AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — President Donald Trump is again attacking Texas Democratic Senate hopeful Beto O’Rourke ahead of his Houston rally supporting incumbent Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.
The president tweeted Friday, “Beto O’Rourke is a total lightweight compared to Ted Cruz, and he comes nowhere near representing the values and desires” of Texans. Trump added: “He will never be allowed to turn Texas into Venezuela!”
That came two days removed from the president tweeting that O’Rourke was a “flake” after the Democrat used a debate to appropriate the “Lyin’ Ted” nickname Trump hung on Cruz when they were bitter rivals during the 2016 Republican presidential primaries.
Polls show O’Rourke staying within 10 points of Cruz in deep-red Texas.
Trump’s Monday evening event with Cruz in Houston is designed to keep O’Rourke from pulling the upset.