I felt a little under the weather after my fantasy Democratic ticket for November: Clinton-Castro, seemed increasingly unlikely to become reality.
I posted a diary about this, and in comments I keep hearing this name coming up as an alternative: Xavier Becerra.
I never heard of the guy before. I did some quick research and after reading a few articles I realized that I had found what I was looking for.
Becerra is a hidden gem. The perfect VP choice for Hillary.
Here’s some tidbits on his background:
Becerra, who was born and raised in Sacramento and worked on the Capitol staff before getting elected to the Assembly, has served for 24 years in his L.A.-area House seat. He is fourth in the House Democratic leadership, the chair of the House Democratic Caucus and the party’s highest ranking Latino.
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He’s a familiar figure on Spanish-language television in California, including Univision and Telemundo, as an advocate for immigrants’ rights and as a supporter of Clinton, who wants to strengthen her links to the Latino community. In recent weeks, he has been on the stump on behalf of Clinton, speaking in Spanish as well as English.
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Becerra, 58, who grew up in South Sacramento, graduated from McClatchy High School, then went on to Stanford University, where he got his BA and law degrees. He was the first in his family to go to college. His parents still live in Sacramento.
When asked about the possibility of been Hillary’s running mate, Becerra had this perfect response:
You work, you prepare so that they want to call your number. You want to show that you earned the chance to have them call your number when it counts the most. The bottom line is, Hillary Clinton will be the quarterback – she’s going to make the call
I would love Elizabeth Warren on the ticket, but I doubt she would accept the VP nod. It doesn’t make sense for her strategically; she could play a far more influential role in the Senate. Julian Castro was a dream of mine but many say he is too young and inexperienced.
I wasn’t even aware of Xavier Becerra until today. From what I’ve learned about him already, I think he is perfect. He is experienced (24 years in Congress!), relatively young, highly educated, skilled politically and hails from one of the most critical voter demographics in the country. I don’t see any cons about this guy.
What do you think?