Big Red Car here on a gloomy Thursday morning in the ATX. Texas politics is fun in a roller derby kind of way. The race for the Texas Senate will be a barn burner though recent polling suggests Cruz is looking at a ten point victory.

For the Senate we have a faux Hispanic running against a real Hispanic who doesn’t seem Hispanic.

[At this point, please allow me to make a preemptive apology for all the offenses I have committed against good order and decency thus far and for the rest of the blog post. I am sorry.]

The debates, as agreed

There will be three debates:

 1. Friday, September 21 in Dallas (SMU) – domestic policy in a moderated format for an hour.

 2. Sunday, September 30 in Houston (University of Houston) – domestic policy in a town hall format for an hour.

 3. Tuesday, October 16 in San Antonio (studio) – half domestic policy, half foreign policy in a moderated format for an hour.

Of course, this is the result of both sides proposing earlier debates to which neither side would agree.

In one of the Dem proposals, all the debates were to be on Friday nights which would, of course, conflict with Friday Night Football, huh?

The debaters

The Dem challenger, Robert Francis O’Rourke, a nice fourth generation Irish boy from El Paso, goes by the handle of “Beto” which, of course, suggests he is Hispanic which is, of course, not true.

Bobbie has a bachelor of arts degree in English from Columbia University. He rowed at Columbia. He’s a charmer with an engaging smile and way about him. Some have attributed a bit of JFK charm to him, but that’s a stretch in my book.

He is a very conventional Dem who holds such ideas as granting citizenship to all illegal aliens currently in the country. He did tour the state in a venerable pickup truck, something which is always appreciated in challengers.

Teddy Cruz is of Cuban ancestry, but speaks very limited Spanish. He is a Princeton University grad (BA in Public Policy from the Woodrow Wilson School) and a Harvard Law School alum who Alan Dershowitz has called, “… off-the-charts brilliant.”

What Ted Cruz brings to the debates is the following:

 1. 1992 US National Debating Championship Top Speaker while at Princeton;

 2. 1992 North American Debating Championship Top Speaker while at Princeton; and,

 3. 1995 World Debating Championship semi-finalist while at Harvard.

After Teddy left Princeton the debate team named their Annual Novice Championship after him.

There are many who fear that Ted Cruz is such a zealous opponent that he will turn off the audience. Others are exploring whether there should be a mercy rule in case Bobbie begins to bleed from any orifice.

There is an interesting article about Ted Cruz when he was a college debater written by someone who is not a fan. It provides an interesting insight – Cruz was plenty good, but too full of himself.

Resolved: Ted Cruz Was His Worst Self as a Presidential Candidate

So, dear reader, there you have it.

But, hey what the Hell do I really know anyway? I’m just a Big Red Car. Be well and watch the debates, y’all. I’ll be pulling for ……….