Vicente Gonzalez. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call
Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas) told CNN Sunday that he is pulling his endorsement of former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julián Castro and is giving it to former Vice President Joe Biden.
Why it matters: Gonzalez says his party needs to "narrow the field and unite as Democrats to defeat Trump."
- The switch comes after Castro and Biden clashed at Thursday night's Democratic debate, where Castro appeared to accuse Biden of not remembering earlier remarks based on his age. Castro has since denied that age was the motivation for his criticism.
- "If you're polling in the low single digits and you're not raising resources, I mean, it's clearly a recipe for disaster," Gonzalez said.
Between the lines: The 2020 Democratic nomination has 3 candidates consistently polling in front — Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Biden. But all who qualified for the debate last week have already qualified for the October debate.
- Billionaire Tom Steyer is also set to join the group, and outlying contenders still have until Oct. 1 to qualify.
Go deeper: Castro goes after Biden's health care plan and his memory