Castro brothers to storm battleground states for Clinton

WASHINGTON — Two of Texas' most notable Democrats, the Castro brothers, will spend the final weekend before Election Day barnstorming the country for their party's nominee, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. 

From Thursday through Election Day, Julián Castro, the U.S. secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and Joaquin Castro, a congressman from San Antonio, will stump for Clinton in Nevada, Colorado, Iowa and Ohio, then finish their trip at a state party event in Houston. 

Julián Castro told The Texas Tribune in an interview that the pitch for Clinton would be about experience.

"She has been overwhelmingly supported by people across the political spectrum because people realize that in an unprecedented way, the choice is very clear in this election between Hillary Clinton, who is very qualified and ready to be president and wants opportunity for everyone, and Donald Trump, who even many Republicans recognize is not qualified to be president and who wants to pick and choose who gets opportunity in this country," he said. 

Clinton was said to have seriously considered Julián Castro to be her running mate before ultimately opting for U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, a Virginia Democrat. 

The Castros make up one of the most prominent Latino brands in American politics and will likely target a crucial voting bloc in Colorado and Nevada: Hispanic voters. But they will also be pitching Clinton in two mostly white states, Iowa and Ohio. 

They were early Clinton backers and prominent on the campaign trail throughout her primary campaign.

The brothers spent recent days barnstorming their home state to boost Clinton's numbers — which polls show are closer than normal in a Texas presidential contest — and to help down-ballot candidates. 

Julián Castro said he was "very encouraged" with the response and the early vote returns, adding that he sensed strong Democratic enthusiasm in the state. 

He said he anticipates the enthusiasm extending to independents and some Republicans who were inflamed by a tweet by state Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller that Castro described as having "embarrassed the state of Texas."

Miller said a staffer used the Twitter account to errantly push out a profane term to describe Clinton. 

"I'm confident we're going to have a much stronger showing, and it will be much closer than usual," Castro said of Clinton's prospects of carrying Texas. "I think there's an outside chance of winning Texas, but certainly there will be an improvement over 2008 and 2012." 

Read more:

• Joaquin Castro pressed FBI Director James Comey for information involving a renewed probe into Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s email server.  

• The Castro brothers campaigned for Democrats up and down the ballot in Texas.  

• Joaquin Castro blasted U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz for endorsing GOP nominee Donald Trump.