Once again on Wednesday, NBC News correspondent Jacob Soboroff confirmed his previous reporting that voters across the country were just not that interested in the stories and controversies constantly hyped by the liberal media: The Russia investigation, the Brett Kavanaugh allegations, or the detention of illegal immigrants.
Appearing on the Today show, Soboroff explained: “We were down in the 23rd Congressional District of Texas. Washington, of course, buzzing about Brett Kavanaugh’s troubled nomination, the latest twist in the Russia investigation, but down where we were, it felt like we were a long, long way away from the drama in our nation’s capital.”
The reporter spoke to both incumbent Republican Congressman Will Hurd as well as his Democratic challenger, Gina Ortiz Jones. Sitting in on an informal town hall meeting that Hurd conducted with voters in a local Dairy Queen, Soboroff heard the south Texas residents discuss their most pressing issues:
UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN [TEXAS VOTER]: We’re one of the highest unemployment rates in the country, I think you know that.
UNIDENTIFIED MAN [TEXAS VOTER]: My concern is the streets, there’s a lot of potholes.
SOBOROFF: Potholes?
UNIDENTIFIED MAN B [VOTER]: Major problem is good education for our kids.
A perplexed Soboroff wondered: “Why did nobody, as the first issue, bring up what’s going on with the Supreme Court this week or nobody brought up Russia?” One woman responded: “I think that the issues that are being brought up are not only important issues, but they affect us immediately here. These are the things that we know are gonna make a difference tomorrow.” Hurd added: “What most elected officials and what the media, try the coverage, are not the same conversations you have down here locally.”
Soboroff noted: “The other thing nobody brought up with Will Hurd was the southwest border, and his district has a third of it. So we headed down there, to Eagle Pass, to see if we could figure out why.” Talking to a local construction worker there, Frank, the reporter asked: “...are you thinking about, you know, all the politics people talk about with the border?” Frank said no, and echoed the other voters and indicated that jobs were his main concern.
Talking to the Today show hosts following his taped report, Soboroff advised Texas Democrats:
You know, it’s not that voters, guys, are not interested in the Supreme Court allegations, Russia, even the border. They just don’t bring them up first. And if challengers like Ortiz Jones or Beto O’Rourke want to win, they’re gonna to have to get these voters that don’t normally turn out to actually come out and vote on the issues that they care about.
Appearing again later Wednesday morning, on Megyn Kelly Today, Soboroff told viewers that “what voters care about down on our southern border is not what you guys might think.” Talking to those voters, Soboroff observed: “Texas’s 23rd Congressional District has a third of the entire U.S.-Mexico border. But in the town of Eagle Pass, I met some locals who said living right on top of it isn’t their top concern.” Predictably, they all said jobs were their top priority.
Continuing with his road trip across the district, Soboroff declared:
The next morning, we headed to see what might be the most infamous part of the district....Out this way is the Tornillo tent camp. It’s the facility for the separated kids that the Trump administration set up. And it’s almost as many people as the population of the nearby town of Tornillo.
Moments later, Marcelino Lozano, a local farmer, told Soboroff what his top voting issue was: “The main thing is about the production of food for us. Don’t forget one thing, I’m a farmer.” Soboroff lectured: “I thought you were going to say the tents over there with all the kids in them. You know, that’s number one because it’s in your face.”
Talking to Kelly at the end of the segment, Soboroff explained: “One thing I want to say is, you’ll notice you didn’t hear anybody bring up Brett Kavanaugh. And while we were there, this whole thing was unfolding in real time.” Kelly asked: “How about Russia? The media devotes so much to Russia.” Soboroff acknowledged: “Didn’t come up, either. You know, when you ask them about it, you follow up. It’s not that they don’t care about it, it’s just never the first thing that these folks bring up.”
He went on to repeat his warning to Texas Democrats: “So if these Democratic challengers actually think they’re gonna do any flipping of any kind, they gotta motivate people based on these kind of issues that they’re talking about, not the stuff that we talk about every day.” Later, he added: “Our politicians are trying to get people out with the wrong issues, that’s what it is. They’re trying to get people out with the wrong issues.”
In other words, a reporter is telling politicians to stop listening to the liberal media narrative and focus on the issues voters actually care about.
This is not the first time voters have told Soboroff that they’re not focused on the same issues as the liberal press. Back in February, a Democratic congressional candidate in California even told Soboroff that the media was spending too much time talking about the Russia investigation.
