(CNN) Outgoing Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke issued a pointed warning about what he sees as the threat President Donald Trump poses to American democracy, writing that "what's happening now is part of a larger threat to us all."

In a statement sent to supporters Saturday night, O'Rourke, who lost his bid for a Texas Senate seat in November's election and is being viewed as a potential 2020 presidential candidate, outlined his concerns for the country on the first full day of a government shutdown that began at midnight Saturday.

"(Perhaps) the President calculates that by adding to the blizzard of bizarre behavior over the last two years and shutting down the government at Christmas, while his own party still controls each branch of it, the institutions that we need for our democracy to function (and to ensure no man is above the law) will be overwhelmed," he wrote.

"But my concern for the country goes beyond the immediate pain and dysfunction that this shutdown will cause. Beyond even ensuring that this President is held accountable. What's happening now is part of a larger threat to us all," the statement read.

O'Rourke went on to list the things that Trump has done since taking office in 2017 that he sees as antithetical to American ideals, including the travel ban and the administration's child separation policy.

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