Live coverage: Cruz faces O’Rourke in Texas debate showdown

SAN ANTONIO — Sen. Ted Cruz (R) and Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D) face off in a debate on Tuesday night as a hotly contested Texas race enters its final stretch.

The debate is likely to be the last face-to-face showdown between the two, with only three weeks left in a Senate election that has captivated the nation.  

{mosads}O’Rourke raised a jaw-dropping $38.1 million between July and September, a record haul, but the congressman is lagging behind Cruz in the polls in a deep-red state that has not elected a Democrat statewide since 1994.

Follow along for live updates of the hourlong debate set to begin at 9 p.m. Eastern.

Closing arguments: ‘Inspiration’ vs ‘Choices’

10:09 p.m.

In his closing remarks, O’Rourke said the country is in desperate need of “inspiration” and hope during a time of bitter partisan divisions. 

9:55 p.m. 

Toward the end of the hourlong debate, the moderator asked the candidates to speak about something they’ve been doing that doesn’t relate to politics.

Cruz gave a long pause and then gave an emotional answer about not being around enough for his children. He noted how he wasn’t able to attend his daughter’s game because he had to be in Washington to vote on the tax bill.

“I will say the hardest thing about being in this job is being a dad,” Cruz said.

O’Rourke reiterated a lot of Cruz’s answer, saying that it also “resonates” with him since he has three young children.

He said that when they get to spend time, they turn up the amplifier and “rock out.”

— Lisa Hagen

Cruz slams O’Rourke for not supporting Hurricane Harvey emergency tax relief 

9:53 p.m.

Cruz re-upped his attacks on O’Rourke for voting against a bill that induced tax breaks for storm victims, saying the El Paso congressman wanted to focus on undocumented immigrants rather than Hurricane Harvey victims. 

Cruz said O’Rourke was just one of four Texas Democrats to vote “no” on a bill he authored alongside Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) that improved and expanded emergency tax relief for those affected by the tropical storm. 

“He said it didn’t provide enough tax relief — that’s not what he said at the time he voted no,” Cruz said. “He said the reason he voted no is he said he wanted to focus on illegal immigrants rather than hurricane relief.” 

But, in his rebuttal, O’Rourke stood by his vote. 

The El Paso congressman said local leaders and officials still have not received the funding they need to start rebuilding the devastated area, arguing that Texans need a senator who is going to be around to make sure the money gets to local communities. 

“They need a full-time senator, who will not be running for president,” O’Rourke said.

— Tess Bonn

Cruz bemoans “left wing mob”

9:50 p.m. 

Asked about civility in politics, Cruz said the “anger” on the “far left” is frightening. 

Debate moderator calls out Cruz over deficit, tax cuts

9:45 p.m. 

Cruz touted his support for the GOP’s tax law, while also talking about the need for paying down the deficit and debt.

He called the growing deficit and debt “immoral,” but said it wasn’t due to the tax cuts passed late last year.

One of the moderators cut in to note past comments from Cruz when he was on the presidential campaign trail in 2016: “Respectfully, Sen. Cruz, in Iowa you talked about how bad the deficit is.”

When asked if the tax law balloons the deficit and debt, Cruz responded, “No, it wouldn’t. That projection is wrong.”

Cruz went on to say that the reason for those things is because Congress keeps spending, adding that the government can manage “out of control spending” by imposing things like congressional term limits.

— Lisa Hagen

Cruz says he opposes trade tariffs

9:38 p.m. 

Cruz said he has repeatedly made the case against tariffs to President Trump. 

“O’Rourke supports Bernie Sanders’s socialized medicine,” Cruz said, adding that it would “triple your taxes.”

The GOP senator said relying on a system like that would lead to long wait times and the costs would be “immense.”

O’Rourke said that he thinks there are different ways of getting to affordable, universal health care, including Medicare for all, expanding Medicaid and “the ability for people to pay into Medicare.”

“All you hear from Sen. Cruz is what we should be afraid of,” O’Rourke said, pointing to Cruz previously shutting down the government, “perhaps because too many people had health care.”

“I want people to have more health care, make sure we lead on an issue we understand better than anyone else.”

— Lisa Hagen

Cruz attacks O’Rourke on oil tax 

9:33 p.m. 

Cruz says O’Rourke has cast votes on energy and oil legislation that is “really harmful” to the people of Texas. 

“Far too many Democrats approach this issue not as a matter of science,” he said, but instead “they approach it as a matter of government power.”

“They want the power to control the economy. That has let, for example, Congressman O’Rourke to cast some votes that I think are really harmful to the people of Texas.”

Cruz claims O’Rourke voted in favor of a $10 a barrel tax on every barrel of oil produced in the state, which he says would have a “devastating” impact on the local economy, which O’Rourke later denied. 

— Tess Bonn

Immigration becomes point of contention

9:25 p.m. 

O’Rourke said building a wall between the U.S. and Mexico will do nothing to solve the nation’s immigration issues.

“No wall is going to solve legitimate security issues, but smart policy will,” he said, noting that he introduced a bill with Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) that would invest more money in ports of entry into the U.S.

Cruz said he’s “led the fight to secure the border and building the wall.” 

“Let me say there’s no race in this country where there is a starker divide on immigration,” he said. 

— Jessie Hellmann

Cruz said “We will see” when asked about whether the Supreme Court should overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark ruling that legalized abortion, following the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

“He voted against safeguarding the integrity of our ballot box,” O’Rourke said in response to the first question of the night. “Our junior senator won’t stand up to President Trump.”

O’Rourke said he believed there can be “thoughtful regulations” on social media companies, drawing a stark contrast with Cruz, who said there shouldn’t be online regulations.

Meanwhile, Cruz criticized big media companies like Facebook, accusing them of “political bias” against conservatives.

“I believe in First Amendment, we shouldn’t be regulating content online,” Cruz said. “That being said, I’m very concerned about the political bias of big tech skewing and silencing conservatives.”

— Lisa Hagen

Stage set for second face-off

8:50 p.m. 

In about 10 minutes, Cruz and O’Rourke will take the stage in their second debate, which will be focused on both domestic and foreign policy.

Tuesday night’s debate is being held in San Antonio and is hosted by KENS 5. This debate will be a more intimate setting than the first one in Dallas, with a smaller audience of 120 people.

But expect the same fireworks between the candidates in the high-stakes showdown.

— Lisa Hagen