Posted on 02/24/2007 12:55:40 PM PST by Extremely Extreme Extremist
WESTON, Fla. (AP) -- For Broward County Democratic Party Chairman Mitch Ceasar, the presidential campaign of New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson has meaning far beyond how well the candidate does against his better-know rivals.
Richardson, who was scheduled to speak at a Broward Democrats' dinner Saturday night, represents two important growth targets for the Democrats, Ceasar said: he's Hispanic, and he's from a western state once considered solidly Republican.
``The challenge will be for him to show not just that he's the Hispanic candidate, but that he can mobilize that base,'' Ceasar said. ``His ability to do that will be measured and considered by all candidates in the future.''
Joe Garcia, executive vice president of the NDN Network and a Miami Democratic activist, said Richardson represents ``what the new Democratic Party will look like'' as it works to attract Hispanics and make inroads in western states. Richardson's mother is Mexican.
``I think he offers tremendous opportunity for the growth of the party in areas where the party needs to grow,'' Garcia said.
Yet in Florida and elsewhere, Richardson's main problem is that his name is not Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton or even John Edwards. He trails far behind those top-tier candidates in name recognition and fundraising, despite a sterling resume that has included stints as ambassador to the United Nations, energy secretary, member of Congress and twice-elected New Mexico governor.
``Richardson is credible. He's got good name recognition in Democratic circles and he has had long experience in government,'' said Aubrey Jewett, political science professor at the University of Central Florida. ``If there were no Hillary and Obama, he would be right in the thick of it.''
Florida's Hispanic population differs politically from most of the rest of the country because of its dominance by Cubans, who are overwhelmingly Republican largely because of perceptions that the GOP is more staunchly anti-Fidel Castro.
It didn't help Democrats when President Bill Clinton's administration decided in 2000 to send Elian Gonzalez back to Cuba after the boy was rescued floating on an inner tube and his Miami-based relatives and supporters fought to keep him in the United States.
Garcia, however, said many younger Cubans are more open to supporting Democrats, who do well among other major Hispanic groups such as Mexicans and Puerto Ricans. Jewett said Richardson is important as a symbol of Democratic outreach efforts to Cubans and others, even if he faces an uphill battle to actually win the Democratic nomination.
``To have candidate who is an Hispanic, if nothing else it shows that Democrats are inclusive and that's a message the party wants to send,'' Jewett said. ``It keeps him in the game. I don't think it's enough to put him over the top.''
Other Democrats running for the 2008 nomination are Sens. Chris Dodd of Connecticut and Joe Biden of Delaware; Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich; and former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel. Some activists hold out hope that former Vice President Al Gore, who narrowly lost to President Bush in the disputed 2000 election, may still enter the race.
Oh, and don't forget ... a Clinton 'gofer'!
Almost two more years of blatant hispandering. I think I am going to have to turn everything off.
At the grass roots level, people in this country are sick of being openly invaded by illegal immigrants and our politicians saying "that's fine....let's bring in more".
In the frame of mind of a huge majority of people in this country, voting for him is like advertising for more illegals to come piling in.
Ping to a King Bill propaganda post.
yeah we know him,thats Bill Clintons mexican pimp,he;s famous for that.
My bet is he is Clinton's choice for running mate. The republicans are terrified of losing the hispanic vote to the dems.
Oh, come on, when and if Hillary needs to find a Hispanic relative, ancestor, cousin, roommate, half-sister, godfather, or the like, you can be certain that she has staff who can manufacture them on demand...
A greedy criminal is the same in any language.
Richardson? Wasn't he Clinton's bag-man at the UN? Wasn't he the guy who was charged with giving Monica a job? What a sad stooge he was, and, probably still is.
I never realized that "Richardson" was a Hispanic name...
That's a laugh. Democratic voters outnumber Republicans in this state. However, until recently, a lot of Hispanics were conservative. Richardson was/is a carpetbagger who early on decided to set up shop here and craft a political future by touting his ethnicity. See the series:
High Ambition: Richardson Eyes the White House - Part 5 (Planning for the Presidential Race)
Boy! Talk about being ancient! I remember voting when just being American was enough. I don't know about these newfangled qualifications.
Finally! Someone acknowledges Richardson is a carpetbagger! Thanks cedardave...everyone else seems to forget that little fact about Richardson being an "outsider".
Richardson’s father was an Anglo and his mother is a Mexican National. Something that everybody needs to know is during his first year as Governor he signed a executive order establishing New Mexico as a Sanctuary State for illegals. His whole time as our Governor has been about him and setting the stage for a National Run for office. Once he is gone the state will be faced with dealing with his mess.
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