Presidential hopeful Beto O’Rourke says it is a fundamental “right” for individuals to live near their place of employment and that wealthy Americans should “be forced” to live among the poor.
“Living close to work shouldn’t be a luxury for the rich. It’s a right for everyone,” the former Texas congressman tweeted Monday evening.
The Democrat’s tweet also included a video further explaining his position.
“Here’s the tough thing to talk about, though we must. Rich people are gonna have to allow — or be forced to allow — lower-income people to live near them, which is what we fail to do in this country right now,” Mr. O’Rourke says in the campaign clip.
Mr. O’Rourke then claims lower-income Americans must drive “one, two, three hours in either direction to get to their jobs, very often minimum wage jobs, so they’re working two or three of them right now.”
The candidate offers high-speed rail and transit as an initiative to “make sure that if you do not have a car, do not want to use a car you will not need to have one, or you will not be penalized for not having one right now.”
Timothy Meads, a writer for the conservative website Townhall, blasted the alleged “right” and Mr. O’Rourke’s pitch to potential voters.
“Beto continues to show that the new platform of the left simply means free stuff,” Mr. Meads wrote Tuesday. His idea of a ’right’ is not based in natural law, but in whatever sounds good at the time.”
Living close to work shouldn’t be a luxury for the rich. It’s a right for everyone. pic.twitter.com/lohRdoFGrH
— Beto O’Rourke (@BetoORourke) September 10, 2019
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.