Fox News contributor Karl Rove reportedly poured cold water on the Democratic Party’s early enthusiasm for Rep. Jasmine Crockett’s newly announced U.S. Senate campaign, suggesting Tuesday that the Texas Democrat may not even make it out of her own party’s primary—let alone compete in a statewide race.
Crockett, who entered the race Monday to significant fanfare, quickly pushed Rep. Colin Allred out of the contest in the name of party unity. But Texas State Representative James Talarico has signaled he will stay in the fight, setting up a contested primary that is already dividing Democrats.
Rove appeared on America’s Newsroom to give his assessment of the race, and he challenged the prevailing narrative that Crockett’s ascendance represents a showdown between the far-left and the more moderate wing of the party. Instead, he described the dynamic in far blunter terms. “The early coverage of this is that inside the Democrats, this is gonna be a battle between the left and the center. That’s not gonna be the case,” Rove said. “It is not left versus moderate. It is nutty versus not nutty.”
He argued that Crockett and Talarico are ideologically similar, but that only one embodies what he sees as a problem for Democrats in a statewide race. “James Talarico, the other Democrat in the race, is as liberal as Jasmine Crockett is. It’s just that he’s not as nutty as she is,” Rove said. He went on to highlight her brief tenure in the Texas House, where he said she was “known for giving inflammatory statements, generally only to reporters, and for achieving virtually nothing.”
Anchor Bill Hemmer later introduced the opinion of Senator John Cornyn, the Republican incumbent whose seat Democrats are targeting. Cornyn reportedly said, “I think she wins the Democratic primary, and she’s the worst possible candidate they could have in Texas. She’s unelectable.” Rove agreed with Cornyn’s assessment—at least on Crockett’s viability in a general election. “I think he’s absolutely right about being unelectable,” Rove responded.
Hemmer followed up by asking how Crockett compares to previous statewide Democratic hopefuls, including Beto O’Rourke. Rove, pointedly referring to him as “Robert Francis O’Rourke,” said the more important question is whether Crockett can even secure the nomination in the first place. “Look, I’m not certain she’s gonna be the winner. That would be the only thing,” Rove said. “Because look, Democrats are desperate to have a credible candidate. And over the course of the next three and a half months, she is gonna be seen as not really credible.”
Crockett’s entrance into the race may have consolidated national Democratic support on paper, but Rove’s comments reflect concerns inside and outside the party about her electability in a state that continues to resist progressive candidates in statewide contests. As the primary unfolds, Democrats must decide whether rallying behind Crockett will strengthen their chances—or sink them before the general election even begins.
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