AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - The Latest on Texas Democratic Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke’s concert with Willie Nelson (all times local):
10:30 p.m.
Texas Democratic Senate candidate Beto O’Rouke is rallying with Willie Nelson, telling thousands of supporters, “The people of the future, our kids and our grandkids, are depending on what we do at this moment.”
O’Rouke, a onetime punk rocker facing Republican Sen. Ted Cruz in November, took the stage Saturday night in Austin to cheers from many wearing T-shirts or waving signs bearing his name. The event’s slogan was “Beto for Texas. Willie for Beto.”
Nelson has long supported top Democrats and he and O’Rourke are outspoken advocates for decriminalizing marijuana.
Some Texans called for online boycotts of Nelson because of his support for O’Rourke, but the country icon has shrugged those off. He and O’Rourke also shared a stage at Nelson’s Fourth of July picnic this year in Austin.
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10:15 a.m.
There probably won’t be many undecided voters on-hand Saturday night, when Willie Nelson holds a concert for Democratic Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke.
But the El Paso congressman trying to upset Republican Sen. Ted Cruz in November says it’s not about attracting moderate or independents.
Instead, it’s the latest example of O’Rourke moving to the left in contrast to tight, red-state Senate races around the country, where Democrats often try not to act like ones.
O’Rourke supports legalizing marijuana and single-payer health care, and is open to impeaching President Donald Trump.
That strategy also breaks with Texas Democrats who for decades tried to appeal to moderates and lost.
Some detractors have called for boycotts of Nelson - who shrugs those off, saying, “We’re not happy ’til they’re not happy.”
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