Days after the House of Representatives approved a bill in 2019 that would have opened a path to citizenship for Dreamers, a bill that was unlikely to pass the Senate or be signed by then-President Trump, a cloud hung over a rental home near the Capitol.
That puff of smoke in the early June sky was a way for four Texans to share their home with friends, colleagues, mentors and mentored people.
“Growing up on the border, I see a lot of mushroom clouds on the weekends. Vecinosyour Tios And everyone else too Carne Asada“There's just a mushroom cloud out there,” said Jorge Aguilar, a grilling expert who served as chief communications adviser to then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
Aguilar and housemates Carlos Sanchez, Carlos Paz and Juan Sanchez were hosting the biggest party they've had in the four years they've lived at the H Street home that Politico Playbook once called the Republic of Texas.
The four of them rose from South Texas to the top congressional positions, bringing others with them and creating a lineage of Latino staffers across the Capitol, providing a voice that was sometimes missing in the nation's capital and influencing some of the biggest issues of the day.
And the H Street House, also known as the Texas Embassy or simply the Texas House, became a central meeting place.
“I think the idea was, 'How do we bring together people who might not be in the same room,' because these are junior staffers, mid-level staffers and veteran staffers. And we had a variety of roommates that allowed us to bring these people together. And it was really great to have people who've been in Congress for 10-plus years, people who've been in Congress for five years, and newer staffers, staff assistants working together,” said Paz, who has worked in communications in several offices and is now chief of staff to Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.).
The party was an extension of the House's purpose: to provide shelter and food for its members, but also to elevate Washington outsiders to congressional aides, provide a haven from the political turmoil of the Trump administration and turn homesickness into a sail instead of an anchor.
Recruitment in your home country
“Carlos Sanchez is really the consistent character throughout all of our stories. He went to El Paso, he went to Laredo. [the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI)] And then we met Jorge,” Paz said.
“I [Carlos Sanchez] He was the one who said to Hillary Clinton during the 2016 campaign: 'You should come to Washington. I think you'd do well.'”
Carlos Sanchez's first hire was his brother, Juan, who was confirmed by the Senate in 2022 as federal co-chair of the Southwest Border Regional Commission.
The Sanchez brothers are Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) graduates who grew up in Laredo and did manual labor to pay for college, and Carlos Sanchez, who first came to Washington in 2004, credits his Texas mentor with bringing him to the nation's capital.
“Cindy Jimenez, who worked for Pelosi, is now a lobbyist. Dean Aguilen is now a lobbyist, but he also worked with Pelosi and Moses. [Mercado] “They played a key role. Dean and Cindy played a key role in me coming to Washington. Those three played a key role in my rise through the ranks in Washington. So key that until four years ago, even three years ago, I didn't realize that I'd been in government longer than they had,” said Carlos Sanchez, now chief of staff to Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-Minn.).
“I'll never forget that. And I've always wanted, number one, to bring more talented Hispanics to Washington, D.C., but number two, when I built that relationship with Carlos and Jorge, it was just like a natural, like, 'You guys should come, let's all do this together,'” Sanchez added. He also credits former White House senior adviser Adrian Saenz as a key mentor.
Carlos Sanchez and Paz developed a personal and professional relationship while working extensively together on the Clinton campaign in 2016. Paz, the only roommate not from Laredo, had experience in Washington, having attended George Washington University.
“I went to George Washington University and I was settling into Washington, D.C., and I said, 'I'm from Houston and I want to work in Houston and I want to work in Texas,' and then it really clicked when Carlos literally said, 'I think you'd do well in D.C.,' and he said, 'You should come over, you should stay on my couch and I'll introduce you to people,'” Paz said.
“He gives a very coherent explanation and makes it seem as if his arguments are very logical. [he] “I was told, 'If you don't find work in three or four months, you can come back and keep racing, but if you find work, we'll see what happens.' The rest is history.”
Aguilar, now a K Street strategist and Laredo native who graduated from TAMIU, approached Carlos Sanchez, who was recruiting students for CHCI's internship program at his alma mater.
“Every class I took, I would say, 'Here's my email address, here's my phone, here's my brochure. If you apply, let me know and I'll recommend you,' and then Jorge would come up to me after class,” Carlos Sanchez said.
Aguilar received a fellowship from former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) and took a job with the Obama campaign in Nevada in 2012.
The Texas Embassy was born…
A few years later, the Sanchez brothers and Paz had moved to Washington and were adjusting to the new reality of working for minorities with President Trump in the White House.
Carlos Sanchez suggested the three of them move in together, and they found a house on H Street but needed someone to fill the fourth bedroom. Jorge Aguilar came to mind immediately, Paz said.
The group quickly settled into a routine: In the evening, after work, the four housemates would cook dinner together and talk about sometimes personal issues, often work-related issues.
“We challenged each other a lot. We were always talking about our professional growth. We were talking about how to approach certain scenarios. We were also talking about ways we could help each other and utilize each other,” Aguilar said.
The exchange wasn't particularly dramatic, but one recurring argument has turned into an inside joke.
“Jorge was always trying to rest.[stairs] “He worked for Pelosi at the time, so, you know, he could be quite demanding, especially in terms of communication. But we enjoyed each other's company. Let me say this: Jorge would say he wanted to go to bed, he wanted to go upstairs, but he was easy to convince and he didn't really want to go. So, it didn't take much to get him to stay,” Carlos Sanchez said.
For Aguilar, the struggle was real.
“I'm an early riser, so I both love it and hate it. I love getting up early,” Aguilar said.
“I'd get home from work around 8:30, and we'd go get pizza or tacos or whatever, or have a barbecue outside, and we'd just talk in the backyard or in the living room. We'd talk until late into the night, sometimes a little past midnight. But I always wanted to be the first one to go home, but I didn't want to miss out on any conversations that I could learn from and grow and get better at.”
On weekends, the group would call Texas and often welcome a fifth weekend roommate, Julio Obscura, into their home.
“Juan loved paella and bean dishes; he loved charro beans. Carlos Paz loved to make breakfast, he loved to make cinnamon rolls. His specialty was sweets,” Aguilar said.
“Carlos, Carlos. Believe it or not, Carlos. [Sanchez] Do it well Carne Asada Me too. One day I came home late from work. Carne Asada But I couldn't cook it on time. He cooked it for me and it was really delicious.”
However, Aguilar remained the official provider of the mushroom cloud.
“I was the poor substitute. I was the poor man's Jorge. It was Jorge. First of all, he's really talented and has a passion for grilling. And he makes it taste like home cooking,” said Carlos Sanchez.
“I wasn't really a stand-in. I was more of a director. This is what we're doing, this is who we're inviting. So I kind of set the table. Figuratively, because it was my brother who physically set the table.”
…and Live On
In 2021, the group reluctantly decided to disband: Aguilar was getting married and expecting a baby, his long-distance girlfriends and wives were moving into town, and the lease on the Texas Embassy was up for renewal.
“Every moment was special. Every moment was amazing, honestly. Every moment was monumental to me. I felt like I needed to be grateful for every single one of them. That's what I learned from them: be grateful for the moments, be grateful for the time I have here, just keep your head down and keep doing your best,” Aguilar said.
But the group still meets regularly, inviting leaders, new leaders and former leaders to backyard get-togethers that often feature mushroom clouds created by grillmaster Jorge Aguilar.
“We have shared some of the most important moments of our lives, both professionally and personally, and supported each other through difficult times. When our parents got sick, when friends passed away, when family members passed away, we still make it a habit to stay in touch. We try to get together at least once a month to talk to each other and have a text group chain. I consider myself very lucky to have these people in my life,” Paz said.
