Member-only story
Beto O'Rourke Exits the Race: Democrats Breathe Sigh of Relief
Rising stars of the Democratic Party, like NFL first-draft picks, don’t always pan out. Just ask former congressional Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas or former congressional Rep. Katie Hill of California; the more meteoric the rise, the harder and faster the fall.
In our modern age of lightning-fast information, lie or truth has the power to go around the world so fast it would make Winston Churchill’s head spin.
The tides of fortune can turn that quickly in a race for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. Just ask also-ran Howard Dean, whose ill-timed display of unbridled emotion at a political rally played just badly enough in the media to take him out of the race.
Dean’s campaign never recovered from that one embarrassing moment. It was a simpler time, when a single misspeak, a single moment, could cost a candidate or campaign everything.
Society isn’t as far removed today from such superficial snap judgements, though some political figures and celebrities seem strangely immune to such concerns or challenges.
The political campaign of Beto O’Rourke was not equipped as so.
Fewer candidates entered the race for the Democratic nomination with such promise. In deep blue Texas, O’Rourke had…