On an April 18 visit to Laredo, Congressman Joaquin Castro (D-Texas 20) met with Webb County Democrats for a “Call to Action” to stand up to politicians like Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, whom he believes “are hurting Texans.”
City Council District IV Council member, Alberto Torres, chair of the Webb County Democratic Party, hosted the event at La Posada. U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar delivered a warm introduction that cited the Castro’s family’s journey to the United States.
Castro’s Call to Action asks Texans to gear up against politicians who do not keep Texas’ interests in mind, among them U.S. Senator Ted Cruz. “Ted Cruz fights for Ted Cruz,” he said. It is likely that Castro will challenge Cruz in 2018, though he has deferred an official announcement until the end of April.
Webb Democratic Party chair Albert Torres hosted the gathering. Congressman Henry Cuellar introduced Castro
No stranger to politics, Castro is considered by some a political rock star along with twin brother Julian, the former mayor of San Antonio and an Obama Cabinet member. Their high-profile careers have made them prodigies of Texas politics — both Latino Stanford graduates whose immigrant grandmother only had an elementary school education.
“Aside from being better-looking, there’s another way to tell [my brother and me] apart. I’m the only one with a job,” joked Castro.
This was not Castro’s first visit to Laredo. In 2015, he delivered a TEDx talk to Laredo youth about creating an infrastructure of opportunity.
Though Castro told the Call to Action gathering that he “wants to see Laredo prosper, like many cities in Texas,” he was critical of Laredo’s elected officials when they welcomed then-presidential candidate Donald Trump to Laredo in 2015.
In a tweet dated July 23, 2015, Castro said,
In a brief interview with MSNBC following the tweet, Castro said, “[Laredo public officials] rolled out the red carpet for Donald Trump…In a town that is 90% Mexican-American, to treat him like an office-holder or like he’s President of the United States or even the nominee already was just bizarre considering what [Donald Trump] said [about Hispanics].”
Mayor Saenz responded to Castro on July 25:
Castro spoke of the importance of organizing for political action within communities. “In 2016, Texas ranked 49th in voter participation,” he said, “but it’s people like you who can make a difference.”
He said Laredo and San Antonio share some similarities, including the brain drain of college graduates leaving their communities to find meaningful work. “Although we may be considered a larger city, we deal with the same challenges as Laredo does. Many students leave after college and only come back [during holidays]” he said, adding that he wants to work to provide better job opportunities so that communities can keep their local talent.
An exchange with Laredo Democrats
On NAFTA, Castro discussed Trump’s adamant opposition to the trade agreement. He recounted that earlier the same day Donald Trump voiced to a delegation in Wisconsin threats to repeal it. “Let’s not make any mistakes about [the] devastating effects on Texas,” said Castro, adding that it’s hard for the U.S. to compete with low labor wages in other countries. He said two policies should be implemented — allocating funds to pursue enforcement issues when “other countries are not holding up to their [end of the] bargain” and helping labor in other countries to unionize. He said the latter would help the United States in the long-run.
Castro stressed the importance of maintaining a strong relationship with Mexico and said that 65% of Texans oppose the proposed border wall. He said that as part of the House Intelligence Committee, he is investigating Russia’s alleged interference with the 2016 Presidential election. During his tenure in the House, Castro has also served on the Foreign Affairs Committee.
On the subject of immigration, Castro said he has fought for comprehensive reform, reminding attendees of Senate Bill 744, a bipartisan bill that he pushed for, but that did not make it to the House Floor, thanks, he said to Speaker John Boehner. “That is the reason things don’t get done in Washington,” he said.
Other elected officials in attendance included District III Mayor Pro-tempore Alex Perez and District V Councilmember Nelly Vielma.
A Texas Lyceum poll released Wednesday found that Castro has an edge in support — 35%, slightly above Democratic co-contender Beto O’Rourke of El Paso, who is tied with current Senator Ted Cruz at 30% approval.
