Race For U.S. Senate Seat From Texas Heats Up As Ted Cruz Challenger Throws Hat In Ring

AUSTIN, TX — The race for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Ted Cruz is heating up — at least in the realm of political rhetoric — with dueling announcements on Friday from the incumbent's camp and an El Paso state congressman hoping to unseat him next year.

U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke, a Democrat, officially launched his campaign for U.S. Senate on Friday, making his plans to run for the seat official. Until now, he had hinted strongly that he would be trying to unseat Cruz, a former presidential candidate for the Republican party whose trajectory was fueled by a strong Tea Party base of support.

O'Rourke live streamed on Facebook his formal announcement of throwing his hat in the ring for the U.S. Senate seat from his El Paso hometown.

In a subsequent statement, O'Rourke outlined the reasons why he's running to unseat Cruz by focusing on the topical issue of immigration yielding an ideological chasm between both men. He's also launched a website for donations with a "Texas Deserves Better" slogan.

"There's an opportunity to do better for Texas and better for this country," O'Rourke said. "To move past the anxiety and fear, the walls and the refugee bans, and strongly and confidently work together on bringing this state and this country together on jobs, on improving our immigration laws, and on ensuring that we have a Senator working full time for Texas."

Prior to his campaign kickoff, O'Rourke launched a series of meet-and-greet session with constituents this weekend. One stop in Austin is scheduled this Saturday (April 1) at the Scholz Garden, 1607 San Jacinto Blvd. O'Rourke also plans stops in Dallas, Houston and Waco.

The same day of O'Rourke's announcement, Cruz returned the volley via social media asking for support from his constituents. "A liberal Democrat is announcing a campaign today to try to turn Texas blue," he alerted his followers. "Stand with us to #KeepTexasRed." Cruz concurrently sent out a call for donations from his followers.

In a statement to would-be donors to his campaign, Cruz spoke of his own mission in more general terms — freedom, for example, was cited as a personal goal to safeguard — than the specificity of O'Rourke's inspiration to run for the now-contested seat.

"In the Senate, I will continue fighting for jobs, freedom, and security for 27 million Texans and all Americans across this great country," Cruz wrote. "When conservatives are united, we are far more effective -- by standing together the conservative movement remains strong and vibrant."

He inferred a pejorative in again alluding to a "liberal" agenda and also referenced his ultimately unsuccessful run for president in his call for campaign cash.

"Our presidential campaign was only as successful as it was because people like you stood side-by-side with me every step of the way," Cruz wrote. "And if I'm going to stand against the liberal agenda of Washington insiders -- I need you as the fight for our shared conservative values continues."

Cruz enlisted the help of a GOP heavyweight in gaining the endorsement of Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday.

"“Since Ted Cruz was elected to the U.S. Senate, he has done everything he said he’d do for Texans, and more," Abbott said in a prepared statement. "From opposing gun control legislation, leading the effort to increase border security, and now spearheading the charge to confirm a constitutionalist to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court, Ted is a fighter who is getting things done for Texas."

Abbott alluded to the general election that saw the rise of Donald Trump, who won the Electoral Vote while losing the popular vote to rival Hillary Clinton by some 3 million ballots: "Voters overwhelmingly rejected Democrat policies in 2016, and I’m confident Texans will continue that streak in 2018.”

An attorney, Cruz has served as the junior U.S. Senator from Texas since 2013. Most recently, he was a candidate for the Republican nomination for President of the United States in the 2016 election. He graduated from Princeton University in 1992 and from Harvard Law School three years later. Before becoming a U.S. Senator, he held several government posts from 1999 to 2003, including a stint as directgor of the Office of Policy Planning at the Federal Trade Commission; as associate deputy attorney general at the U.S. Department of Justice; and as a domestic policy adviser on the 2000 presidential campaign of George W. Bush.

O'Rourke represents the Texas 16th congressional district, a post he secured in 2012 after defeating then-incumbent Rep. Silvestre Reyes in the Democratic primary. Prior to his election to Congress, O'Rourke served on the El Paso City Countil from June 2005 to June 2011. He earned a bachelor's degree in English literature from Columbia University.

>>> Ted Cruz photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr Creative Commons; Beto O'Rourke photo via State of Texas