On a segment that aired on its website, Entravision’s Sunday political affairs show Politica Ya submitted its entry onto the longstanding effort to make Julián Castro a thing --- this time, casting the only Latino candidate in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary as the underdog that defies all the odds.
The report got going with biographical details intended to convey a hard sell of Castro to viewers. But ultimately, the interview veered into the policy most important to our domestic Spanish-language media. Watch below as Castro dutifully rolled out his immigration plan:
DENNY ALFONSO, REPORTER, UNIVISION COLORADO: One of the big questions is on immigration reform. Many Latinos want to come out of the shadows. What would be the important element under your Presidency so that many Latinos not fear and can go out to work and live, and turn that American Dream into a reality?
JULIAN CASTRO, CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT (D): I have a plan called the People First Immigration Plan, that would put undocumented immigrants on a pathway to citizenship. It would end family detention and treat border crossing as a civil violation, a civil penalty instead of a criminal one the way that we used to do it. It would also improve our legal immigration system by increasing the number of visas, making sure that more families could unify- or reunify here in the United States.
Castro also talked about alleged ”tension” that Latinos have towards Presidents Trump, stating that “we need to make so much improvement and go in a better direction than this President has led us.” In order for these claims of tension to hold up, though, Castro had to completely ignore the fact that Trump's approval rating has increased by 20%. Additionally, the nation’s Hispanic unemployment rate is at an all time low, with the Labor Department reporting a rate of 4.2% in May. Great news for the community if these networks ever got around to reporting it.
The interview, which seemed more like an infomercial for Castro, was also factually inaccurate. Castro is not, in fact, the “first Latino presidential candidate” as Alfonso breathlessly pointed out. The quest to make Castro into a thing requires an erasure of 2016, when not one but TWO Hispanic candidates sought the Republican presidential nomination.
Given their cheerleading for Castro, it appears that our domestic Spanish-language networks Univision and Telemundo will continue their boosterism. The networks’ open-borders agenda compels them to support with candidates that line up with that particular special interest, as opposed to the interests of the communities they serve.
Click Expand to read the entire transcript of the above-referenced report, as posted on July 19, 2019 edition of Politica Ya.
Entravision's Politica Ya
July 19, 2019DENNY ALFONSO, REPORTER, POLITICA YA: Mexican immigrant Victoria Castro came to the United States when she was just 6 years old. Orphaned and without having gone to school, she was adopted by a family in Texas. There she worked as a nanny and did house cleaning in order to earn a living and raise her daughter Rosie- who from a very young age learned to make a living on the streets by being an immigrant-rights activist… a legacy that remains, in Julian Castro. [TO CASTRO] How proud must you feel to be the first Latino who is seeking the candidacy to be the first Hispanic President of the United States?
JULIAN CASTRO, CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT: It’s amazing to me that just two generations ago my grandmother came from Mexico, as a little girl to this country, and now one of her grandsons... my brother Joaquin is a member of Congress, and the other is running for president.
DENNY ALFONSO: And it is precisely this history of overcoming which has challenged Julian Castro, who in 2001 was elected as the youngest city council member in San Antonio, when he was just 26 years old. Then, in 2009, he would become the mayor of the Texan city where, given his popularity and good performance, he was twice re-elected, his roots being the fundamental key to his success.
CASTRO: Our family story is an immigrant American dream story, I want to make sure that that kind of story is possible for people of all backgrounds including the Latino community, for generations to come.
ALFONSO: Castro considers himself a family man; (he is the) father of two children and a husband. The 44-year-old has devoted over half of his life to public service. He served as Secretary of Housing under the Obama administration, and his national discourse in opposition to President Trump’s inhospitable rhetoric against the Latino community has echoed throughout the halls of the White House.
CASTRO: As a candidate, I'm running to be a president for all Americans, but I also recognize especially now that there is a significance and special meaning for the Latino community. Because so many Latinos feel like there's a target on their back under this President and they know that whether the issue is immigration, or healthcare, or education, we need to make so much improvement and go in a better direction than this president has led us.
ALFONSO: He graduated with honors from Stanford and Harvard, and in a parallel life, his twin brother Joaquin Castro has positioned himself as a Congressman. Although he does not speak Spanish fluently. No matter the language...from Washington, Castro has always been a supporter of expanding the benefits provided by immigrating into this country. [TO CASTRO] One of the big questions is on immigration reform. Many Latinos want to come out of the shadows. What would be the important element under your Presidency so that many Latinos not fear and can go out to work and live, and turn that American Dream into a reality?
CASTRO: I have a plan called the People First Immigration Plan, that would put undocumented immigrants on a pathway to citizenship. It would end family detention and treat border crossing as a civil violation, a civil penalty instead of a criminal one the way that we used to do it. It would also improve our legal immigration system by increasing the number of visas, making sure that more families could unify- or reunify here in the United States. It would also get to the root of the cause, by partnering with Honduras, and Guatemala, and El Salvador, so that people can find safety and opportunity there at home, instead of having to come to the United States.
ALFONSO: Castro, who has become a light at the end of the tunnel for many Latinos who see his campaign as a direction that respects their rights, has flatly opposed construction of the wall along the border with Mexico. And if he does become President, he promises to be the voice of the voiceless.
CASTRO: Goodbye
