President Barack Obama announced San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro to be the nation's next housing secretary on Friday, the Associated Press reported.
His nominations gives a prominent national platform to one of the Democratic Party's most celebrated up-and-comers, according to the AP. Obama also announced he was nominating current Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan to run the White House budget office.
"Just because you are of modest means does not mean that your aspirations or your opportunity ought to be limited, and it certainly means you can have the talent to succeed and achieve the American Dream," Castro said as he accepted the nomination in the State Dining Room of the White House, the AP reported.
Castro, who is Mexican-American, would become one of the highest-ranking Hispanic officials in government if confirmed by the Senate, according to the AP.
As a Democrat, Castro's options for climbing the political ladder were severely constrained in Texas, where every statewide office is held by a Republican and Democrats haven't won a statewide race in 20 years, the AP reported.
In elevating Castro to a Cabinet-level post, Obama gives Castro perhaps his best chance to establish his credibility nationally as Democrats seek to shore up a bench of promising candidates for future races, according to the AP.
"They are proven leaders. They are proven managers. They are going to be effective and most importantly, they've got huge heart," Obama said, the AP reported.
Obama had sought to bring Castro into the administration in the past, but he decided to stay in the job he says he looked forward to while growing up, according to the AP. Castro handily won a third term in San Antonio last year.
Castro will manage the $47 billion budget of the housing department at a time when there is evidence of renewed weakness in the U.S. housing market that is worrying policymakers and private economists, the AP reported.
The job will give Castro an opportunity to work on economic issues that are important to lower, and middle-class Americans, who make up a large part of the Democratic Party's political base, according to the AP.
