Former HUD Secretary, Julián Castro ended his presidential campaign last week with an announcement simply stating that it was clearly not his time. While Castro never polled beyond four percent, he ran an outstanding campaign – doing especially well in the debates he was able to participate in. Castro had the most detailed plan for solving our immigration problem and brought more attention to the poor and homeless than any other candidate. I would have liked him say more about the important role Hispanics are playing in our economy, but he ran the campaign that suited him best. I also would have liked to see more Latino leaders rally behind his campaign. For some reason, that didn’t happen. Former Latino Victory Fund executive director, Cristóbal Alex, and Bold PAC Chair, Tony Cárdenas both chose to back Biden instead. I’m sure they will both tell you that they thought Biden had a better chance to win, but it was still disappointing to me. I think Castro was the best candidate. That should have been enough.
I don’t think we have seen the last of Julián. There are rumors that he will be on a short list of potential running mates for several potential nominees. He could also play a prominent role in the next administration, providing a Democrat wins. My take on Castro is that he is a very smart and polished politician that sometimes comes off a little too stiff. I remember meeting him a few times when he was HUD Secretary, and I never got the sense he was fully present in our conversations. Authenticity is important. He has a great story and I believe he is a morally centered person. He is definitely the type of person who should be in national office. I’m sorry to see him leave the race; his take on the issues was always interesting and his voice will definitely be missed.
Never in U.S. history have we had two older or less popular candidates running for president of the United States than we do today. We repeatedly hear the question, “How can these two candidates be the best our country has to offer?”.
if you are primarily fearful of living in a society that is racist and discriminatory, you should be very concerned with what is happening with the political far left. If your primary fear is moving our society towards socialism and communism, then you should be mostly fearful of the political far right. That statement may seem counterintuitive, but it is absolutely true.
People on the political right believe that people on the extreme left are the biggest problems in our nation. People on the political left think that people on the extreme right pose the biggest threat. This is one occasion when both sides are correct.