Sean Hannity, Ted Cruz bring energy to rally to Beaumont

Fox News host Sean Hannity speaks during a campaign rally for Sen. Ted Cruz in a hangar at the Jack Brooks Regional Airport on Saturday. Cruz, a Republican, is running for re-election against Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke. Photo taken Saturday 10/20/18 Ryan Pelham/The Enterprise less Fox News host Sean Hannity speaks during a campaign rally for Sen. Ted Cruz in a hangar at the Jack Brooks Regional Airport on Saturday. Cruz, a Republican, is running for re-election against Democratic Rep. ... more Photo: Ryan Pelham/The Enterprise Photo: Ryan Pelham/The Enterprise Image 1 of / 12 Caption Close Sean Hannity, Ted Cruz bring energy to rally to Beaumont 1 / 12 Back to Gallery

More than 3,200 people flocked to a cramped hangar with a make-shift stage at Jack Brooks Regional Airport in Beaumont for the chance to see U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and radio/TV personality Sean Hannity at his 28th Texas town hall-style rally.

Cruz began his four-stop rally tour Saturday in The Woodlands, followed by two stops in Houston and ending the day in Beaumont.

“They want to go backwards into the failed policies of (former President Barack) Obama,” Hannity told a packed crowd in the ballroom of the Hilton DoubleTree hotel on East Greenway Plaza in Houston. “They are hiding what they really want to do: They want to impeach (President) Donald Trump. Beto, Bozo, wants to do it himself.”

In Beaumont, the duo was greeted by thousands of people, kids and adults, chanting “Ted” and “build the wall” as they addressed issues regarding immigration, taxes and foreign relations. The Fox News host called women the “backbone of the family and society” and referred to CNN as “fake news.”

Hannity received a standing ovation as he mentioned the infamous “wall” and “securing our borders.”

Cruz’s Democratic competitor Beto O’Rouke shocked the nation by raising more than $61 million — a record for any Democrat running for Senate in Texas.

As Cruz took the stage, the crowd raised numerous “Tough as Texas” signs. “We’ve got a race on our hands,” Cruz opened.

He boasted that he aims to “repeal the train-wreck that is Obamacare,” saying that many have lost the ability to pay for health care because of the influx in premiums. He also harped on “building the wall,” saying it will only make the United States more secure.

With early voting starting Monday, he urged registered voters to “go get it over with,” then to encourage everyone they know to vote in the Nov. 6 election.

Cruz is scheduled to appear Monday at a Trump rally in Downtown Houston.

Jasper Scherer

contributed to this report.

Erica.Apodaca@BeaumontEnterprise.com

Twitter.com/Erica_A10