Article snippet: Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas) has faced sharp backlash from progressives in the days since his presidential campaign launched to great fanfare last week. Left-leaning Democrats have criticized O’Rourke for a string of comments made in a Vanity Fair story preceding the opening of his campaign and in his subsequent days on the trail. Some of the remarks — such as O’Rourke’s statement to Vanity Fair, referring to the presidential race, that he was “just born to be in it” — have fanned complaints that the Texan is blinded by “white privilege.” Others have brought charges of sexism or male privilege. O’Rourke’s nonchalant quip that his wife cares for the couple’s three children “sometimes with my help” irked a number of the former Texas congressman’s critics, who saw it as belittling. Separately, O’Rourke was forced to apologize for a “really hateful” murder fantasy he penned as a teenager in which he wrote about running down children in a street. On the bright side, O’Rourke reported raising $6.1 million in his campaign’s first 24 hours, a remarkable number that suggests he can be in the Democratic battle for the long haul. But that good news has been overshadowed by the stumbles, which have signaled the enmity in some quarters of the Democratic Party for O’Rourke, while underlining questions about his readiness. “Fundraising aside, I can’t think of a worse start for a presidential candidate,” said one Democratic strategist who has worked for recent presid... Link to the full article to read more