Fast, Feisty and Plenty of Cancún: Takeaways From the Senate Debate in Texas

The accelerated and fiery statement connected Tuesday nighttime betwixt Senator Ted Cruz and his Democratic hostile for U.S. Senate successful Texas, Colin Allred, was thing of a governmental throwback: a mostly substantive clash implicit voting records and argumentation positions with fewer idiosyncratic attacks.

In a back-and-forth that lasted conscionable nether 60 minutes, each campaigner tried to represent the different arsenic much utmost connected issues of abortion, immigration, the system and, successful 1 of the longer exchanges of the night, transgender athletes’ information successful sports.

Mr. Cruz, a two-term incumbent, presented himself arsenic defending Texas arsenic it has agelong been, nether decades of Republican control. Mr. Allred, a U.S. typical from the Dallas area, offered a imaginativeness of Texas that helium portrayed arsenic mostly the same, but a small much inclusive, with much enactment for “working families,” and termination rights restored.

Mr. Allred made definite nary 1 forgot that Mr. Cruz fled to the formation edifice metropolis of Cancún, Mexico, during a deadly wintertime tempest and powerfulness grid nonaccomplishment successful 2021.

Here are takeaways from the debate:

Cruz is simply a talented debater, but Allred held his own.

The gathering was the archetypal and astir apt the lone clip the 2 candidates volition conscionable look to face. Mr. Cruz, a erstwhile solicitor wide for the authorities of Texas, is simply a fierce debater with a crisp transportation honed successful courtrooms and much than a decennary successful the U.S. Senate.

Mr. Allred, a erstwhile N.F.L. linebacker and lawyer archetypal elected to Congress successful 2018, has had less specified clashes. But helium mostly matched Mr. Cruz arsenic they sparred repeatedly. Though Mr. Cruz astatine 1 constituent suggested that his hostile was delivering canned lines, Mr. Allred was mostly nimble successful his responses, lone appearing to travel up with an awkward and seemingly canned gag astir however Mr. Cruz had not played sports.