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A4 up front
Saturday 2 November 2019
O'Rourke says he's 'reluctantly'

dropping presidential bid

Continued from Front way: former Vice President of a Vanity Fair interview
Joe Biden, Massachusetts on the eve of his cam-
He raised a record $80 mil- Sen. Elizabeth Warren and paign launch in which he
lion from donors across the Vermont Sen. Bernie Sand- appeared to say he was
country, visited every coun- ers, with Pete Buttigieg, the "born" to be in presidential
ty in Texas and used social mayor of South Bend, Indi- politics.
media and livestreaming ana, showing strength in He spent several weeks try-
video to engage directly Iowa, as well. Lower polling ing to build his campaign
Supporters for Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke with voters. He ultimately candidates face difficult around climate change,
react while waiting for him to speak before the Iowa Democratic lost to incumbent Republi- questions about wheth- calling global warming the
Party’s Liberty and Justice Celebration, Friday, Nov. 1, 2019, in can Sen. Ted Cruz by 3 per- er they have the money greatest existential threat
Des Moines, Iowa. centage points. to sustain a campaign the country had ever
Associated Press But O'Rourke, 47, struggled through the first primary faced. But as the excite-
to replicate that model in contests. ment over his candidacy
the presidential primary, Earlier this week, Kamala began to fade, O'Rourke
and both his polling and his Harris, another candidate was forced to stage a "re-
fundraising dwindled signifi- who entered the race to introduction" of his cam-
cantly in recent months. much fanfare, announced paign to reinvigorate it. Af-
"We have to clearly see, at she was downscaling her ter a gunman opened fire
this point, that we did not campaign, laying off some at a Walmart in his home-
have the means to pursue staffers and reorienting al- town of El Paso, killing 22
this campaign successfully most exclusively to focus people, O'Rourke more
and that my service will not on Iowa. heavily embraced gun
be as a candidate, nor as O'Rourke entered the race control, saying he would
a nominee of this party for as the feel-good, dynamic take assault weapons
the presidency," O'Rourke candidate who had the away from existing owners.
said. ability to appeal to both As O'Rourke's standing in
O'Rourke's decision comes Republicans and Demo- the presidential primary
as the Democratic prima- crats and work across the plummeted, some Demo-
ry enters a critical stretch. aisle in Washington. crats urged him to return
With three months until the But he immediately faced to Texas for another Senate
kickoff Iowa caucuses, polls criticism that he had a run. He has repeatedly de-
consistently show a trio of sense of entitlement, par- nied having any interest in
candidates leading the ticularly after the release that race. q
Lawyer indicates Bolton won’t testify in

impeachment probe

By MARK SHERMAN
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The
lawyer for former nation-
al security adviser John
Bolton signaled Thursday
that Bolton will not testify
anytime soon in the House
impeachment inquiry.
Democratic lawmakers
want to hear next week
from Bolton over the ad-
ministration's approach to
Ukraine that is central to
House proceedings that In this July 31, 2019 file photo, National security adviser John
could lead to the impeach- Bolton speaks to media at the White House in Washington.
ment of President Donald Associated Press
Trump. ed to the case, which is Cooper said there would
Charles Cooper, Bolton's before U.S. District Judge be no delay since the legal
lawyer, was in federal court Richard Leon. Cooper has issue would be the same,
Thursday on behalf of an- previously said that Bolton whether a small circle of
other client whose testimo- would not testify voluntarily. the president's advisers are
ny the House also wants. A House-issued subpoena "absolutely immune" from
The client is former Bolton would put him in the ex- having to testify.
deputy Charles Kupper- act same situation as Kup- Kupperman went to fed-
man, who wants a federal perman. Leon first brought eral court because he "is
judge to resolve whether up Bolton, asking whether in a basic Catch-22," sum-
he can be forced to tes- adding him to the case moned to testify by the
tify since he was a close would cause any delays. House and forbidden to
adviser to Trump. Cooper Leon said he hopes to issue do so by the White House,
said Bolton could be add- a ruling by late December. Cooper said.q