O'Rourke defends Cruz after protesters heckle senator at restaurant

[left-of-center2012]

Source: The Hill

Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas) on Tuesday defended Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) after the senator and his wife were swarmed by protesters during dinner at a Washington, D.C., restaurant the night before.

"Not right that Senator Cruz and his wife Heidi were surrounded and forced to leave a restaurant last night because of protesters. The Cruz family should be treated with respect," O'Rourke tweeted.

O'Rourke is attempting to unseat Cruz in November's Senate election. A RealClearPolitics average of polls in the race shows Cruz with a 4.5 percentage point lead in the race.

Protesters approached Cruz and his wife and heckled him over his views of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who is under scrutiny after two women came forward to accuse him of sexual misconduct.
"We believe survivors,” the crowd chanted, as shown on video posted on social media.


Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/house/408251-orourke-defends-cruz-after-protesters-heckle-senator-at-restaurant

---

Link to tweet

[SWBTATTReg]

1. Cruz has got to be burning up inside after O'Rourke stood up for him...funny thing, I guarantee...

you that Cruz wouldn't do the same thing for O'Rourke.

[Honeycombe8]

6. I don't think so.

Cruz may be thinking..."sucker." Or he may be resentful of O'Rourke stealing Cruz's sympathetic day of headlines. I'm not so sure that being nice is a key characteristic of election winners. But it did take some of the attention from Cruz and direct it toward himself, which would be a savvy thing to do, politically. The last thing he wants is sympathy for Cruz among the voters.

[yellowdogintexas]

15. absolutely true nt

[berksdem]

32. +1

[TommyCelt]

2. Class act...

Whether O'Rourke wins or not, this is going to be a guy to watch.

[yellowdogintexas]

13. Damn Straight!

Regardless of outcome I can imagine him as the keynote speaker at the 2020 National Convention.

Like Ann Richards. Barbara Jordan. Julian Castro.

I think he will win. I am hoping he pulls tickets along with him all over the State. There are some tight races that his presence at the top of the ticket can help flip.

IF all these people who show up and put up signs get to the polls and vote.

I personally ask every under 35 yr old person I meet "are you registered to vote?" If yes, then "Well you are going to vote in November, right?" I usually wear something identifiable as Democratic gear, so if I get a big smile and a "Yes" I feel pretty good about it.

Turning a state which consistently is in the 48th- 50th percentage in turnout into a true voting state is going to be hard but we are really trying! I think Democrats and leftleaning Independents have been depressed for so long because 'no candidates' that they gave up. Those who did vote, would vote for any third party over a Republican if we did not have a candidate for that office. I have done that myself. I also skipped every unopposed Republican. Now I have someone to vote for in all those spots

[SWBTATTReg]

17. Way to go, yellowdogintexas (I love the name)! A lot of us in your fellow states have the ...

same conditions, red all over, etc. but slowly we are making inroads, and pointing out the differences between blue and red, healthcare or not, more income or not, live or die. Take care.

[MBS]

45. + 100

And bravo for spreading the word to those Millenials-and-younger.

[MBS]

44. Agreed!!

He's going to win, though. As long as people get themselves to the polls, and as long as the vote is conducted counted fairly (two big ifs), I'm convinced that he's going to pull this off.

[HopeAgain]

3. Smart

Many Texans are fearful people and a little civil disorder scares them, bless their little hearts...

[Firestorm49]

12. Love the last four words. Well said.

[H2O Man]

4. Recommended.

[left-of-center2012]

5. I noticed ...

When Cruz was being chased out of the restaurant he started out, with his wife still at the table.
When his exit was blocked by the demonstrators,
he turned around and put her in front of him as a shield.

[LandOfHopeAndDreams]

11. Quit Acting Like She's Innocent Just Because She's A Woman

I'm getting tired of people saying how bad they feel for these spouses, who are STANDING BY THEIR MEN 100%. They are as complicit in this as their husbands.

[left-of-center2012]

25. You totally misrepresented my post

I said he was hiding behind her.

Here's a link to "reading comprehension".

https://www.k5learning.com/reading-comprehension-worksheets

[violetpastille]

38. Yes.

Heidi Cruz can take care of Heidi Cruz.

