Beto O'Rourke, a middling presidential candidate in the 2020 Democratic primary, is viewed with skepticism by a number of demographic groups, most notably dogs and women. Maybe it's because he's a bad friend.
Roll Call reports that O'Rourke is "very likely" to support the Democratic candidate who wins the nomination to challenge his friend and former colleague, Rep. Will Hurd (R., Texas). The move would represent a capitulation to partisan critics who challenged O'Rourke's decision to remain neutral during the 2018 midterms, in which Hurd won re-election by a narrow margin. O'Rourke has already said that he "will be supporting" Gina Ortiz Jones, the Democrat who ran against Hurd in 2018, should she win the party's nomination in 2020.
Hurd's district, the Texas 23rd along with border with Mexico, is next door to the district O'Rourke represented prior to his failed Senate run against Ted Cruz in 2018. The two congressmen highlighted their friendship during a live-streamed "bipartisan road trip" from San Antonio to Washington, D.C., after a snowstorm caused widespread flight cancellations along the East Coast. The pair gabbed, ate Whataburgers, and sang along to Johnny Cash on the road to the nation's capital.
O'Rourke said his position on friendship has changed because he "no longer [has] a day-to-day working relationship" with Hurd or any other members of Congress. Meanwhile, his presidential campaign continues to border on irrelevance, though he recently got a bit of good news. According to recent poll of North Carolina voters, O'Rourke is winning the support of just 3 percent of Democrats, but holds a slight edge over "Someone Else," at 2 percent.