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IS A LATINO DEMOCRATIC SENATOR CHALLENGING CHARLES RANGEL?

April 4, 2012 by Leave a Comment

THE HISPANIC BLOG IS THE LATEST HISPANIC NEWS BY JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ

Manhattan State Senator Says He’ll Challenge Rangel

Adriano Espaillat, a Democratic state senator who represents Washington Heights, announced on Monday that he would run against Representative Charles B. Rangel, ending months of speculation over his potential candidacy and setting the stage for a campaign that could test the strength of Latino influence in the district.

Mr. Espaillat, the first Dominican-American to serve in the State Legislature, was elected to the Assembly in 1996 and won a seat in the State Senate two years ago, with an endorsement from Mr. Rangel, a Democrat. If Mr. Espaillat wins, he will be the first person of Dominican descent to be elected to Congress.

The district’s lines have been redrawn by a federal judge as part of the decennial redistricting process, altering its demographics. The new district, which includes most of Harlem, Washington Heights and a slice of the Bronx, is about 55 percent Hispanic, compared with 45 percent in the old boundaries, according to Steven Romalewski of the City University Mapping Service at the Center for Urban Research. About 27 percent of the district’s voters are black. Mr. Rangel’s mother was black, and his father was Puerto Rican.

photo source: Getty Images

It will be a formidable challenge for Mr. Espaillat, 57, to overcome the longtime electoral strength of Mr. Rangel, 81, particularly given that the primary, on June 26, is likely to be a low-turnout event in which candidates with strong get-out-the-vote operations will have an advantage.

But Mr. Espaillat may benefit from Mr. Rangel’s recent ethics problems; Mr. Rangel and his campaign recently agreed to pay $23,000 for misusing a rent-stabilized apartment as a campaign office, and Mr. Rangel was censured in 2010 after the House Ethics Committee found him guilty of 11 counts of ethical violations, including failure to pay taxes, improper solicitation of fund-raising donations and failure to accurately report his personal income.

Adriano Espaillat (Photo: NY1)

“I believe that the people of the 13th Congressional District are searching for leadership with bold, new ideas in Washington, D.C.,” Mr. Espaillat said in a statement. “I intend to conduct a vigorous campaign that will allow a full debate on the future of our city and state. Together, we can make history and bring real change that uplifts our communities and builds a stronger New York and a stronger country.”

Mr. Rangel’s campaign responded to Mr. Espaillat’s announcement by reaffirming in a statement the congressman’s commitment to the office.

“The congressman is running to serve another full term in Congress because he firmly believes, as he did 21 times before, that he is the best candidate to make a difference in the community,” the statement said.

Mr. Rangel, a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus, said last week that speculation that he was hoping to win one more election to be able to hand off the seat to a preferred successor was untrue. “I am not in this race so I could politically manipulate the system,” he said. “I intend to serve my entire term.”

(Photo: Jonathan Ernst/Landov)

In addition to Mr. Espaillat, two other challengers say they will run in the Democratic primary: Clyde Williams, the former national political director for the Democratic National Committee, and Joyce Johnson, a former local Democratic district leader.

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SENATOR MENENDEZ, REID AND RUBIO URGE SUPPORT FOR THE CREATION OF THE SMITHSONIAN AMERICAN LATINO MUSEUM

March 31, 2012 by Leave a Comment
THE HISPANIC BLOG IS THE LATEST HISPANIC NEWS BY JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ

Bipartisan group of Senators call on the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee to include language supporting the creation of a future Smithsonian American in the Fiscal Year 2013 Interior Appropriations Bill

photo source AP
US Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Chairman of the Senate Democratic Hispanic Task Force, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), and Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) sent a bipartisan letter today to the Senate Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies requesting that the Committee include language in their Fiscal Year 2013 appropriations bill supporting the creation of a Smithsonian American Latino Museum, Latino programming and outreach through the Smithsonian’s Latino Center, as well as the recommendations ofNational Museum of the American Latino Commission.  The letter signed by 8 members overall, including Senators Harry Reid (D-NV), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Charles Schumer (D-NY), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Tom Udall (D-NM), and Dean Heller (R-NV), was spearheaded by Senator Menendez (D-NJ), Chair of the Senate Democratic Hispanic Task Force.
“Acknowledging the need for a Smithsonian American Latino Museum is an important step to its creation in the future. It is time for that we officially recognize that the success of this nation could not have been had without the social, economic, political and cultural contributions of Hispanic-Americans. That is why we must not only support the Smithsonian’s Latino Center, but lay the groundwork for a future Smithsonian American Latino Museum that has strong, bipartisan support in both houses of Congress.”

