Beto O'Rourke's Mother Has This to Say About Her Son's White House Ambitions

EL PASO - Melissa O'Rourke, a businesswoman who tilts Republican, said she "rarely, rarely" gives advice to her son Beto O'Rourke. But like most mothers, she can't help but offer some unsolicited tips as the second round of Democratic primary debates nears: He should "get to the point quicker," "be more concise" on his answers. He should button up his coat.And, more broadly as the campaign nears the critical fall season, continue to ease up on the "live-streaming;" His Instagram broadcast of his own dental cleaning lead, in great part, to a nationwide groan. "Maybe he shouldn't be so open about everything. Like, the biggest mistake to me was when I heard he was at the dentist's office," she said. "All he wanted to talk about was the hygienist and her story, but that obviously didn't come through."His poll numbers are falling, raising money is getting harder, and his rock star power is dimming. Yet as the person who arguably knows O'Rourke the best, she insists it's too early to write him off. She's seen her son face adversity before, like dealing with the death of his father, Pat, in a bike accident. Or most recently being blindsided by his opponent Julian Castro, who in the first Democratic primary debate sternly accused him of not doing his homework on immigration.Throughout his life, his mother said O'Rourke has followed a pattern when facing hardships: Take a step back at first, assess the situation carefully, and then push forward with renewed resiliency, focus and determination. She says this routine is a trademark of his own familial upbringing in this underdog border city, which "always recharges him, nourishes him" with renewed energy."So he doesn't make every decision correctly, but 99% of the time he does. I think he learned from that and moved on, and that's what he does. He learns from mistakes and moves forward."  Continue reading...