HUD Secretary Julian Castro: On housing, Texas and 2016

WASHINGTON — Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro, the youngest member of President Obama's Cabinet and a rising Latino star in American politics, says it will take more than nominating a Hispanic candidate for Republicans to make major inroads among voters in the fast-growing demographic group.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Cuban-Americans who have announced campaigns for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016, are "very intelligent, very talented individuals," Castro said. But "the challenge for the Republican Party with the Hispanic community are the policies, and until they change their policies and the approach that they have on immigration, on education, on health care, they aren't going to resonate effectively with the Hispanic community."

In 2012, exit polls of voters showed Republican nominee Mitt Romney received just 27% of the Hispanic vote.

In an interview with Capital Download, Castro discussed plans to commemorate the approaching 20th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing, his department's efforts to boost the sluggish housing recovery, Democrats' hope of turning his home state of Texas from red to purple, and speculation that he might end up on the list of prospects for Hillary Clinton's running mate.

Hours after she formally announced her presidential campaign Sunday, the New York Daily News posted a story online that declared "it's not too early to speculate about Hillary Clinton's running mate" and listed Castro at No. 1. "Young, Hispanic and telegenic," it said. The Daily Beast wrote that he was "in VP training camp."

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The headline in the Christian Science Monitor asked, "Hillary Clinton-Julian Castro 2016: An already inevitable Democratic ticket?"

"Who wouldn't be flattered to be on a list like that?" Castro said with a broad smile. "However, I've found that in life the number one thing that you can do to create a great future for yourself is do a great job with what you're doing right now, with what's in front of you. And so I'm just trying to do an excellent job at HUD."

While he said "I'm not holding my breath that's going to happen," he also didn't exactly rule out the possibility. He has met Hillary Clinton but doesn't know her well. When he took the HUD job, former president Bill Clinton called and offered him advice.

At age 40, Castro has had a fast rise. His mother was a local political activist in San Antonio; his identical twin brother, Joaquin, is now a Democratic congressman. Julian Castro was the youngest city council member elected in San Antonio, at 26, edging out the record set by Henry Cisneros (who, by the way, also served as HUD secretary, in the Clinton administration).

Castro, mayor of San Antonio from 2009 to 2014, was confirmed for the Cabinet post last July.

Early next week, Castro plans to travel to Oklahoma City for events and meetings to mark the 20th anniversary of the April 19, 1995, bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Office Building. The attack killed 168 people, among them 35 HUD employees. Some who were working at HUD then are still with the agency. "I know it will be an emotional and special moment," he said.

At the time of the bombing, he was a junior at Stanford University, contemplating a career in government and politics. He remembers watching all the news he could about the bombing on the TV in his dorm's lounge.

"In its own way, it helped give Americans a sense of how committed our federal workforce is, that they're not this two-dimensional caricature," he said of the bombing's lasting impact. "That moment in 1995, I believe, was a window for all Americans to see the dedication that federal workers had."

Follow @SusanPage on Twitter. See more from the interview on WUSA9 on Sunday at 8:30 a.m.