August 12-18: A New Push

Since the events in El Paso, O’Rourke has completely shifted the focus of his campaign.
What was previously filled with a little bit of everything; climate action, the economy, world
affairs, and gun control, has now entered a smaller sphere of focus, gun control. This past week,
Beto has spoken at a variety of protests against gun violence, and his social media has
highlighted that. O’Rourke writes on Instagram that “We will end this epidemic.” This shows
one of his main tactics, utilizing hope rather than fear. This sets him apart from the rest of the
candidates, who focus on aggression and fear to motivate people into voting for them, regardless
of political party; each side believes there is something in America to fear. O’Rourke sees that
too, of course, as his Twitter is still filled with comments on the prevalent racism in America, but
he backs it up with ways that ​we​ can help, not just him. This makes him seem more personable,
as if he isn’t just in it to win the election, he’s in it to stir up change regardless. Whether or not
that’s true is up for debate, but it’s one strategy that he uses to make himself fit in more with the
common people, which is a prevailing message of his campaign; that he loves to get to know his
supporters. This week on Twitter and Instagram, O’Rourke proved this yet again, by sending a
hopeful message to a supporter getting hip surgery, “Kate, you’ve got this.” He also shared a
video of him surprising a supporter as she moved into her new home. The comments on this post
were very mixed, however, as O’Rourke is often criticized for not focusing enough on his actual
agenda. One thing is for sure though, he makes it clear exactly how he feels about gun control.