,
15 tweets,
2 min read
Read on Twitter
We stopped by what I thought was a public Biden town hall, found out it was the other kind. Now at a Julián Castro event—he’s due to speak shortly.
The guy sitting next to me is a community college history prof, so we just had a nice chat.
Something like a hundred people here, maybe a bit more. Diverse crowd, along multiple axes.
Julián Castro is about to speak. Young supporter introducing him. 
Second speaker is Chelsea Chisholm Vargas (sp?), a Planned Parenthood staffer and Des Moines city council candidate.
Castro just introduced his wife and kids, then thanked the intern working the event by name.
Castro: Our violence crisis is dual. Guns and hate—“and the president who sits in the Oval Office day after day stoking that hate.”
Castro says we need to get Trump out, but all of us also need to work to heal the damage that’s been done and is being done.
Castro opens with education and health policy, then moves on to criminal justice reform.
Largely a checklist speech, but each beat is a self-contained policy argument. No fireworks, but solid.
Long immigration section linking morality and national self interest. Then similar on climate change—in each case, pointing to the horrors of the status quo, and the benefits to all of making things more just.
Two stories about his time on city council so far. He tells them well, integrating larger themes.
Good speech. No Q&A, but a selfie line after he does some press.
BREAKING: Julián Castro’s kid just photobombed his selfie with Casey!
(I asked if it was okay to post the photo.)
