According to reports, Democrat Rep. Joaquin Castro (D., Texas) met with the head of a progressive state-level advocacy group to “plot ways to undermine Republican governors who have resisted federal efforts to relocate Syrian refugees to their states.” The Washington Free Beacon,
In a conversation at a Capitol Hill coffee shop on Tuesday afternoon, Rep. Joaquin Castro (D., Texas) and Nick Rathod, head of the State Innovation Exchange, discussed the need to enlist Democratic mayors to put political pressure on those governors.
“The mayor of Boston, the mayor of Houston, those guys could be fighting against their governors,” said Castro. “You can push the states in a more progressive direction from the cities.”
Castro also cited Newark, “another place where you can score some points against a prominent Republican governor.” Rathod suggested Detroit due to its high numbers of Muslim immigrants. That city’s mayor “should be standing up and sticking it to the Michigan governor,” he said.
The conversation was transcribed and relayed to the Washington Free Beacon by an individual who overheard the meeting. Another source who was also present for the conversation confirmed the account. Both spoke on condition of anonymity.
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