During the 2018 Texas Senate race, Austin resident Michele Schwartz canvassed for Beto O’Rourke and opened a pop-up office for his campaign at her home. A “religious” follower of Pod Save America — a favorite podcast among liberals — the race between O’Rourke and Republican Sen. Ted Cruz presented her with an obvious choice. On Saturday, though, Schwartz turned out for a rally at Texas Southern University to hear U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris, D-California, stump to a Houston audience for the first time in her presidential campaign. Already, Schwartz, 50, has soured a bit on O’Rourke, turning instead to her preferred candidate: Harris. “I'm even less excited about him since his announcement rollout,” she said, donning a black “Kamala” hat. “I just didn't think it was very professionally done, and I think at this stage of our country, we need a candidate who can have the right people behind him and supporting him, or her … because they're going to throw everything they can at this candidate.” Hardly a week into his campaign, O’Rourke’s prospects in the nascent 2020 Democratic presidential primary may depend on the loyalty of his Texas base at the polls next March, 16 months after his narrow loss to Cruz. Now with a menu of alternatives, including Democrats who are not white men and those who have embraced the party’s progressive policy planks with greater enthusiasm than O’Rourke, voters are considering candidates such as Harris, who sees an opening in the country’s third most delegate-rich state. At Harris’ rally, some of the same Democrats who embraced O’Rourke for his slapdash campaign style and freewheeling rhetoric indicated they may be looking for something else in a presidential candidate. “I would rather have seen Beto run for Senate against (Republican Sen. John) Cornyn,” said Houston resident Robert Tomlinson, 77. “He would have had a better chance. That doesn't mean that he's not going to possibly win the race, the nomination for the presidency. But it's a lot different when you're running against the most hated senator in the nation, and then you've got to run against a lot of people who have a lot of similar ideas." Tomlinson could do without O’Rourke’s propensity for dropping f-bombs during stump speeches, he added, because presidential candidates should be held to “a higher standard.” Harris, speaking at TSU’s recreational center Saturday afternoon in front of signs proclaiming “This is Harris County,” reprised her campaign theme of “speaking truth,” using the phrase to tee up a stump speech that touched on climate change, gun control and the economic struggles of the middle class. Her early policy platform includes a proposal that would provide tax credits to poor and middle-income families. “One of the most important ingredients in trust is truth,” Harris told the crowd of about 2,400, according to her campaign’s estimate. “So let’s speak some truth, Harris County.” Though Harris did not touch on the news Friday that special counsel Robert Mueller had finished his Trump-Russia investigation, she did briefly unveil a plan to ramp up federal investment in teacher pay, pledging to close the pay gap between public teachers and “similar professionals with college degrees” by the end of her first term. “The vast majority of us have so much more to come,” Harris said. Notably, she took the stage to a rousing introduction from Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis, who endorsed Harris on the spot while defending her prosecutorial record. Though some progressives have critiqued Harris for being overly tough on crime as the San Francisco district attorney and California attorney general, Ellis said, “I know she's gonna fight for criminal justice reform.” Others in attendance included U.S. Reps. Sylvia Garcia and Sheila Jackson Lee, both Democrats of Houston. Harris also met Saturday with a group of female African-American judges elected to Harris County benches in the November midterms. It was Ellis’ introduction, though, that drew attention due to his record of staunch criminal justice advocacy. "She was a career prosecutor, but she was a thoughtful prosecutor,” Ellis said of Harris. Some attendees were undeterred by reports of Harris’ less-than-progressive prosecutorial record, including Kelly Broussard, a Harris County attorney who named criminal justice reform as a top issue and said Harris is “learning as she’s on the campaign trail” about what voters want. “I know she has received a lot of flack, a lot of backlash about that,” said Broussard, 43. “But as a prosecutor, I think people don't understand that her position is not that of judge and jury. She's there to prosecute serious crimes.” Meanwhile, the prevalence of O’Rourke voters here who are now contemplating a Harris presidency underscored the challenge for both candidates. In some ways, they are courting a similar base of voters, said Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston. “Both have more conservative-moderate records and are moving in a more progressive direction,” Rottinghaus said. “That, in a nutshell, is where Texas is. It has a long history of having conservative Democrats, who now find themselves in the same party as some very progressive Democrats.” Where Harris may have the edge over O’Rourke, Rottinghaus said, is in her ability to draw Latino voters — a group among which O’Rourke notably underperformed in the 2018 Democratic primary. For that demographic, Harris also will find herself competing in Texas with presidential candidate Julián Castro, the former San Antonio mayor and Housing and Urban Development secretary. Castro’s self-acknowledged underdog campaign relies heavily on winning Texas, Rottinghaus said, and his path to victory becomes heavily clouded if non-Texas candidates continue to aggressively pursue delegates here. “I think he had hoped to have Texas to himself. That would have been a delegate goldmine,” Rottinghaus said. “He really needed Texas.” Before Houston, Harris stopped Friday evening in Grapevine, where she fielded questions from Tarrant County Democratic Party Chair Deborah Peoples. At both Texas stops, Harris did not appear to mention O’Rourke or address the question of how aggressively she plans to pursue delegates here. “The more the merrier,” Harris said on MSNBC when asked earlier this month about O’Rourke’s candidacy.<doc-sep>“I know what people are going to say after today: ‘How is she going to pay for it?’ ” Harris said. “People in the private sector have understood that if you want to be smart in the way you run anything, you understand that you can invest. You understand that your analysis is not how much does it cost; the question is, what is the return on the investment?”