Five years ago, a punk rock, skateboarding Democratic phenom named Beto O’Rourke seemed like he might unseat Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas. As liberals around the country went starry-eyed over his viral speeches, O’Rourke raised more than $80 million and lost by less than 3%. The former congressman went on to a failed presidential bid, and then lost a gubernatorial race last year by more than ten points. Now, Cruz is back up for reelection and national Democrats must decide if they can continue to justify pouring their resources into a state that’s repeatedly let them down.