What’s Don the Con gonna say if Hillary picks Xavier? “He hasn’t run a Miss Universe pageant, I have!”
The first time I saw a post here on Daily Kos suggesting Hillary should pick Xavier Becerra, I thought, “Sure, maybe if he was in the Senate, but a Congressman?” Well, let’s talk about that part. In 2008, President Obama offered Becerra the job of being US Trade Representative. He declined, so that he could stay in Congress and stay closer to his wife and three daughters in DC. In 2013, he was elected Chairman of the Democratic Caucus. In 2015, he decided not to run for the Senate against California AG, Kamala Harris, to keep his position in the House and avoid a possibly divisive primary campaign.
So in both cases, a lot of people thought he was qualified for the job, but he knew what it meant for Democrats and for the country to have a Latino in Congressional leadership. Think of what it would mean for the nation to have a Latino Vice President. Even if you count the Cabinet or recent mayors, he is the most qualified Latino candidate for the job, and the most powerful Latino elected official. Maybe there is someone who I’m missing, and if so I’m sure I’ll be corrected in the comments, but he’s also a natural politician, a leader, and all around smart guy. When you see him speak you think, “We need more politicians like this guy.” Completing Obama’s coalition with Becerra is a smart pick.
Still not sure if he’s qualified? Remember 2012? Do you really think anyone voted against Romney because they thought Paul Ryan was unqualified? Becerra is more qualified than Ryan and Trump. He’s been in Congress 24 years, worked his way up to a leadership post, and is a party spokesman.
Did I mention he is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus founded by Bernie Sanders, voted No on Iraq, and is Ranking Member of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security. I’d still like to see a Clinton Sanders ticket but I think Bernie doesn’t want the job, maybe Becerra will.
Clinton team looking for a VP who will be fighter, excite Sanders supporters:
Hillary Clinton is considering a running mate who could make a direct appeal to supporters of Bernie Sanders, bridging a generational and political divide, according to four people close to the campaign.
Clinton’s chief requirements include a candidate’s resume and a fighter capable of hand-to-hand combat with Trump. The campaign’s vetting also prioritizes demographics over someone from a key swing state as she seeks to unify the Democratic voting base, said the individuals coordinating with the campaign, who were not authorized to speak on the record about early deliberations.
The Vermont senator shows no signs of easing off before the July convention, and Democrats worry he’ll make only measured contributions in helping her court his voters between August and November.
From his official Congressional biography:
First elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992, Representative Xavier Becerra serves as Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, is a member of the powerful Committee on Ways And Means and is Ranking Member of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security.
His committee is responsible for formulating our nation’s tax, Social Security, Medicare, trade and income security laws. As Chairman of the Democratic Caucus, Rep. Becerra wields a strong voice in House Democratic leadership, helping to set priorities and drive the legislative decision making process….
Prior to his election to Congress, Rep. Becerra served one term in the California Legislature as the representative of the 59th Assembly District in Los Angeles County. He is a former Deputy Attorney General with the California Department of Justice. The congressman began his legal career in 1984 working in a legal services office representing the mentally ill.
Rep. Becerra is the son of working-class parents and was the first in his family to graduate from college. His mother was born in Jalisco, Mexico and immigrated to the United States after marrying his father. In 1980, Rep. Becerra earned his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Stanford University. He was awarded his Juris Doctorate from Stanford Law School in 1984. Rep. Becerra is married to Dr. Carolina Reyes. They are the proud parents of three daughters: Clarisa, Olivia and Natalia.
He’s not a bad public speaker either:
UPDATE: Interesting NY Times article posted on his campaign web site last week, too.
Mr. Becerra, who as the No. 4 Democrat in the House is the highest-ranking Hispanic lawmaker in the party, has made the fight against Donald J. Trump and Republicans personal. On Spanish-language television, where he is recognizable to millions of viewers, he has become the most prominent and outspoken advocate of Mrs. Clinton to a constituency she hopes to win over in huge numbers to capture the White House….
Known among colleagues in Washington for his poise on camera and his discipline in staying on message — equally fluently in English and Spanish — Mr. Becerra is now the subject of hopeful whispering among some Hispanic Democrats as a long-shot prospect to be Mrs. Clinton’s running mate….
In an interview, Mr. Becerra candidly agreed that he would accept such an offer. “What do you do if you really believe in this kind of work?” he asked with a smile, as his car, driven by his district director, Liz Saldivar, maneuvered through a crowd of Bernie Sanders supporters who were protesting the Clinton rally. Some of them carried signs with slogans like “Deport Hillary Clinton.”
...Mr. Becerra, continuing in Spanish, repeated a favorite saying, “Tell me with whom you walk, and I’ll tell you who you are.”
“I know with whom I walk,” he said, “because Hillary Clinton has walked with us for a long time.”