Posted on 10/20/2007 6:39:22 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
WASHINGTON -- The Republican Party's highest-ranking Latino official abruptly resigned Friday, marking the latest casualty in the GOP's bitter internal fight over immigration and dealing another setback to President Bush's years-long effort to court Latino voters.
The announcement by Sen. Mel Martinez of Florida that he was quitting as general chairman of the Republican National Committee came after he had expressed frustration over the tenor of the immigration debate within his party. ...
"Mel Martinez was a symbol of the party's outreach to Latinos, and that seems to be disappearing," said Lionel Sosa, a longtime Republican strategist and advisor to GOP presidents since Ronald Reagan. ...
The White House had engineered the ascent of the Cuban-born Martinez over the objections of many conservatives as part of an effort to repair the GOP's image among Latinos. That image suffered when Republican congressional leaders and conservative activists stymied administration-backed measures that would have created a path to citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants.
Some GOP strategists say the party's poor performance among Latino voters in 2006 helped ensure Democratic victories across the country. Now, some worry that Martinez's early exit from the RNC foreshadows more trouble in 2008.
Robert de Posada, president of the Republican-leaning Latino Coalition, said Martinez's departure is especially disheartening because it follows the resignation of another high-profile Latino in the GOP: former U.S. Atty. Gen. Alberto R. Gonzales.
"The message that it sends is Latinos are not welcome," De Posada said. "The radical conservative base has a temporary victory right now."
The RNC will be run by Mike Duncan, who shared the title of chairman and was responsible for the party's day-to-day operations.
--snip--
Bush issued a brief statement saying that Martinez "represented the best of the Republican Party and its core values."
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
You won’t be missed.
“Now....to get rid of Grahamnesty!”
Yep. I hope the good people of South Carolina have not forgotten this little punks treachery.
I may have to move back to SC just to vote against this turd.
Ya get some ‘good’ stuff FRom “Reliable Sources” like the Times and AP Rooters AFP. ;-)
Hopefully it helps to show the full spectrum of thought out there today.. makes ya see Pink.
bumping that. : )
have their town runover by the ticks. They’re sucking us dry and killing us.
Well, corporate GREEDholders likely are, as well as pro open border lobbyists and other special interests groups...but, those aren't THE PEOPLE, are they?
They are.
But the hosts which are still sleeping, don’t even realize the leaches are killing them, slowly, daily.
I can't wait to see him booted out. I may just have to buy some champagne in anticipation of that very occasion!
. Good post potlatch!
Nope, amigo, it's really that activist pro-amnesty Jorge Bush-appointed moles are not welcome in the highest GOP echelons.
We are NOT estupido.
Comprende usted?
Leni
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
Nope, amigo, it's really that activist pro-amnesty Jorge Bush-appointed moles are not welcome in the highest GOP echelons.LOL...worth repeating!!!We are NOT estupido.
Comprende usted?
The Lonely Bull.
Lol, thanks devolve!
“I doubt Sen. Mel will even win renomination, presuming he runs at all.”
It depends on who runs against him.
“This will become, more and more, the prevailing attitude of most Americans as soon as they either 1) wake up from their lazy slumbers or 2) have their town runover by the cockroaches.”
5 years ago, only the western states had the invasion. Now it is from Boston to Atlanta to Indiana to San Francisco.
Too bad the whole country had to be hit before Americans woke up!
Let me get this straight. He quit because some of us think the laws should be followed, and people who break them should not be rewarded? Good riddance.
susie
Thanks Bill, your a real Patriot!
I’m sure there are better *Latino* choices, but clearly our leadership puts who they want into these positions, so, it’s sort of a “by their fruits you shall know them” thing. If they put in folks (Martinez) who quit because the Republican base is not interested in giving illegal invaders citizenship, what are we to imagine they want?
susie
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