Democratic Convention Day 1: Keynote Speaker Julian Castro’s Address (Excerpts)

Sections of San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro’s speech have been released a few hours before he’s scheduled to address the Democratic National Convention as its keynote speaker. Castro is considered a rising star in the party.

Among the subjects the relatively unknown Democrat (at least nationally) will talk about is his background:

“My grandmother didn’t live to see us begin our lives in public service.

“But she probably would’ve thought it extraordinary that just two generations after she arrived in San Antonio, one grandson would be the mayor and the other would be on his way — the good people of San Antonio willing — to the United States Congress!”

According to the excerpts, Castro will also go after President Obama’s Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney.

“Mitt Romney, quite simply, doesn’t get it. A few months ago he visited a university in Ohio and gave the students there a little entrepreneurial advice.

“ ‘Start a business,’ he said. But how? ‘Borrow money if you have to from your parents,’ he told them. Gee — why didn’t I think of that?”

Finally, Castro will build a case for why the country should give Obama another four-year term in the White House:

“Four years ago, America stood on the brink of a Depression. Despite incredible odds and united Republican opposition, our president took action. And now we’ve seen 4.5 million new jobs.

“He knows better than anyone that there’s more hard work to do. But we’re making progress. And now we need to make a choice. It’s a choice … between a country where the middle class pays more, so that millionaires can pay less … or a country where everybody pays their fair share.

“It’s a choice between a nation that slashes funding for our schools and guts Pell Grants … or a nation that invests more in education. It’s a choice between a politician who rewards companies that ship American jobs overseas … or a leader who brings jobs back home.

“This is the choice before us. And to me, to my generation, and for all the generations that will come after us, our choice is clear. Our choice is a man who’s always chosen us.

“A man who already is our president — Barack Obama.”

To read more excerpts, click here.