A US Senate hopeful has been filmed showing off his air-drumming skills to a classic by The Who while waiting in the drive-through line of a fast food chain.
If you’re not too well-versed in regards to what’s happening in US politics right now, then you might be shocked to learn there’s an upcoming election for the Texas Senate. While Republican Senator Ted Cruz is seeking re-election, Democratic hopeful Beto O’Rourke is hoping to land a spot in the Senate, and he’s doing a good job of winning over the music-minded voters.
Just a few weeks ago, it came to light that Beto O’Rourke was in fact a musician in his younger days, and had been a bassist in a band called Foss, alongside At The Drive-In and The Mars Volta frontman Cedric Bizler-Zavala.
Now, the rocker-turned-politician has won over a few more fans thanks to his actions during and following a recent debate.
During a debate with Ted Cruz on Friday night, Beto O’Rourke decided to appeal to the punk fans by dropping in a brief reference to The Clash.
Beto O’Rourke just said Ted Cruz is “working for the clampdown” #Beto #BetoORourke pic.twitter.com/FQO9rLv3Ee
— fritz araya (@fritzaraya) September 22, 2018
While remarking that Cruz was more interested in corporations than Texan citizens, he referenced The Clash’s 1979 track ‘Clampdown‘, explaining, “He’s working for the clampdown, and the corporations, and the special interests. He’s not working for the people of Texas.”
However, it was O’Rourke’s actions following the debate that attracted the most attention, with the Senate hopeful live-streaming a 45-minute video to Facebook that followed him and his campaign staffers as they left the debate.
The most exciting moment though, occurred while Beto O’Rourke and his colleagues were waiting in the drive-through line of the local Whataburger restaurant, at which point O’Rourke began air-drumming to The Who’s ‘Baba O’Riley’.
ICYMI: Beto O’Rourke went to Whataburger after the Ted Cruz debate last night and played the airdrums to Baba O’Riley pic.twitter.com/XimtqmikNj
— Alex Thomas (@AlexThomasDC) September 22, 2018
The video shows The Who’s 1971 track coming on the radio, before Beto O’Rourke explains why the tune is such a classic.
“This may be the best song ever written,” he explains, before turning up the stereo to full volume to kick off a solid air-drumming routine.
“That’s all I want to do, is play air drums for The Who,” he remarked. “Keith Moon! Tell me there’s a better drummer!”
While there’s no saying how effective Beto O’Rourke’s music-loving tendencies are with prospective Texan voters, it’s worth noting he’s also recently teamed up onstage with Willie Nelson, and is set to appear at a music festival next month that boasts the likes of Spoon and The Polyphonic Spree. Why can’t Australian politicians be this cool?