Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke on Wednesday brushed aside the notion that his F rating from the National Rifle Association could hurt his bid for the Senate this year, saying on CNN that Texans wonder who Sen. Ted Cruz (R.) really represents because he has taken money from the NRA.
O'Rourke, who is vying to unseat Cruz, won the Senate Democratic primary in Texas on Tuesday, the same night that Cruz won the Republican primary. The two are set to square off in the 2018 midterm elections in November.
Cruz knocked O'Rourke for not pulling in a large number of votes in the primary and for his F rating from the NRA. CNN host Alisyn Camerota asked O'Rourke in an interview how he can win in Texas, which she said has a "gun culture," with that rating.
"I think a lot of Texans are wondering who it is that Ted Cruz represents in the Senate," O'Rourke responded. "He's taken hundreds of thousands of dollars from the NRA."
O'Rourke said that Texans want stricter gun-control measures such as "comprehensive universal background checks" and that the Lone Star State should lead on gun-control legislation.
Camerota then asked O'Rourke if Texans would favor banning AR-15s and if his support for such a measure could cost him the election. O'Rourke said that implementing the ban is the "right thing" to do and indicated that he believe more Texans would favor the measure than is commonly thought.
"We can save more lives in this country and in our state, and I'm going to do everything that I can to do that," O'Rourke said. "And I think Texas wants to do that, and Texas, again, given our tradition of gun ownership and gun safety and responsibility, is in a perfect place to be able to do that."
O'Rourke has said in prior interviews that Cruz is tainted because he has received contributions from the NRA.