Inside Texas Politics: Beto O’Rourke interview

EL PASO, Texas — 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 shortly grew to become clear in our dialog with O’Rourke that he’s relying on voter anger and their need for one thing completely different.

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

Republicans, together with the Governor, have accused O’Rourke of supporting abortion up till the second of beginning.  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 help, he does say he’d wish to return to the usual set underneath Roe v. Wade, that held {that a} constitutional proper to liberty additionally included a lady’s proper to terminate her being pregnant.  But the U.S. Supreme Court’s resolution 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 stated.

RELATED: Race for Texas Governor: Full interview with Governor Greg Abbott

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

Our current ballot, “Texas Decides,” a research of possible 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 identical proportion of Texans had a much less favorable view of O’Rourke as they did Governor Abbott following the tragedy, O’Rourke obtained the most important bump amongst political figures by way of favorability, with 31% viewing him in a extra optimistic mild.

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

And by way of coverage, O’Rourke reiterated his help 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,” stated 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 have 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 an alternative 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 an alternative.

“So, for example, 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 Abbott main O’Rourke by 7% (51% to 44%) amongst possible voters.  Among probably (virtually sure) voters, the lead grows to 10% (53% – 43%).  1% of voters in each classes (possible/probably) says they’ll vote for Libertarian Mark Tippetts and Green Party candidate Delilah Barrios.

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

Beto O’Rourke mentioned many different matters in our large ranging interview, together with how he would proceed the “Texas Miracle” of financial progress if he’s elected.  Listen to the Democrat’s full Inside Texas Politics interview to be taught extra.