This just in:
Julián Castro on Tuesday formally backed Joe Biden for president, following the presumptive Democratic nominee's call for police reform in the wake of George Floyd's death.
Castro, the former Biden primary opponent, U.S. housing secretary and San Antonio mayor, said in a tweet he was "proud to support" Biden, and a Castro spokesman confirmed he was endorsing the former vice president. While Castro had called for unity around Biden and vowed to help defeat President Donald Trump, he had not formalized his support for Biden until now.
Castro's tweet came shortly after Biden delivered a speech in which he called on Congress "to act this month on ... real police reform" after the death of Floyd, the black Minnesota man who died after a white police officer spent almost nine minutes kneeling on his neck. Castro had championed police reform during his own presidential campaign last year, releasing a platform on the issue and frequently listing the names of police violence victims on the stump.
"Joe Biden recognizes the urgent need for real reform to address our broken policing system," Castro tweeted, adding that he looks "forward to seeing these reforms become law, so that what happened to George Floyd never happens again."
The timing couldn’t be more perfect:
The Texas Democratic Party kicked off its six-day statewide convention on Monday, but in a very different way than ever before: virtually.
When big headliners such as former Vice President Joe Biden, former U.S. Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke and former San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro speak later this week, it won’t be before a packed arena. Instead, it will all be done virtually through online videos.
Those three speakers all address Democrats on Saturday. On Friday, former presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will speak.
While the program has been shifted online, the message is very similar to past conventions with Democrats insisting they are turning Texas into a battleground state.
“We know this is our moment,” Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said to start the convention. “Republicans are scared. We are on the cusp of victory it is within our reach. Texas is the biggest battleground state in America.”
Also:
Democrats have been working from the ground up to turn Texas blue, so if likely presidential nominee Joe Biden invests resources from his campaign to win the state, it would be the cherry on top of the overall Democratic Party effort.
“I’m going to continue to make the case to him, not that it would be nice, but that it’s necessary,” said former congressman and former 2020 presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke.
“I know that Biden can win here,” O’Rourke continued. “I don’t know what kind of investment he’s going to make, but regardless of what he does, we’re going to put the state in play. The best way for us to make the case is to show what we in Texas are willing to do for ourselves.”
Biden, the former vice president, has to determine what kind of resources to pour into Texas, a state that’s trending toward Democrats, but has been under Republican control for more than a generation.
A vigorous Texas presidential campaign from Biden would help down-ballot Democrats, and turning Texas blue would seal a defeat of President Donald Trump and block Republicans from the White House for the foreseeable future.
Let’s help Biden and his fellow Texas Democrats win big in Texas. Click below to donate and get involved with Biden and his fellow Texas Democrats campaigns:
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