Photo : Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke addresses a canvassing kickoff event for Iowa state senate candidate Eric Giddens March 16, 2019 in Waterloo, Iowa. ( Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images )

Joe Biden has been telling black audiences what they know for a few years.

Credit Beto O’Rourke, he’s getting an early jump on preaching to the choir.

Beto O’Rourke, the son of a county commissioner and county judge, acknowledged the privilege afforded him because of his race and gender while insisting his bid for President could level the playing field for all Americans, according to NBC News.


Speaking to “Meet the Press” ho st Chuck Todd during an appearance in Iowa, O’Rourke broke down his leg up.

“As a white man who has had privileges that others could not depend on, or take for granted, I’ve clearly had advantages over the course of my life,” O’Rourke said. “I think recognizing that and understanding that others have not, doing everything I can to ensure that there is opportunity and the possibility for advancement and advantage for everyone is a big part of this campaign and a big part of the people who comprise this campaign.”


O’Rourke, who rose to national prominence after pushing incumbent Senator Ted Cruz to a narrow, three-point victory in historically Republican-voting Texas. Following his narrow defeat, Beto took to updating followers on his life via social media, hinting at presidential aspirations as he got his teeth cleaned and sat with Oprah.

In the midst of a miniature apology tour after his comments about his wife’s role in their marriage, O’Rourke is trying to shift focus in the midst of what he called the “best field [of Democrats] that we’ve ever seen in the nominating process.”

In acknowledging his privilege, he also pointed to his own experience as an asset among the crowded field.

“I also happen to be the only candidate from the United States-Mexico border at a time that that dominates so much of our national conversation and legislative efforts and the things that the president talks about,” he said. “There’s one candidate who’s there who can talk about the profoundly positive impact that immigrants have had on our safety and our security, as well as our success and our strength.”


Beto finds himself in the midst of a field that includes a black woman who rose to the rank of state Attorney General, a former Texas mayor whose grandparents emigrated from Mexico as an orphan, and the former mayor of Newark. He also finds himself surrounded by other white, privileged candidates, most of them with more hard-and-fast legislative experience to bolster any similar claims they may come to make in the coming weeks or months. While it’s nice O’Rourke has jumped on the whitesplaining bandwagon early, he’s going to have to dig a little deeper.

