Beto O'Rourke posted a video dismantling Trump's proposed border wall. For some reason.

Beto O&#039;Rourke destroys Trump&#039;s border wall

(Image credit: Screenshot/Twitter/Beto O'Rourke)

published 31 December 2018

Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas) is about to be unemployed — he'll be fine — after giving up his seat to run against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). But over the weekend, he posted a video on his Twitter account without explanation or caption. It is a multifaceted, narrator-less rebuttal of President Trump's proposed border wall, set to a fittingly sweeping soundtrack.

The border wall is extremely relevant, policy-wise — it is the central point in the current partial government shutdown. Trump says he won't reopen the government without a $5 billion down payment on his wall, and Democrats won't give more than $1.3 billion for non-wall border security, for some of the reasons O'Rourke lays out in his video. But he almost certainly won't be in Congress anymore when the issue gets resolved, so speculation has turned to higher jobs.

One of the critiques of O'Rourke as a presidential contender is his lack of experience in Washington. But as a native and current resident of El Paso, he knows more about the border than most members of Congress.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.