Beto O'Rourke drops out of 2020 race

Source: Politico | November 1, 2019 | David Siders

The announcement came as candidates gathered in Des Moines for events over the weekend.

Beto O’Rourke abandoned his flagging presidential campaign Friday, writing that it is “clear to me now that this campaign does not have the means to move forward successfully.”

The former Texas congressman had been lagging for months in single digits in public opinion polls and was at risk of not qualifying for the November debate.

“Our campaign has been about seeing clearly, speaking honestly and acting decisively in the best interests of America,” O’Rourke wrote on Medium. “Though it is difficult to accept, it is clear to me now that this campaign does not have the means to move forward successfully.”

The announcement came as candidates gathered in Des Moines for events over the weekend. Supporters and staffers waiting for him at a pre-dinner rally saw the occasion turn into a wake. Staffers in Iowa were stunned by the news, with some having no advance warning.

“This is not what I thought would happen here tonight,“ said one supporter to another, as a light drizzle fell.

But inside O’Rourke’s campaign, disquiet surrounding his poll numbers — and more importantly, his fundraising — had been growing for weeks, and some staffers were already testing the waters for a possible jump to other campaigns.

It was a far cry from the beginning of O’Rourke’s mercurial run, which kicked off amid tremendous fanfare in March. Massive crowds followed him from VFW halls to bar rooms throughout Iowa, and his first 24 hours of fundraising — $6.1 million — was sufficiently staggering to suggest a deep run.

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  • Consistent November 1, 2019 at 6:58 pm #33111

    EVERYDAY November 1, 2019 at 8:50 pm #33114

    Robert was doomed when he said, as president, he would confiscate firearms. That might have played well in his old congressional district, but nationally, not even Democrats liked the idea. And I suppose it translated into fewer campaign donations.

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