we ve talked before in your senate campaign and as a member of congress. i want to ask you a question i ve asked every candidate i have on the program which is of the tens of millions of adults constitutionally eligible to be president of the united states, over 35 and u.s. natural born citizens why should you, beto o rourke, be the president of the united states? i think the series of challenges we have before us, the gravest of our lifetimes, millions unable to get health care, millions living in the shadow of deportation including more than a million dreamers in this country who should be made u.s. citizens. an economy that works too well for too few and not well enough for the vast majority of our fellow americans. in this threat of climate change, if you think of how divided this country is we need someone who can unify people across the differences toward these common aspirations and goals.
on the el paso city council not as a democrat or republican but as an el pasoan getting things done, as a member of congress in the minority working across the aisle to accomplish things for those whom i represented, campaigning in every single county in the state of texas for the u.s. senate and though we didn t win getting more votes than any democrat in history, winning 500,000 republican votes on the same ballot they voted for greg abbott, helping two new u.s. members of congress win what were thought to be safe republican seats, 17 african-american women elected to judicial positions of public trust in harris county, changing the face of criminal justice reform in our most diverse city, i ve shown that i can go everywhere, talk to everyone, with the courage of my convictions on a proud, progressive agenda. but when the vote is not just of democrats, not just of independents which we did but also of republicans to find that common cause to advance this country s agenda.
let me just say, that is maybe a persuasive argument about your skill as a politician but i mean running the country, governing the country. i mean, this is the hardest job probably in the world. it is probably too hard for any single individual truth be told. i agree with that. why are you ready to do that? maybe that s why you d be good in the stump and obviously campaigned extremely well in texas but to actually be president of the united states particularly when we have a president now who had no real experience for the job in many ways and many people think that has been a huge part of the problem. i ll tell you, beyond the campaign we ran in texas, beyond my service in congress, on the city council, being a small business owner, creating jobs in a city that was desperate for them, i live on the u.s./mexico border at a time this president has trained the focus of the country on the u.s./mexico
it is causing so much horror in thatmpoverished country. we lost the vote to override trump s veto. what we have done is for the first time, as you ve indicate, had resolutions pass the house and the senate through the war powers act which is 45 years over. first time we ve been successful in doing that. and let me be very clear. this is the beginning of the process. not the end. what you are going to see is kind of conservative members of the senate. people like mike lee, who actually understand that it is the constitution tells us, that it is congress that declares war. not the president. work with progressives, bring more people on board. you will see us expand this effort to take a look at more wars and make sure that congress reestablishes its constitutional authority. you said since the china
border. with other community leaders, led the march to bring attention and change policy though we were not in the white house, we were not part of the administration, we got the administration to stop separating kids from their parents. along with the people of el paso helped shut down the tornado tent shelter. i can tell a profoundly positive story about immigrants and their contribution not just to our economy, not just to our culture and our way of life but to our safety and our security. el paso one of the safest cities in the united states of america 20 years running not despite the fact we are a city of immigrants but because we are a city of immigrants. we can go toe to toe and then some with donald trump on this issue based in the facts but telling a compelling, emotional story about who we are as a country. that s not based on fear or meanness or racism. it s based on our common identity, our ambitions, our aspirations, the work, the service, and sacrifice we will employ to g