*By Carlo Versano*
Texas Democrats find themselves in an odd position two months before a major election: running a competitive statewide race.
Optimism that Rep. Beto O'Rourke could unseat Republican incumbent Ted Cruz in the Senate is palpable in Democratic circles, said Texas Monthly's politics editor Carlos Sanchez. The race is now a "toss up," according to [Real Clear Politics] (https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2018/senate/tx/texas_senate_cruz_vs_orourke-6310.html).
O'Rourke, who was elected to the U.S. House in 2013, has been surfing a wave of positive national press and an unorthodox, social-media-savvy campaign that found him traveling to all 254 counties of the deep red state and streaming his journey online.
All summer he's been gaining on Cruz who, compared to the charismatic O'Rourke, suffers from a "likability issue," Sanchez said. After all, Cruz's Republican colleague Lindsey Graham once famously [said](http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/313969-graham-to-cruz-i-want-to-apologize-to-ted-for-saying-he-should): "If you killed Ted Cruz on the floor of the Senate, and the trial was in the Senate, nobody would convict you."
Sanchez said that kind of sentiment may work in O'Rourke's favor: "The base for Cruz seems to be crumbling a bit."
But there are still challenges. While O'Rourke has out-raised Cruz by a wide margin, mostly from small-dollar donors, Cruz is better organized and allied with the powerful Koch network of donors. Sanchez said that "formidable" campaign infrastructure could pose a threat to the Democrat.
And the issue of Donald Trump looms large.
The president accepted an invitation to campaign for Cruz after Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick [reportedly](https://www.politico.com/story/2018/09/09/ted-cruz-reelection-trump-813354) pleaded with him to throw his support behind Cruz, a man he incidentally referred to as "Lyin' Ted" on the campaign trail.
Though that may end up working against the incumbent, Sanchez said. O'Rourke, who is popular with young and minority Democrat voters, needs those blocs to turn out on Election Day. A fiery Donald Trump rally weeks before may compel them to do just that.
O'Rourke "is the national Democrat of Texas right now," Sanchez said.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/republicans-go-into-crisis-mode-as-democrat-beto-orourke-closes-in-on-ted-cruz-in-texas-senate-race).
Regulators in Colorado have to keep up with and adapt to a fast-growing, ever-changing industry which consistently introduces new products into the market. "It is a challenge, but the engagement we have with stakeholders has been really valuable in helping us navigate those issues," says Dominique Mendiola, recently-appointed director of marijuana coordination in the state.
President Donald Trump's ambivalence at a joint press conference with President Vladimir Putin gave the Russian leader a "get-out-of-jail-free-card" for future elections, says Joaquin Castro, Democratic Representative from Texas.
The backlash from President Trump's meeting with Russia's Vladimir Putin continued well into Tuesday, with politicians from both sides of the aisle condemning Trump. During his meeting with Putin on Monday, Trump seemed to side with the Russian President over U.S. intelligence officials on the issue of Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
Shares of Netflix tumbled after the company reported lower-than-expected subscriber growth in its quarterly earnings report on Monday. The streaming giant also missed Wall Street estimates on revenue and earnings per share.
And Jonathan Trager, CEO of Group Elephant, joins Cheddar to talk about his organization's mission to stop the poaching of elephants and rhinos in South Africa.
These are the headlines you Need2Know:
Trump Faces Bipartisan Backlash
Russian Woman Charged With Election Meddling
Hawaii's 'Lava Bomb' Injures Tourists
Deadly Fire Near Yosemite National Park Doubles
The New York attorney general candidate, who previously worked on Cynthia Nixon's campaign, plans to tackle corruption in the state. "People are really sick and tired of not having serious, on-going corruption prosecutions in New York State done by the state attorney general."
The show, which features political figures like Bernie Sanders and Trent Lott, premiered last night on Showtime. While it taps into political and social issues like gun control, popular.info’s Editor in Chief Judd Legum doesn’t know if it will significantly affect the public’s attitudes. “I don’t think this is a complete game changer, but I do think that things like this can contribute into some of the changes and attitudes on guns."
Following the president’s refusal to take a question from CNN’s Jim Acosta last week, Morgan criticized the mainstream media and the president for constantly being at each other’s throats. “I wish everyone would just take a chill pill and work a little bit better together with mutually better respect.”
During a joint press conference with Russian President Putin in Helsinki, Finland, Monday, President Trump refused to say whether he believed his own intelligence agencies about whether Russia interfered with the 2016 elections. The press conference drew criticism from Republicans and Democrats back at home.
These are the headlines you Need2Know:
*President Trump meets with Russian President Putin in Helsinki, Finland, days after the indictment of 12 Russian operatives for trying to disrupt the 2016 election.
*A federal judge blasts the HHS giving them one more week to reunite 2,000 families at the border after the administration missed the initial deadline.
*Protests erupted in Chicago over the weekend after a popular barber was shot and killed by the police.
*Novak Djokovic and Angelique Kerber won Wimbledon titles over the weekend. And France took home the World Cup.
Cheddar's Hope King gives us the details.
Before his private meeting with Russian President VladimirPutin, President Trump tweeted that the U.S.-Russia relationship has taken a hit because of the federal investigation into election interference, which Trump says is a "Rigged Witch Hunt!" Trump also labeled the EU as "foes" of the United States over the weekend, further alienating allies that he has been criticizing for the past week. Cheddar's J.D. Durkin brings us the latest from Helsinki, Finland.
