Midterms might be long over, but Betomania is still burning hot. Beto O’Rourke is still a darling among actors, comedians, other Democrats, and anyone (read: journalists) who thinks skateboarding, playing punk rock and fleeing the scene of a DWI accident makes for a compelling political resume. Cries of “Beto for Senate” have effortlessly transformed into “Beto 2020,” and many odds sites suggest he is near the top for the blue nomination.
The ongoing hype continues with The Hollywood Reporter, which on Dec. 11 revealed the dream 2020 presidential tickets of the showbiz industry females profiled in its “2018 Women in Entertainment Power 100” list. Unsurprisingly, the probe showed almost uniform agreement among the women -- not just for a Democratic ticket in general, but largely for Mr. O’Rourke himself also.
Victoria Alonso, Executive VP of Physical and Postproduction at Marvel Studios, suggested “A version of Kamala Harris and Beto O’Rourke. Or Beto and Kamala.” A&E’s Executive VP and Head of Programming Elaine Frontain Bryant floated “Beto O’Rourke and a strong woman, maybe Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren or Amy Klobuchar.” How ironic -- two women suggesting that females with actual political experience might have to take a back seat to O’Rourke’s cult of personality in 2020. All told, the Texan received 13 mentions from the women surveyed compared to Harris’ 9, Michelle Obama’s 4, and Warren’s 4.
So why are the ladies of the Hollywood left still so stuck on Beto, even to the point that they will overlook extensively more qualified minority women? Kevin Williamson of National Review offered a compelling reason last month: snobbery. In his words: “he is … who progressives are and who they want to be: a rich white liberal with political power, from a family of rich white liberals with political power.”
