DEMS/RALLY/TEXAS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “If American politics has turned into a three-ring circus, this city in West Texas will hoist the Big Top on Monday [2-11-19], with President Donald Trump coming to rally for a border wall, Democratic wunderkind Beto O’Rourke leading a protest march and even the Trump Baby blimp putting in an appearance. The Trump rally at the El Paso County Coliseum will come only four days before the possibility of either another government shutdown or a declaration of a national emergency over what the president deems a national-security crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border. It also follows Trump’s State of the Union comments in which he tried to use El Paso as an example of why the United States needs to construct a wall along the border. Perched on the U.S.-Mexico border, the city has become the focal point for the contentious issue of immigration and the president’s relentless push for a barrier. O’Rourke, fresh off an interview with Oprah Winfrey, said he sees Trump’s campaign rally as an opportunity for the city to take control of the narrative.”
–Doug Stanglin and John C Moritz, “Trump, Beto to face off Monday in El Paso in dueling rallies near the border,” USA Today, February 10, 2019 12:43 pm