<doc-sep>Beto O’Rourke’s second rally of his big kickoff day will be in Houston, Texas. Read on for all the details about the rally that is starting this evening. RALLY TIME: The Houston, Texas rally will take place at 5 p.m. Central (6 p.m. Eastern). The Facebook page is here and you can RSVP for free tickets here. So far 2,300 have RSVP’d on Facebook and about 8,300 have expressed interest. RALLY LOCATION: The rally will be held at Texas Southern University on 3100 Cleburne Street in Houston, 77004. Participants are asked to enter at 4401 Ennis Street, then walk down TSU Tiger Walk to the rally. Here’s a map of where you’re supposed to enter for the rally: An interesting note is that O’Rourke’s rally today is in the same location as Kamala Harris’s rally last week — the Recreation and Wellness Center at 3100 Celburne St. About 2,500 people attended Harris’ rally. Here’s a map of the rally’s location. RALLY GUESTS: Students from TSU in Houston will be speaking at the rally today. O’Rourke also has two additional rallies happening today. One is in Austin at 9 p.m. Central and one is in El Paso at 10 a.m. MT (12 p.m. Central.) After finishing his stint in Texas, O’Rourke will then be heading back to Iowa this coming week, Des Moines Register reported. He’ll spend four days in Iowa next week starting Wednesday. On Wednesday evening he’ll be in Ames and he’ll spend all day April 6 in Des Moines. He will also be making stops in Carroll, Denison, Sioux City, Storm Lake, Fort Dodge, Marshalltown, Grinnell, and Iowa City. If you can’t attend O’Rourke’s rally in person, there are at least 1,000 live stream parties happening all across the nation. Many of these are scheduled to take place during the El Paso rally. Just go here to find a live stream party near you. You can stay updated on Beto O’Rourke news written by this article’s author by joining the email list here and choosing the Beto category.<doc-sep>Former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon reportedly told a conservative Italian group that he believes a presidential ticket with former Rep. Beto O'Rourke Beto O'RourkeO'Rourke considering Texas governor bid: report O'Rourke clarifies remarks, leaves door open to gubernatorial bid O'Rourke says he's not planning on run for Texas governor MORE (D-Texas) and Sen. Kamala Harris Kamala HarrisBiden, Bass press for police reform after meeting Floyd family Biden, Harris condemn surge in antisemitic incidents Mexican president: FAA safety downgrade meant to benefit US carriers MORE (D-Calif.) is the most challenging that President Trump Donald TrumpTrump lashes out after grand jury seated for New York criminal probe Schumer tees up vote on Jan. 6 commission bill Senators struggle to save Jan. 6 commission MORE could face in 2020. “Beto on the ticket with Harris is the most dangerous ticket for Trump,” Bannon said, according to the Daily Beast. Both Harris and O'Rourke are among a crowded Democratic field vying for the chance to take on Trump. ADVERTISEMENT “But don’t forget, the vampire is still alive: Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonHillary Clinton takes on conspiracy theories on Borat special Top general: Russia, China will look to expand influence in Middle East as US pulls back We have a chance to halt climate change if we stop destroying carbon sinks and cut methane MORE,” Bannon added. The 2016 Democratic presidential nominee has said she is not running again this cycle. O'Rourke launched his campaign last week and raised more money on his first day than any other candidate so far. He and Harris are facing off against several other prominent politicians including Sens. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersSenate competitiveness bill includes B authorization for Bezos space company Sanders wants government to get 'piece' of US semiconductor companies in exchange for aid Poll: 51 percent oppose Sanders-led resolution to block weapons sales to Israel MORE (I-Vt.), Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenOn The Money: Biden administration launches trade dispute against Canadian dairy industry | Warren urges Biden to replace Fed's Quarles Warren urges Biden to replace Fed's Quarles in testy exchange Warren offers bill to increase IRS budget to .5 billion MORE (D-Mass.) and Cory Booker Cory BookerBiden, Bass press for police reform after meeting Floyd family Bipartisan group of lawmakers reintroduces bill to give inmates Medicaid access Bass: 'Essential' for police reform bill to address qualified immunity MORE (D-N.J.) Bannon had a top position on Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and also served in the White House until the summer of 2017. He has also worked as the executive chairman of the far-right website Breitbart News.<doc-sep>
"This is going to be very, very very tough" for Democrats, Former White House strategist Steve Bannon said about winning the 2020 presidential election. | AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis 2020 Elections Steve Bannon predicts Harris-Beto ticket has 'best shot' at beating Trump Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon on Friday claimed a Kamala Harris-Beto O'Rourke ticket has the "best shot" against President Donald Trump in the 2020 elections, but he also contended that the president will likely win reelection. "I think the best they're going to have, and I don't think these people will defeat him, I think a combination ... of [Kamala] Harris for president and Beto O'Rourke for VP is a way to mobilize their base and give it the best shot," Bannon said during an interview on CNBC's "Squawk Box." The Democratic primary field is one of the largest and most diverse, and it includes a number of big-name Democrats such as Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, in addition to Harris and O'Rourke. Former Vice President Joe Biden has also been weighing a bid, and is at the top of recent polls despite not having officially announced his campaign. Trump praised Harris' rollout when she first announced her candidacy. The president, however, bashed O'Rourke's hand movements, claiming he looked crazy. Bannon also claimed that if there is not a clear candidate that has "broken out of the pack, and looks like they can pull and take on Trump one-on-one" by fall 2019, Democrats may have to bring on the president's former rival: Hillary Clinton. "People should not count her out," he said. "She's going to be sitting in the bullpen waiting for the call." In addition, Bannon said Trump is already taking down candidates, such as Warren. The president has repeatedly verbally attacked Warren and nicknamed her "Pocahontas," after she claimed to be part Native American. "She's probably got some of the most well-formed policy positions, particularly in comparison to some of the other candidates on the left," Bannon said. "He's basically blown her up already. She's in single digits, and I don't think she'll break out." "This is going to be very, very very tough" for Democrats, Bannon said.