Hey.
Thank you all.
Thank you.
Every single. One of you
for being with us right now. Means the world to us.
Yeah,
I love you. I love you. I love you.
I love you.
Listen. Let me, let me, let me
this may be one of the last times I get to
talk and
Front of you all and talk about talk
about this amazing thing that we have all done together
over the course of the last year, some
of you over the course of the last five years, some
of you who have the misfortune of being married to me over the last 15
years, but we’re
all together here tonight, and I just want
to begin by thanking each and every single one of you, you’ve
been so amazing.
Amazing
for us with us to us
for the duration of this. And I cannot thank you enough.
And I want to begin
by thanking my family.
My mom, Melissa, I hope is still here. Where are you? Mom,
she’s
at the bar.
Love you, Mom,
you know, for
Amy, you know, this some of you don’t but in addition just to
being an extraordinary, human being and to being my mom
and the mom of Aaron and Charlotte my two wonderful sisters
and the strongest person. I know,
we learned that that my mom had cancer,
just,
just months ago and a pretty aggressive form of cancer at
that and the whole time that we’ve been campaigning together and
she’s been pushing us and supporting us and encouraging us.
She’s been in the fight of her life. Living.
Literally and undergoing chemotherapy and treatments
in Houston and then
coming back to El Paso. But without fail,
the unconditional love, and support,
and the push that you give me day in and day out. Kept me
going throughout this. So Mom, I love you so much.
We’re all on your campaign now against this cancer
and
my sister Charlotte my sister Erin
Maximo Patrick,
this entire family Brooks, Christine
Jimmy, Jane. All the family who came in from out of town.
Love
you all so much
for Amy,
who, you know, sometimes folks will say,
it was so nice to your wife, to give you permission to do
this.
And those of you who know us and know our family, there
was no permission
And saw it. There was no permission granted. This is a decision
that you and I made together and
we did this because of the other part of our family
Ulysses and Molly and Henry, they
were continued to be the impetus for
this. We know that at
some point or other we will face their judgment for
what we do or what we fail to do at
a Moment of Truth
like this one and we wanted to
To make sure that we could come through
and when they ask us at some point down the road, what
were you up to
when, when all these terrible things were going on in Texas
and
when we still had a chance to do something
about it, we want them to know that we stood to be counted
along with so many
other extraordinary, wonderful people who are in this room
with us
tonight. So
I want to thank my family
and
those of you who
have been part of this
Campaign. You know, this
Amy has been out on her own
doing Town, Hall meetings,
conducting rallies
doing interviews on media in Spanish, and in English,
as well
block, walking everyday converting people
who’ve never voted a day in their lives. She registered someone
who was 83 years old last month, who’s voting
in the first election of her lifetime.
So, watch out
next next time you see an o’roarke on the ballot, it might just
be a me or work. Okay.
No,
I want to thank all of our friends who are here again
who have supported us
back from
running for
6th grade class, president at meseta elementary, Chris
Cummings, and others.
And everyone has been given us a push
along the way and helping out as we’ve been
in the campaign of Our Lives. I mean, we put every ounce
of effort,
every moment of time,
Have into this and you all know that
and you’ve been there for us and you’ve been there for our kids and you’ve been
there for counsel
and guidance and
even you know, Mike, Waters,
spiritual Direction and
connecting me to
the higher power in our life. And so, to my friends who
are here, thank you all
for your love and your kindness to me.
Love you all so much.
Now, let me just say something about this campaign team,
some Nick rathod, who was our campaign manager? Who is
where is Nick?
Nick, if you could raise your hand.
Also at the bar for understandable purposes. Right now,
Nick
with owed
came in
and had the courage to take on something. That
most people said by the odds
is going to be absolutely
impossible. But just like Amy. And me
thinking
about his kids
and his home,
how he’s going to answer them, how we must come through for them
at
this moment of truth. And he took the reins of this
Campaign
brought together
a truly extraordinary
team that ran
an amazing effort
in this race. I was just always struck
by
the professionalism
and the effectiveness and the efficiency
where we had to make a virtue of a necessity. Given how much
more money
the other guys had,
how much more advantages were held on the
Our side,
how tilted the balances on this field, on which we
play
right now, and he brought the best
of the best together, too many to name.
But in every Department in every Department, every
activity
that we had to undertake
a feel, so good about the folks who stepped up
and answered the call
under his Direction
and in the, in the truck, I was traveling in and I’ve been on
the road. Literally we got in the truck
here in El Paso.
So on November 15th
2021,
I mean basically stayed on the road with some exceptions back here
in El Paso
every
day
since then.
And in that truck, we had
Chris Evans and John Grote. The
also known as the hotties in the back.
For those of you who follow them on social media,
And in the copilot seat was Cynthia, Cano.
Has
just
just an extraordinary person. Every one of those events
that we have held
across the state with this amazing events team. And there’s again too many
people to name
and account but we went to wear
literally nobody else
ever goes.
We went to the places that everyone goes. We literally went
everywhere
and Cynthia. And this team
set those up connected us with those people
kept us
On time
kept us alive, kept us on the road. Got us here
to this point and so
you know
he spent a year
with a bunch of people inside the cabin of
a truck
and you know if you don’t kill each other first
you develop
a deep love and friendship and
gratitude for those who are with you, every step of the journey, every
mile of the way. So
to the team in the truck, I just want to say thank you to Chris John
Cynthia.
And
and then all of you and every every volunteer, every person
who signed up for a shift to knock on doors to make phone
calls
to write letters,
you all
were part of the most amazing effort that I have ever been a part
of
at least in my 50 years on this planet and never most amazing
effort I’ve ever seen
in the state of Texas and we’ve been part of some amazing
efforts
before but this one really
takes the cake.
