Former Rep. Robert Francis “Beto” O’Rourke on Thursday shared his thoughts on how he did in the first Democrat debate.

The former Texas congressman graded his performance an “A,” saying he felt like he got his message across during Wednesday’s debate.

“I’d give myself an ‘A,’” O’Rourke told CNN “New Day” host Alisyn Camerota.

He continued, “I described why I’m doing this, who I’m doing it for, the people that inspired me and how we’re going to meet these challenges. And it felt like I was able to get that across.”

O’Rourke also commented on some of the exchanges that took place during the debate, saying “it sure did” feel like he was targeted by some of the other candidates specifically.

“That’s part of politics, and it’s part of a debate, certainly one where you have 10 candidates on the stage, each of them trying to make their mark,” he explained. “I choose to define myself not against other people. I’m really running not against any of those other candidates, but for the United States of America. I felt like my responsibility was to describe my vision for this country and reflect back so much of what I’ve heard by listening to people all across this country.”

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