Posted on 05/19/2015 10:07:40 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Latin Post presents "Turnout," a series featuring leading Latino politicians, government leaders and advocacy groups discussing and debating the most important issues facing the Latino voting bloc.
Listen to the Unedited "Turnout" Interview with People for the American Way's Coordinator for Political Campaigns Carlos Sanchez:
(AUDIO-AND-VIDEO-AT-LINK)
More than two-thirds of the U.S. Latino electorate live in six states -- Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, New York and Texas -- but one progressive advocacy organization has been working on having anti-Latino and anti-immigrant representatives accountable and heard for Latinos across the country, especially for the presidential election season.
With people entering their names for the presidential election, People for the American Way (PFAW) has reported on anti-Latino statements made by far-right leaders and GOP-elected officials, such as Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who said he would have voted "no" on the DREAM Act, and when former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said President Barack Obama acted like a "Latin American dictator" when he announced his immigration executive orders.
As coordinator of political campaigns for PFAW, Carlos Sanchez helps drive the nonprofit's Latino vote program that exposes a "right-wing, anti-immigrant, anti-Latino rhetoric of the GOP."
"As a Latino, I'm really excited about the potential that the Latino community can have on electing the next president," said Sanchez, in regards to the 2016 presidential campaign so far. "I think immigration reform is going to be a very important issue but also income inequality and education -- issues that are really important for the Latino community."
While there appears to be diversity in the Republican presidential candidacy field, such as the inclusion of Cuban-American U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, African-American neurologist Ben Carson, Indian-American Louisiana Gov. Piyush "Bobby" Jindal, and former HP CEO Carly Fiorina -- the only female Republican candidate so far -- the priority should be on the issues.
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, along with Bush and Rubio, have ties to the Latino community. While Rubio's connection is well documented, Cruz's father is Cuban and Bush is fluent in Spanish and married a Mexican native.
"I think it's a great thing that there's diversity in the presidential ticket. I think that having Latinos (running for president) is a good thing, however, I don't think that just because one is Latino, one has the right priorities for the Latino community," said Sanchez.
"For example, the GOP has shown already it is very extreme and that they are pandering got their base. We've seen [Wisconsin Gov.] Scott Walker say that he's against legal immigration; we've seen Marco Rubio saying he's going to deport DREAMers; and we've seen Jeb Bush take stances against the minimum wage [and] against social security."
As Latino Decisions' Stella Rouse wrote, "liveable wages" have been important for Latinos yet the federal minimum wage has not increased since 2007. Polling data conducted by Latino Decisions found 55 percent of Latino voters are more likely to support an elected official who votes for a minimum wage increase.
"If the minimum wage is raised to $10.10 an hour (as it has been proposed), this means a total increase in wages of $8.5 billion in real dollars," wrote Rouse. "Advocates also stress higher wages would make Latinos less dependent on social services, thus reducing government spending, which is a benefit to the broader economy."
On how the Republican Party can improve its Latino outreach, Sanchez said the GOP has to abandon policies that hurt the Latino community and, instead, embrace policies that the will benefit the electorate.
"We also want to see the GOP hold the folks that use very anti-immigrant rhetoric accountable," Sanchez added. "Many times folks in the GOP will use anti-immigrant rhetoric without very little consequences. Very recently, a conservative leader compared immigrants to rats and cockroaches and received an applause from the audience -- that's unacceptable."
For the Democratic presidential field, the most-recognized name is former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. As Latin Post reported, Clinton has been working on earning the Latino vote by hosting an immigration roundtable discussion in Nevada where she addressed her stance on the topic and Obama's immigration executive orders.
"Secretary Clinton has taken very positive steps to earn the trust of the Latino community," Sanchez said.
"Recently, she sat with DREAMers and said she would expand executive action if Congress wouldn't take action. ... She's also hired Latinos to higher positions in her campaign and not just to do Latino-specific work."
The Latinos hired by Clinton are Amanda Renteria as the Clinton campaign's national political director and Xochitl Hinojosa as director of coalitions press, which oversees Latino, black and women-related media.
Sanchez continued, "Those are very positive steps. I do want to see what else comes out of her campaign, but I think she's moving in the right direction."
Unlike the Republican Party's presidential field, the Democrats have not been receiving much acclaim for having a diverse pool of candidates. Sanchez said it is "absolutely" important for the Democratic Party to also have diversity among their candidates.
"For those of us who care for a representative democracy, there should be diversity not just on the presidential ticket but in local and state governments as well," Sanchez said.
"Latinos, increasingly, are aware of their power, in presidential elections specifically. I think they're going to come out and vote for the president and candidate that gives them the best options in terms of policies."
I say Sanchez needs to be held accountable for aiding and abetting.
Considering Walker is out there sounding like a Tammany Hall Dem on LEGAL ingratiation and Rubio is back to his “I support illegals crap, Jeb is unsure if he wiped today and Perry is probasbly scheduling another LaRaza speech I’d say the GOP needs little help in that dept.
If I see the words Latino or diversity one more time, I’m gonna explode.
What happened to the melting pot. Clinton made it a salad, which was absurd. Who knows what to call it now.
You’re not Latino. You’re Americans whose recent ancestors came from another country, a poorer, much worse country. That is why you are here instead of there.
Whose talking about immigration? We’re concerned about the invasion of criminal illegal aliens.
Boy, somebody needed to say that.
I am a master of the obvious ;)
“What happened to the melting pot.”
That was blown up in 1965.
Not always....some swam the river some crawled under the fence, some took a train, some flew in on a plane, etc etc.....I think that Eisenhower had the right idea.....”kick them out today..”
I don’t care about their “dreams.” I don’t care about either their wants or needs. Only the US needs are relevant. We decide who to let into the country and who we allow to become our fellow citizens. If you can’t apply for entry and follow our immigration laws I don’t want you here now or ever.....period.
Until we regain our control of the border we will continue the downward spiral that Obama and the congress has set us on. For all I care deport Obama too!
Yeah, from what I remember, Rome didn’t do so well once their borders were breached.
I’ve never seen a country so willingly self destruct.
I drove a cab for a while. Had lots of Mexicans in the car. Heard lots of reasons for being here...escaping gang threats, sending money home, saving money to return home, etc. NOT ONCE did I hear it was because this is a great country and they wanted to be a part of it.
When Carlos Sanchez talks about income equality, he exposes himself as the Marxist traitor he is. The impact of all his illegal squatter comrades is more social services at the expense of the middle class.
This is the goal of the Cloward–Piven strategy: Overload the U.S. public welfare system in order to precipitate a crisis that would lead to a replacement of the welfare system with a national system of “a guaranteed annual income and thus an end to poverty”
V Rome... good point in case...
I am 1/4 Italian And therefore consider myself a “Latino.” Even though both maternal families trace back to the American Revolution......(Both grandfathers were late1800/early 1900 legal immigrants....
What’s with all these Mexican/Central American/South Americans claiming to be Italian? (Yeah I know that some South American countries have a high Italian population (Argentina) but are they “Latinos?” Poor Indian/Spaniards most likely!
what does “Latino” actually mean? I don’t know, truthfully.
My grandparents were all born in either Palermo or Naples.
I cant believe you can trace your maternal families to the revolution!! geez.
I can trace mine to 100 years ago lol.
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