Electoral history of Lloyd Bentsen

You had Spencer Abraham, who won one term 1994, lost in 2000.

In Texas, you had Lloyd Benson.

who then became Treasury Secretary and, of course, was the vice presidential nominee, along with Michael Dukakis in 1988.

That's the last time they actually elected a Democrat to the Senate.

You had a Democratic senator, Bob Kruger, appointed when Lloyd Benson became Treasury Secretary, but he lost the special election to Kay Bailey Hutchison.

The one thing in Michigan, Had they elected in the primary or nominated in the primary Haley Stevens, the Democratic representative, who was more moderate and really pro-trade and working on this affordability argument, I think Democrats would think they had maybe not a complete breakaway layup but be pretty close in Michigan.

So what might help Abdu'l-Sayed is the fact that you have the trade issues, you have the Canadian issues, you have all that going on.

Yeah.

And they might win Texas, a Senate seat in Texas for the first time since Lloyd Benson.

Yeah.

And I should just mention that this is just eye-popping, obviously.

There were some quite interesting debates that went on in the 70s and into the 80s.

And remember the debate between Lloyd Benson and Dan Quayle? Remember that? In 1988, there was that massive debate between the two of them.

And I'm dying to play that sound bite for you.

I might just play it in the next break.

I just couldn't resist.

I just had to play the soundbite.

That was from October the 5th, 1988, and you heard Lloyd Benson, the vice presidential candidate at the time, with, of course, Michael Dukakis, that ill-fated presidential campaign that they ran there in 1988. where he was speaking in response to Dan Quayle, the senator of Indiana.

He was not vice president.

It has not been since 1988. since Texas has elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate.

That, of course, was Lloyd Benson one year before James Chalarico was born.

And it's been since 1994 since a Democrat won statewide.

That was the lieutenant governor candidate.

So you know what? I'm not going to make predictions.

But Tallarico, the fact that the last governor in Texas Democrat was Ann Richards in 1990, the last senator elected in Texas was Lloyd Benson in 1988.

I mean, we're talking about decades in many of these states that have not elected Democrats at all this time.

And yet, I mean, the fact that Gina Hosa, who's running against Greg Abbott, the Republican governor who's been governor 11 years and was attorney general for, you know, 12 years before that.

Okay.

In Texas, Lloyd Benson was the last Democratic senator from Texas.

You know, so there's a lot of reasons to be skeptical, especially because many of those polls, while favorable to Democrats, are within the margin of error.

And I do think psychologically, it's just very hard for people They see five polls, all of which the top line is Democrat leading.