Beto O'Rourke 'ashamed' of comments he made about women's 'phenomenally large breasts and tight buttocks' in student newspaper

Beto O’Rourke said he's "ashamed" of comments he made about women in a 1991 student newspaper article, after someone who opposes his Texas senatorial campaign sent the story to Politico. 

The Democratic congressman expressed regret over the "demeaning and disrespectful" words he penned at age 19 while reviewing the Broadway musical "The Will Rogers Follies" for Columbia University’s student newspaper, the Spectator. 

In his review, Mr O’Rourke criticised the show as "one of the most glaring examples of the sickening excesses and moral degradations of our culture," while criticising the casting of "perma-smile actresses whose only qualifications seem to be their phenomenally large breasts and tight buttocks."

Mr O’Rourke, whose once-long shot senatorial campaign against Republican incumbent Ted Cruz has drawn national attention as the two appear to be in a tight race, denounced the comments in a statement after the story was published on Monday afternoon.

"I am ashamed of what I wrote and I apologise. There is no excuse for making disrespectful and demeaning comments about women," he said.

In its report, Politico acknowledged the column was flagged to the outlet "by a person who opposes O’Rourke’s Senate campaign."

The review was the only article Mr O’Rourke appeared to have published with the student newspaper. No other accusations of inappropriate comments towards women have been levelled against the senate candidate, who has represented Texas’s 16th congressional district since 2013. 

Mr O’Rourke has thrown the reliably red senate seat in Texas into question in recent weeks, with several polls indicating he and Mr Cruz are in a statistical dead heat. 

Meanwhile, Five Thirty Eight's Nate Silver explained why he believes the Democrat "really has a chance" at taking the seat that's been occupied by Republicans for decades: "Cruz, on the other hand, shows signs of being a weak incumbent — and O’Rourke shows signs of being a tough challenger," he wrote. 

For now, the Texas Democrat appears to be putting his controversial student newspaper review behind him, while launching a college campus speaking tour this week across the state. 

He's also scheduled to debate Mr Cruz again 16 October in San Antonio, after the two challenged each other last month on issues ranging from immigration to health care.