of what he would do as a substitute.

“So, for example,” he said, “a Texas-based guest worker program where we bring Republicans and Democrats around the table, work with our federal partners, make sure that if you want to come here and work a job in El Paso or north Texas for that matter, for which we cannot find someone born in this state who will actually do that job, that there’s safe, legal, orderly path for you to be able to come to this country.”

In phrases of the race itself, our ballot additionally discovered Governor Abbott main Democrat Beto O’Rourke by 7% (51% to 44%) amongst doubtless voters.  Among almost definitely (virtually sure) voters, the lead grows to 10% (53% – 43%).  1% of voters in each classes (doubtless/almost definitely) says they’ll vote for Libertarian Mark Tippetts and Green Party candidate Delilah Barrios.

Early voting begins October 24. The election will probably be held November 8.