photo source AP

“For centuries, Hispanic-Americans have helped shape the history of Nevada and the country. Latinos have contributed to every facet of our lives and culture, they have spurred progress in our laboratories, playing fields, halls of justice, art, literature and the economy,” Reid said. “It is time for the country to build a place where we can honor a culture and people that are such an integral part of our national identity. Senator Menendez and I are working hard to make the Latino museum a reality.”

                                                                                                        photo source AP

“This will be an enduring monument to people who have found opportunity and refuge in America and strengthened her in return, while also serving as a tribute to this exceptional country which welcomes people and helps them realize their dreams like no other place has ever done in all of human history. With our nation facing major economic and fiscal challenges, it’s important that we also continue encouraging private fundraising efforts to make it a reality.” Said Senator Rubio. photo source AP

In November 2011, US Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Majority Leader Reid (D-NV), US Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), US Representative Xavier Becerra (D-CA) and US Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) introduced bipartisan legislation in the Senate and House of Representatives to authorize the Smithsonian’s Arts and Industries building on the National Mall as the designated location of the Smithsonian American Latino Museum. The authorization of the museum follows the recommendations of the May 2011 report of the bipartisan Commission to Study the Potential Creation of the National Museum of American Latino, a Commission that was established by law in 2008.

CLICK HERE FOR PDF OF SIGNED LETTER 

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WHO IS NEW MEXICO’S RISING STAR: GOVERNOR SUSANA MARTINEZ AND HER ULTIMATE IMMIGRANT STORY

March 30, 2012 by 1 Comment

THE HISPANIC BLOG IS THE LATEST HISPANIC NEWS BY JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez is the ultimate immigrant success story: Two generations after her Mexican grandparents arrived in the U.S., she became the nation’s first Latina governor.

And with an overall approval rating of 66 percent of New Mexicans after more than a year in office, she is arguably the most popular Republican governor in the country.

But that popularity doesn’t always translate among Hispanics, a group that in New Mexico makes up nearly half of the population.

One issue that makes many of the state’s Latino voters seethe is their governor’s stance on driver’s licenses and illegal immigrants. In her 2010 campaign, Martinez promised to repeal a law that makes New Mexico one of only three states in the country where illegal immigrants can get a driver’s license.

Gubernatorial candidate Susana Martinez is greeted by supporters Saturday during a rally in Santa Fe. - Luis Sánchez Saturno/The New Mexican

At a speech in Albuquerque last year, Martinez said getting rid of the law is a matter of public safety.

“We have thousands of individuals who come to our state from not just Mexico, but all over the world in order to gain that very valuable ID,” she said.

A bill to repeal the driver’s license law has failed three times in the state legislature, and some critics charge that Martinez’s support of that bill is really part of a long-term political strategy.

“Why she is introducing policies that are divisive to the Latino community, we could only guess that it’s for political gain,” says Adrian Pedroza, who works with Hispanic neighborhoods in Albuquerque as the director of a local nonprofit.

‘Well, I’ll Be. I’m A Republican.’

Martinez, 52, is often touted as a possible 2012 Republican vice presidential nominee, although she has said she would decline any offer.

Martinez grew up in a family of Democrats in a bilingual household in El Paso, Texas, just blocks from the border with Mexico. At 18, she worked in her father’s business as a revolver-carrying security guard outside a bingo hall.

She graduated from law school and later considered entering politics. That’s when some Republican friends took her out to dinner. It’s a story she often shares publicly.

“We talked about values; we talked about where we stood in reference to how the economy was going; we talked about welfare as being a hand up and not a way of life; we talked about the freedoms, the Second Amendment,” she says. “And I remember walking out of there and getting in the car with my husband, Chuck, and saying, ‘Well, I’ll be. I’m a Republican.’ “

Shortly after that, she ran for and was elected district attorney in the southern New Mexico county of Dona Ana.

