WHOA: Jim Geraghty’s long tweetstorm on Beto O’Rourke ends with a surprise presidential twist
This is a long, but very good tweetstorm that dives into Beto O’Rourke’s background and his rise in politics. We’ll warn you now that there’s a twist at the end which we were not expecting. In short, do not discount Beto’s chances in 2020.
Pull up a chair, dear readers, and listen to the tale of the Texan who overcome youthful misbehavior, including drinking too heavily and getting behind the wheel, to rise to the top of national politics. nationalreview.com/the-morning-jo…
Young adulthood was a surprisingly difficult time for a young man who grew up with so many advantages; too much partying, a sense of prolonged adolescence, hitting rock bottom with run-ins with the law after drinking too much and getting behind the wheel.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
Years later, people would ask if the family connections spared him the worst possible legal consequences of his reckless behavior in his younger years.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
But he met a woman from a good family, who works in education, and marriage and parenthood brought maturity and stability to his life — the bottle stopped becoming such an issue in his life.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
He eventually tried his hand at entrepreneurship, swearing he never wanted to be a politician like his father. bit.ly/2UNKRTL
But when an opportunity in Texas politics appeared, he took it, out-hustling a Democratic incumbent who had been far too confident about the voters’ mood on Election Day.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
Rivals and critics in both parties saw him as a servant of his donors, mixing business and government, capable of making a backroom real-estate deal sound like a public service aimed to help everyone.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
He talked a good game about controlling spending and reducing the size of government, but his instinct that government had a duty to help people usually won out in budget fights.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
He believed immigration brought great benefits to America, and that illegal immigrants should be treated with dignity and respect — and an opportunity to become a citizen if they had avoided serious legal trouble.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
His rivals saw a lightweight, coasting on charm and charisma and good humor, with limited serious thought about difficult issues. bit.ly/2UNKRTL
His wife was a great asset, although she had never been a huge fan of his political ambitions. She worried about how her husband’s political life would affect their children.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
The Texan was elected in a good year for his party and managed to get reelected in a year when the national winds were against his party. The national media descended upon Texas, writing about him and asking whether he was the future of the party.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
Surprisingly early in his political career, he chose to run for president. Despite having only been in a major office for six years, the Texan’s party saw great potential in him, and responded with a wave of donations.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
His boring vice president was regularly trotted out to tout the president’s virtues, and most members of the president’s party echoed his claims that the work of the special counsel was a partisan witch hunt.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
The Texan pledged he could restore America’s sense of pride. On the stump, he rarely went deep into policy specifics. He preferred to emphasize that we were better than the flaws of the president, and that honor and dignity could return to the Oval Office.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
He wasn’t always the most eloquent, and sometimes he mangled his message. But a lot of the people who came to hear him speak came away convinced his heart was in the right place and he could restore their optimism in America’s future.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
A lot of fans of both men will absolutely hate the comparison. But the parallels are there: successful dads, youthful troubles with alcohol, maturing through marriage and fatherhood, charisma on the stump and critics calling each one an empty suit.bit.ly/2UNKRTL
