After two and half years at the helm of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, former HUD Secretary Julián Castro’s political ambitions are far from over.
The White House tapped Castro back in June 2014 to replace outgoing HUD secretary Shaun Donovan, who went on to serve as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Castro came to the office as the former Mayor of San Antonio, following in the footsteps of former San Antonio Mayor Henry Cisneros, who served as President Clinton’s HUD secretary. Castro concluded his term as HUD secretary back in January, eventually being replaced by current HUD Secretary Ben Carson.
Unlike most politicians, there is one unique factor that goes into Castro’s next move. He has a twin brother who shares similar goals in politics.
As stated in an article in Politico by Edward-Isaac Dovere, Castro’s twin brother, Rep. Joaquín Castro, D-Texas, is also no stranger to politics.
The problem is that their individual political goals might interfere.
From the Politico article:
Texas Democrats desperately want Rep. Joaquín Castro to run for governor next year — and they’re frustrated by what they see as his twin brother’s presidential ambitions getting in the way.
Joaquín Castro is being hounded by Democrats to get in but is torn, according to people who’ve spoken with him, over whether to take on a popular incumbent with $40 million in the bank.
But can Joaquín Castro run for Texas governor if Julián Castro runs for president in 2020?
The brothers serve as each other’s top strategists, and they’ve agreed that Julián’s next political move takes primacy for now. One worry is that a Joaquín loss for governor — it would be an uphill battle, at best, against Abbott — would make the Castros look like losers. The other is that if Joaquin happened to pull off an upset, it would distract attention from Julián, potentially complicating his path to the White House.
“No matter what, I think Joaquín wants to do everything possible that Julián is in the best possible position to move forward with his plans,” said Gilberto Hinojosa, the Texas Democratic chairman, who’s eager to see the congressman jump in against Abbott.
As the brothers sort out their next move, whether its Texas governor or pesident, Julián Castro announced he is joining the faculty at the University of Texas’ LBJ School of Public Affairs in September.
According to an article from Austin American-Statesman by Ralph K.M. Haurwitz, “Castro initially will lead a seminar series examining the complexities of policy development through the lens of housing. Workshops on the future of Texas, as well as podcasts and traditional classes with an interdisciplinary favor, could soon be in the mix.”
A full video on this next move is below. In the video, he discusses his passion for educating students.
