re: Beto takes early Democratic straw poll

I think he's their best chance to attract independents. Like Carter, Clinton and to some degree Obama, he's not seen as a Washington insider. He's got a minimal track record, so they can paint him to be whatever is needed. And he's already a media and Hollywood darling having been on all sorts of talk shows and gone unchallenged when putting forward various claims. And perhaps most importantly, he's personable and appears young enough to appeal to whippersnappers. You'll be seeing articles soon spewing that this guy as the savior of the nation. He'll generate positive enthusiasm and not just TDS as reasons to vote for him.

I'd like to laugh it off, but I think he'll be a formidable opponent. I'm praying Hillary pushes hard and creates all sorts of DNC headaches and will only bow out to another Washington insider that their machine can control, like Biden or one of the miscellaneous senators. Trump and what few allies he has in media need to start playing up his many accomplishments (esp jobs) to appeal to independents, but also continue to push hard for border security, dismantling of Obamacare and defunding PP to appeal to hard core conservatives.