Bringing In Latino Voters

New Mexico is considered a swing state that tends to lean in favor of Democrats, but the February Rasmussen poll shows Martinez enjoys broad support, even among Democrats, with whom her approval rating tops 50 percent. Among Hispanics in the state, 58 percent approve of the job she is doing, but 33 percent noted they “strongly disapprove” of her job performance — the highest of any group polled.

“I think because she is a Hispanic woman, she gets criticized more,” says Cindy Retana, an El Paso school principal and Martinez’s younger cousin. Retana says Martinez is being singled out for criticism because of her ethnic background. “She’s seen as forgetting where you come from, not being supportive of immigrants, which is absolutely the farthest thing from the truth.”

photo from the LA Times Blog

Martinez has said she is proud of her Mexican heritage, but she faces the same burning question as other high-profile Hispanic Republicans, like Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio: Can she make the party more appealing to Latino voters nationwide?

Forty-nine percent of Florida voters approved of Rubio's job performance. | AP Photo

That remains to be seen, but what is certain is that the GOP faces an uphill battle. Another February poll of likely Hispanic voters nationwide, conducted by Fox News Latino, shows President Obama leading either Mitt Romney or Rick Santorum by about a five-to-one margin in a prospective matchup.

The same poll found that 18 percent of respondents said they would be more likely to vote for the Republican nominee if Martinez was the vice presidential choice. When Rubio was the vice presidential candidate, that number jumped to 24 percent.

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WHAT IS THE GOP BACKED DREAM ACT?

March 30, 2012 by Leave a Comment

THE HISPANIC BLOG IS THE LATEST HISPANIC NEWS BY JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) has made it clear he wants to push for a GOP-backed DREAM Act that would give undocumented students legal status — but not citizenship — and now Republicans hope to use this watered-down version of the bill to win support from Latino voters. Sens. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) and Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) are also working on a bill like this, which is being kept under wraps and is expected to be unveiled if or when Mitt Romney wins the GOP presidential nomination.

Rubio told The Hill that he has nothing to announce about a non-citizenship DREAM Act, but said, “We’re working toward that and hopefully very soon.” While Rubio, Kyl, and Hutchinson are supposedly prepping a Republican plan, it’s worth noting that the original DREAM Act — to provide citizenship to undocumented students if they meet certain requirements — was a bipartisan plan that had support from GOP Sens. Orrin Hatch (UT) and John McCain (AZ).

Now if Rubio introduces the legal-status-only plan, it will likely be little more than posturing and doubtful to make it far because Republicans like Rep. Lamar Smith (TX), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, are categorically opposed to the DREAM Act and it is doubtful Democrats would support creating a permanent underclass of immigrants. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid pointed out that Republicans have already opposed this measure too, which would impose a class system for immigrants:

At an event on Capitol Hill, Reid cautioned that if Republicans offer a new DREAM Act, it will be a watered-down version of the bill most Republicans opposed when it came up for a vote last year. […]

[G]roups that advocate for immigrants are skeptical of reforms that fail to grant a path to citizenship.

“Any proposal that is put on the table as to the fate of these children, who are in all consideration American, should be measured by what place they’re going to have in our society,” said Clarissa Martinez, director of immigration at the National Council of La Raza.

Martinez said creating “a class of nation-less people” would not be good for the country.

Earlier this month in an interview with Geraldo Rivera, Rubio teetered between his opposition to the current DREAM Act, which would provide citizenship, and trying to lay out a plan that would appeal to Latinos. “You can legalize someone’s status in this country with a significant amount of certainty about their future without placing them on a path toward citizenship,” he argued.

But his plan would force potentially millions of undocumented students to become non-voting residents of their home country if they were only given legal status in the U.S. After the extremely anti-immigrant views that the Republican presidential candidates have staked out during the primaries, a plan to create a system of second-class citizenship is not likely to be what Latino voters are looking for from the Republican party.

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WHO IS RAUL LABRADOR: THE CONSERVATIVE CONGRESSMAN AND FORMER IMMIGRATION ATTORNEY

March 28, 2012 by Leave a Comment

THE HISPANIC BLOG IS THE LATEST HISPANIC NEWS BY JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ

For all the continual bumps in the road, the GOP is doing what it can to make inroads in the Hispanic community.  But while it seems like everyone left, right, and center has heard of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Congressman Raul Labrador (R-ID), fellow member of the class of 2010, has been behind the scenes advancing a strong conservative agenda in the House of Representatives. While Congressman Labrador has appeared on the Sunday shows a number of times, and was even a speaker at the 2011 Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C., he has not received the same attention from media circles as his colleague in the Senate, despite the accolades from the right. He recently obtained a 100% rating from the Club for Growth and previously from Americans for Prosperity, two well established conservative organizations. In addition, he made recent news for putting his money where his mouth is regarding fiscal responsibility, returning21% of his office budget to to pay down the national debt.

