Castro's debate triumph is a milestone moment for Latinos

SAN DIEGO -- Julián Castro is the little engine that could. And during the first Democratic debate this week, he chugged right into the winner's circle. At least, that's how a lot of people saw it.

The New Republic declared: "Julián Castro was the first debate's big winner. ... No candidate helped their position more. ... If people didn't notice before, they will now."

MSNBC's Joy Reid tweeted that the former secretary of Housing and Urban Development had the best night because he had the "best strategy," "best time use" and "most clearly articulated reason why they are running for president."

Harvard Law School Professor Laurence Tribe commended Castro for pushing us to "decriminalize illegal border crossings." Tribe tweeted: "Sometimes being wonky is what's called for. Castro had a breakout night."

And CNN's Van Jones said Castro flattened Beto O'Rourke with a "Texas takedown."

Castro, the former mayor of San Antonio, hit O'Rourke in his soft spot. Many Democrats worry that, documentaries and magazine covers aside, O'Rourke is all sizzle and no steak.

Poor Beto. The former El Paso congressman is that guy we all know from college, who got far in life on grins and good hair. Born on third base, O'Rourke always figures he can steal home. Ask him a question, and he'll give you a lovely answer -- to a whole other question.

Discussing immigration, Castro scolded his opponent: "I think you should do your homework on this issue."

That stung. When you see a gut-wrenching photo of a toddler hugging her father after they both drowned in the Rio Grande, you get the message: This is serious business, best discussed by serious people. What good is it that you speak Spanish if what you say is gibberish?

Castro also scored big in the "Google primary." NBC News reported that searches for the 2020 Democratic hopeful spiked up by more than 2400% during the debate. "Castro" also trended on Twitter for more than 12 hours following the event, with many people insisting that the former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development had won them over.

For someone who has been criticized for playing it safe, Castro got kudos for his impassioned remarks about how the humanitarian crisis on the U.S.-Mexico border should anger us all, and for asking why white police officers find it easier to apprehend "without incident" white suspects who are armed than black suspects who are unarmed.

He also delivered one of the big applause lines of the night when, in his closing remarks, he promised that, in January 2021, Americans will say "adios" to President Trump. Before long, #AdiosTrump was also trending.

Finally, before the night was over, other candidates were agreeing with Castro on policy initiatives, which reinforced the idea that he has led the way in proposing specific solutions to our problems.

What do I take away from all this, as someone who has known Castro for nearly 20 years?

Simply this: I'm not surprised my friend did well. Grit is more valuable than glitz. Hard work pays off. There is no substitute for preparation and putting in the time on the issues. Castro "wonked" out and led the pack. He was confident but not cocky, passionate but not overly emotional, measured but not boring. He successfully struck one delicate balance after another.

I still have concerns. I'm not sure if he could stand up to Trump, who is a kind of human dumpster fire. I also worry that someone who started off as a moderate -- as are many Mexican Americans -- might drift so far to the left on social issues that he'll never find his way back to the center.

Nonetheless, Castro has earned the glory of this moment. Not bad for a candidate who has been polling at 1% in Iowa, and 0% in New Hampshire, and someone that the New York- and Washington-based media have largely ignored.

That reminds me. How do you define white-woman privilege? It's when a Latino wins a presidential debate and media commentators respond with: "You know, he'd make a great running mate for Elizabeth Warren!"

Move aside, Joe Biden. The Massachusetts senator is the media's new favorite Democrat. Warren got the first question of the night from NBC's Savannah Guthrie, and her proposals -- on free tuition, taxing the wealthy and breaking up tech companies -- were the focus of the next three questions to other candidates. Then Guthrie returned to Warren to explain her own positions. That's love.

As Castro showed in a historic performance, Latinos have come a long way in presidential politics. But there is still a long road ahead.

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Ruben Navarrette's email address is ruben@rubennavarrette.com. His daily podcast, "Navarrette Nation," is available through every podcast app.