Beto O'Rourke used a two-day swing through South Carolina to introduce himself to black voters, a crucial primary constituency.
But he is now running in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary, and instead of facing one seemingly vulnerable Republican, O’Rourke is competing against several candidatesof their potential path to victory, particularly Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kamala Harris of California, both of whom are black.
O’Rourke told reporters Friday that he made a mistake in voting for the “Thin Blue Line Act," legislationwhich would have added the killing or targeting of police officers, firefighters and first responders to the list of aggravating factors in federal death penalty cases. O’Rourke’s 2017 vote broke with the majority of his fellow Democrats in the House, and came just two months after announcing his bid against Cruz.
Democratic candidates like Harris and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., have embraced the idea of reparations for black Americans affected by slavery. But O’Rourke doesn’t call for reparations — saying that American society needs to understand the historical context for modern racism, and directly address current racist systems.
O’Rourke’s answer was extensive, calling slavery part of “the most foundational issue for this country," which was"literally built on the backs of slaves, those who were brought here in bondage from other countries against their will.
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