Raul Labrador provides the GOP with a credible face for broader immigration reform. | AP Photo

Born and raised by a single mother in Carolina, Puerto Rico, Rep. Labrador first moved to the United States in 1981 at the age of 13, but not to the usual locations of New York or Florida. A friend of his mother’s suggested Las Vegas, Nevadawhich at the time experienced an economic boom. He later graduated from Brigham Young University (where he met his wife, Rebecca) and received his law degree from the University of Washington.

So how did Congressman Labrador find himself becoming a conservative standard bearer?

Labrador’s mother was heavily involved in Puerto Rican politics, describing her as a Democrat and strong admirer of the Kennedys. “But when we moved to Las Vegas, one of the first things [my mother] did after getting a job was getting registered to vote,” says Labrador in an interview with Politic365. “And in Las Vegas, Nevada you had to register by party, and she decided to register as a Republican, which was shocking to me!”

Labrador’s mother was one of those famed “Reagan Democrats,” excited about voting for Reagan in the next primary.

It was from there that Labrador discovered Ronald Reagan, the values and principles he held, discovering the same principles Reagan held aligned with those taught at home. His mother taught him to not rely on the government, to work hard, and be successful in whatever path he chose to take, and the GOP was the party who advocated these same principles. But despite Congressman Labrador’s virtually perfect backstory for a political candidate, like Marco Rubio he had to achieve victory over the GOP Establishment by winning the 2010 primary in an upset. “I went back to the old Reagan coalition,” Labrador explained when asked how he won over the primary voters, “and I talked to all of them about exactly how the Republican Party should be. I believed the Republican Party has kinda lost its way for awhile, sometimes we are good at espousing conservative principles, but not at living them.” Like many other Tea Party candidates in 2010, Labrador’s message of bringing honest conservative principles back to the GOP and a willingness to go against the wishes of the establishment propelled him to victory as a freshman member of Congress.

U.S. Rep. Raul Labrador (R-ID) speaks at a Tea Party rally March 31, 2011 on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. The group says it is "challenging Congress and the members it helped sweep into power to take swift action on the budget." (Olivier Douliery/Abaca Press/MCT)

 A Look at the Federal Tax Code

Coming into 2012, Congressman Labrador is hoping major progress can be made towards making the current federal tax code make sense. “When you talk to Republicans, Democrats, and Independents, they’re all frustrated with the current tax code that we have.” He lamented the current tax code as one that picks winners and losers, and places the blame on both parties favoring their own special interests when altering the code, leaving the middle class to suffer the burden. He believes in a flat and fair code in which everyone should pay something, from the 40-45% of American wage-earners who pay no federal income taxes, to corporations like General Electric who takes advantage of directed tax subsidies and loopholes, and can afford the accountants, lobbyists, and lawyers to obtain them. “That’s not what makes America great.”

Immigration Reform

On the tepid relationship between Hispanics and the GOP, and in particular the issue of immigration reform, Labrador’s experience as an immigration attorney gives him a unique measure of credibility on the issue. Labrador’s biggest piece of advice to Republicans: let Hispanics know that they are welcome in the party – Hispanic principles of family and hard work form the bedrock of the GOP’s platform. He argues rhetoric from some in the Republican Party has turned off many in the Hispanic community. “We can be for a strong border, but we can also be for legal immigration and finding a system that actually works in the United States, and I think most people are frustrated with the current system of immigration.” Labrador said his goal is to help the GOP articulate a conservative consensus on legal immigration.

A Rising Star

photo source AP

From taxes, to the debt crisis, to the issues of life and entitlements, Labrador has the record to make any conservative stand up and cheer. But, a unique background mixed with an ability to become a conservative conduit to Hispanics on immigration sets him apart from the other Tea Party freshmen in Congress. If he is not already a rising star in the Republican Party, many believe he should be.

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