Cake. And you think about where we all were,
when we all made the decision
to do this together? I mean, just the odds that we faced
for
starters
and the fact that the party in power has been in power
not
for years or Cycles but for
decades
so far
the advantages that they had in in money
and people
in the powers of incumbency in the lovers that they could pull
in the way that voter
And just being able to cast a ballot in Texas is
a lot harder than it has to be. And a lot harder for people
who might otherwise be voting for us.
And he all the challenges that we already had going
on in this state. This democracy under
attack a grid that did not work, women’s rights
to make their own decisions about their own bodies under
attack here more than anywhere else. And, you know, most
people would look at that and just say, no,
Did and came to that conclusion, but against
all that at a time, when we could be tempted to
give in, or to give up, we
all decided we all decided instead to
give it our all. And that’s what I think. Distinguishes,
us and defines us right now. Everything
that we could possibly give to this, we
gave to this and I don’t mean the candidate and I don’t mean the
staff. I mean every
Single person
who was
a part
of this campaign,
this amazing Finance team
that
though the governor had more resources and more ability to raise
resources
out, raise the sitting governor of the state of Texas 3/4.
Three
different reporting periods,
all the small-dollar, donors, all the big dollar donors,
the 95,000 plus volunteers,
who knocked on more than 5 million
doors across the state of Texas
made Millions more telephone calls
wrote, tens of thousands of letters
made these amazing banners that we saw hanging over. Freeway overpasses.
All across
the state of Texas.
You all
are amazing.
And here’s what we decided to do together.
Once in action, we realize that that action
that work that being with one another
is the absolute
antidote
to despair
or succumbing to current conditions
or the status quo. It took us across
the entire
state of Texas. It’s the only way to meet
a state this big
and this divided
to go to where people may not see eye-to-eye with us. So
you could not be to rule.
Or two Republican represented or two big or blue for that
matter,
for us to be there,
to listen to you,
to learn from you
to seek the common ground in front of us
and to find out where we could agree
and where we could work
together.
That’s what I want to see from my Texas and from my country
going forward in a state that has this level
of voter suppression.
And voter intimidation the hardest in the nation
in which to cast a ballot or to get your name on the rolls.
Registered to vote in the first place.
We made those who’ve been shut out from this democracy.
Our
priority, when I talk about those
five million doors in the millions, more phone calls made,
we were targeting those
who had themselves been
the targets for disenfranchisement
in the state of Texas bringing in
new voices that we have never heard from
boats.
That had never
been counted, the very people who should be able to decide
the outcome of this election.
Ian
and against a governor
and a state,
where there are no campaign contribution
limits,
where he started folks,
50
million
dollars ahead,
the day that we entered this race.
This team
never
gave up hundreds of thousands of people gave
whatever they could five bucks, 25 bucks, 50
bucks
and through this Finance team. They were able to get people to give a
lot more than that as well.
And then we use those
Resources
as effectively
as efficiently
as we possibly could. Knowing that we would never
be able to outspend the incumbents
are opponent. But knowing that those resources were precious
and we have to use them
to get to those doors
of those voters
who otherwise we would never hear from
in this election. In other words,
all of us
doing all we could
with what we had where we were,
wherever we were
across the state of
Texas the most awesome undertaking that I’ve
ever had the pleasure or the honor to be with
and it brings us now to this moment where
after we have described to our fellow Texans,
the choice in this election after some
truly historic failures in
this state. Over the last eight years, we offered
a vision. A Texas where every woman makes
her own decisions about her own body and her own future and
her
Healthcare
a state where children don’t have to fear going to school
and being
gunned down in their classroom and their parents,
having to identify them by the shoes
that they are wearing
or in those same schools. Teachers not having to work, two or
three jobs
to make ends meet because we treat them with nuff respect.
We pay them enough so they can focus on that most
important job in front of them,
a state where we expand Medicaid and folks
can afford to see a doctor go to a mental health.
Fill a prescription,
be healthy enough to go to school or to work, or
to raise their families, a state
where we are no longer incarcerating people,
for possession of a substance that is legal in most
of the rest of the country right now. These are things
that not just Democrats
agreed on but Republicans Independence,
our fellow Texans
from across the state
and the best way that I can put all of this
in a way that may be
any of us.
Can understand is we just want a state where people
are free enough and healthy enough
to be able to pursue their potential and rise
to fulfill their to pumice a state where
we are not defined or divided based on
our differences but find the common interest for the common
good
right here on the common ground before us. Well, that
still is the Texas that I want
to live in. That is the dream that I and I hope all of
Of us
will continue to pursue. I don’t know what form
that will take. I don’t know what my role or yours will be
going forward. But I’m in this fight
for life.
I’m in this with you.
And listen
and sing gone. That’s right, too.
They’re trying to translate that right now on the news feed
and other parts of the country.
Hey
so,
you know, who knows what’s next for any of us, right?
But
but
I just cannot thank you enough
for giving all of us who are part of this campaign,
your time,
your resources, but most importantly. Your faith
in what could be possible in this state let us never
Break
that Faith. Let us always
keep that Faith. Let us also back it up with the fight
necessary
to continue to try to win
over and over, and over again.
Until we can realize this dream,
these goals, this Texas that we want for one another
that we deserve for our kids.
And that ultimately one day, we are going to be able
to bring home.
Thank you all so much for being with us tonight. Thank you for being
part of this campaign.
Let’s talk about Esco.
We’ll see you out there. Thank you all so much.
Much. Bye. Bye.