Here are excerpts of Soboroff’s September 26 report on the Today show:
8:21 AM ET
CRAIG MELVIN: Now to our series, The Vote: America’s Future. Hard to believe just 41 days to go until those crucial midterm elections.
HODA KOTB: NBC’s Jacob Soboroff has been crisscrossing the country to find out what matters to voters in America’s key toss-up districts. And you just got back from Texas, didn’t you?
JACOB SOBOROFF: I sure did. And as always, you guys, it is not what you think once you get on to the ground. We were down in the 23rd Congressional District of Texas. Washington, of course, buzzing about Brett Kavanaugh’s troubled nomination, the latest twist in the Russia investigation, but down where we were, it felt like we were a long, long way away from the drama in our nation’s capital.
This is a cucumber, it’s covered in chili, it’s delicious. This is a flea market on the south side of San Antonio. And we came here with Gina Ortiz Jones, who’s running for Congress, to find out what matters to people here.
GINA ORTIZ JONES [D-TX]: This is a part of the community that has been traditionally under-served, under-represented.
(...)
8:23 AM ET
JONES: Everyone here talks about community, it’s about community. It’s about how we take care of one another, how we look after one another, and how we invest in the future.
SOBOROFF: We are on our way from one of the most populated parts of this district, that little corner of it by San Antonio, where 70% of the voters live, to one of the most remote parts, Crystal City. And that’s where we’re going to meet the district’s congressman, his name his Will Hurd. How are you? Nice to see you.
REP. WILL HURD [R-TX]: The 23rd District of Texas is larger than 26 states, roughly the size of the state of Georgia.
SOBOROFF: He’s doing 38 stops, 32 different town halls, 14 of which are Dairy Queens. Do you have a preferred Dairy Queen order, by any chance?
HURD: When – on my own, it’s a medium dipped cone.
SOBOROFF: Yeah, me too.
HURD: But I’m a purist.
SOBOROFF: It’s authentic.
HURD: Here have a seat. You gotta come join us. You gotta come join us, come on. Please, please, yeah. What’s your question?
UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN [TEXAS VOTER]: We’re one of the highest unemployment rates in the country, I think you know that.
UNIDENTIFIED MAN [TEXAS VOTER]: My concern is the streets, there’s a lot of potholes.
SOBOROFF: Potholes?
UNIDENTIFIED MAN B [VOTER]: Major problem is good education for our kids.
SOBOROFF: Why did nobody, as the first issue, bring up what’s going on with the Supreme Court this week or nobody brought up Russia?
UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN B [VOTER]: I think that the issues that are being brought up are not only important issues, but they affect us immediately here. These are the things that we know are gonna make a difference tomorrow.
HURD: What most elected officials and what the media, try the coverage, are not the same conversations you have down here locally.
SOBOROFF: The other thing nobody brought up with Will Hurd was the southwest border, and his district has a third of it. So we headed down there, to Eagle Pass, to see if we could figure out why. We’re on the Mexico side of the border wall, but still in the U.S. It’s no-man’s land. We just met Frank, works construction but has time off and is out here playing golf down on the border.
(...)
8:25 AM ET
SOBOROFF: And so, Frank, when you’re out here golfing, are you thinking about, you know, all the politics people talk about with the border?
FRANK [TEXAS VOTER]: No.
SOBOROFF: What do you think about?
FRANK: Let’s go to work. And, what time is tee time? Go golf.
SOBOROFF: Who knew, man, a golf course on the border with Mexico. You know, it’s not that voters, guys, are not interested in the Supreme Court allegations, Russia, even the border. They just don’t bring them up first. And if challengers like Ortiz Jones or Beto O’Rourke want to win, they’re gonna to have to get these voters that don’t normally turn out to actually come out and vote on the issues that they care about.
HODA KOTB: Yeah, they say that all politics are local, but you wonder why voter turnout is so low there.
SOBOROFF: It’s such a good question. Texas is a very young state. I think it’s the third youngest state in the country. And young people, millennials, we’ve talk about this before, don’t historically go to the polls. They think that the increasing Latino population there will increase voter turnout, but it might take some sometime down there.
KOTB: Alright.
MELVIN: Especially in primaries. They don’t vote especially in primaries.
SOBOROFF: That’s right.
KOTB: Thank you, Jacob, you’re going to have more on your road trip this morning on Megyn Kelly Today.
SOBOROFF: Sure will.