(Those Cruz kids on the other hand...anyone who uses their daughter as a human shield, Kavanaughishly...just..argh!)

[LisaM]

52. Actually, unless I'm remembering wrong, didn't Heidi Cruz suffer from mental illness?

I don't think she's invulnerable, in other words.

[karynnj]

29. Interesting observation

He also is kowtowing to Trump who defamed her. It would seem the natural thing to do was to suggest leaving to her, both to stand up and leave with his arm around her. It should be mentioned that this did not seem to be violent or with a threat of bodily harm - even as it was harrassment.

[True Dough]

36. You're right

Trump got awfully personal with Cruz and his family members. It shows how desperate Ted is to remain in power that he's accepting the endorsement of the presidential turd.

[FakeNoose]

41. His wife needs to learn how to order carry out

... and get it delivered to their house. Just sayin'

The way I envision this scenario, Cruz says "Whoops honey, let's get out of here. I'll go get the car and you stay at the table until I bring it up to the curb." Then he gets halfway to the door and can't get past the protesters, so he goes back to his wife. "Come on honey, it's not safe here. We're all leaving together. I'll walk you and the girls out."

Then he walks behind his wife and daughters to the door, like a big man.

[lamp_shade]

7. CLASS

[Dopers_Greed]

8. I bet Cruz will try to use this against Beto somehow

He'll try to claim that they were protesters paid by George Soros and the far left

[yellowdogintexas]

16. LOL If Rafael only knew how behind Soros is in payroll

Soros must have one really stupid accountant.

#StillWaitingForMyPaymentFromFirstWomensMarch

[NastyRiffraff]

47. I know I didn't get my check from Soros

Come on, George, pay up! After all I did for you.

[7962]

57. YOU MEAN WE GET CHECKS??????? dammit.

[ck4829]

9. Must be nice that Cruz gets to eat in a restaurant, I haven't eaten out in over a year and a half

But hey, the Dow's doing great, and that's what matters.

[getagrip_already]

19. not only do they get to eat in restaurants...

In DC, Senators get preferential seating. They usually don't need to make reservations more than a day or two ahead of time, and sometimes not even that far.

Also, many restaurants will give them the best tables, and comp a good portion of their meals, including drinks.

Just one of the many perks of the job.

[Jake Stern]

24. I recall a story about the mayor of the town I lived in

He ate for free at the restaurant his buddy owned. However after becoming mayor he insisted on paying because he felt it was unseemly for an elected official to accept free meals.

Restaurants can offer comps but it's up to officials to say "no".

[getagrip_already]

30. true, but how many will?

These guys probably eat out at least 5 nights a week; and they don't eat at arby's. The gov't won't reimburse personal meals. And even for work related meals, they have a small per dium (though senators may have their own guidelines - I don't know).

So basically hundreds of dollars a week in meals. That's a big expense on a senators salary.

The temptation is certainly there. Are the ethics?

[Firestorm49]

10. That's the difference between Dems and the other party.

[Botany]

14. Class act

What a good man.

[BumRushDaShow]

18. That torpedoed a future talking point for both Carnival Cruz & Faux

quick, fast, and in a hurry!

[getagrip_already]

20. sadly, it didn't...

They will still run a story that said they reached out to beto's office for a response but heard nothing. It will be repeated over and over, no response from beto.

Even if it is called out, they will continue the lie. Eventually, they might add a "belated comment after multiple requests" to the story.

Many voters have no other source of news. They will never hear about the tweet or the timing.

Lies repeated often enough become truth. It's faux's motto.

[BumRushDaShow]

35. Sure they'll still run the story

and their version will be believed by their 30% hardcore scum base. But Beto's remarks were not for them or even for Carnival. They were for the benefit of his own party and any independents out there (along with an GOPers who are fed up with their party and Carnival Cruz) who claim they want more "decorum" from Congress members.

[7962]

58. "Carnival Cruz"!!!!!! Wish I had thought of that one.. nt

[BumRushDaShow]

59. I saw that term used here on DU and thought it fit perfectly!

[aeromanKC]

21. The Devil is not welcome anywhere!!

Cruz is the Devil

[KPN]

23. +1!

[KPN]

22. Ummm ... this was about Kavanaugh, not O'Rourke/the election. While O'Rourke is basically

right, I have absolutely no problem with protestors harassing every single Senator (R or D) who supports Kavanaugh given this illegitimate presidency, Kavanaugh's legal/political positions, and the accusations against him.

Get real folks. We are at war here. Nice folks don't typically win wars by being nice folks.

To be entirely honest, I'm not sure Beto didn't actually shift his vote balance negatively by making this statement. Hopefully, he didn't, but we will really never know.

[The Liberal Lion]

26. And herein lies the problem with your average democratic officeholder/candidate for office

instead of going for the jugular and finishing the job, we liberals and progressives always find a way to comfort our enemies who suffered merely a paper cut from our attacks. We need to be going in and snapping their necks and giving them the (political) death they deserve. No mercy, and no compromise. Why should the Cruz family be treated with respect? I see no grounds for this conclusion. Democrats, liberals, progressives, PLEEZE put some steel in your backs, straighten your knees and quit trying to find a way to surrender and sing kumbayah with our mortal enemies. Make no mistake, a republican is your enemy, these are no longer merely political opponents.

[NoMoreRepugs]

28. This.

[TheMastersNemesis]

31. I Agree. Though O'Rourke Made A Good Move Here. Cruz & Family Can Be Taken To Task In Other Ways.

I believe that GOP Senators should be hounded and stalked all over the country mercilessly. As a group they side with he Russians and want to destroy everything this country stands for. In some other countries they would be running for their lives literally. For some reason we won't attack them directly on their racism and bigotry.

[hibbing]

27. I like it and I love him n/t

[SammyWinstonJack]

33. Respect is earned and Lying Cruz hasn't earned any respect.

[Butterflylady]

46. Exactly

You have to give respect to get respect.

[Pepsidog]

34. This treatment should be given to the Murdoch clan. No peace for Fox... Fox ruined the country

[cstanleytech]

40. No, Fox is just one of the nails the ultra wealthy used to force their beliefs on our country.

[Pepsidog]

49. You are correct but gotta start somewhere and Fox and sycophants like Hannity have huge audiences.

[Yavin4]

37. Cruz should take a lesson from Beton on how to stand up for your family

Unlike what Cruz did when Trump attacked his family.

[cstanleytech]

39. You need return it to others as well if you want it but if you

do not expect it to be given and do not whine about it because you will have brought it on yourself.

[PaulX2]

42. Let The Monsters Eat - When I Get Elected And Go To Congress I Don't Want Evangelical Cult Scum

Surrounding my table and screaming "baby killer, baby killer, baby killer" when I go out to eat at a restaurant.

Just sayyin....

[Jedi Guy]

48. Agreed.

All's fair in love, war, and politics. When the tables are turned and Democratic officials get harassed while out in public, I wonder how many people here will support their right to protest. Turnabout is fair play, after all.

[louis c]

43. Freedom of Speech. the Right to Petition the Government and the Right to Peaceably Assemble

First Amendment.

Fuck Cruz

[Hekate]

50. Classy

[llmart]

51. I think it was a smart move by Beto.

It may get some Independents to get off the fence if they are still waivering on who to vote for.

[Paladin]

53. Shrewd move by Beto.

If the tables were turned, you can bet Cruz wouldn't be able to find it in himself to be that gracious.

[saidsimplesimon]

54. Beto is acting like a winner.

He understands that down and dirty Ted is not well loved, even in Texas. He is giving Democrats a reason to show up at the polls. I think he is saying he will not get down in the pig pen with such a despicable man.

He is showing real skills using "The Art of War". Beto is going high for every low blow. He will not lose a single vote over this tweet and may gain a few, imo. NOW all we must do is help Texas get Democrats to the polls. imo

[tazkcmo]

55. Dear soon to be Seen Beto

Respect is earned. Cruz is running a deficit.

[7962]

56. He is right. And he shows more class than Cruz saying it. This stuff really shouldn't happen.

Would TOTALLY blow my mind if Cruz thanked him, but I doubt we'll see that.
Just wait till the Democrats regain the White House & Congress (its coming); the trumpees will start doing the SAME THING and everyone here will be aghast.
If what I saw in the video happened to me, I'm pretty sure my girlfriend would pepper spray the lot of them before I could blink.