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Posted on 08/30/2003 7:14:29 PM PDT by Pharmboy
DELANO, Calif. (AP) - Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante accepted the endorsement of farmworkers in California's gubernatorial recall election Saturday, and fended off criticism of his past involvement with a Mexican-American student group that opponents have labeled racist. The United Farm Workers union is among several groups that have endorsed Bustamante while opposing the recall effort against Democratic Gov. Gray Davis.
"I'm proud to stand with United Farm Workers, who I have marched with shoulder to shoulder, the farmworkers who are the heart of the agriculture industry," Bustamante, the grandson of Mexican immigrants, told a cheering crowd of more than 100 farmworkers and their families, speaking first in English and then Spanish. "Those hands bring food to our tables."
Bustamante's enthusiastic welcome in Delano, the symbolic heart of the state's farm labor movement, was countered by questions about his fund-raising and his previous involvement with the Chicano Student Movement of Aztlan, or MEChA, while a student at Fresno State University in the 1970s. The group has called for a separate Chicano nation.
Republican candidate state Sen. Tom McClintock has called MEChA a racist organization and asked Bustamante to renounce his membership.
On Fox News on Saturday, Bustamante was asked whether he renounced a slogan of the group: "For the race everything. For those outside the race, nothing."
He responded that he loved his culture and would represent the entire state if he became governor.
"My politics ... have grown to a point where I'm a very inclusive individual, and all you have to do is look at the politics I've shared and the kind of politics that I've had," Bustamante said.
When pressed a fourth time for a more direct answer, Bustamante said, "Racial separatism is wrong... You have to look at what people do, not just what they say, and I think I've demonstrated my ability."
Bustamante is asking Californians to vote against recalling Davis in the Oct. 7 election, but also to choose him as a replacement candidate in case Davis is ousted.
Saturday's UFW event was held at the site where Sen. Robert F. Kennedy embraced the union's legendary leader, Cesar Chavez, after Chavez ended a 25-day fast in 1968. The union sought to emphasize distinctions between Bustamante and his leading Republican opponent, actor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Near the speakers' podium was a photograph of the action star hugging former Gov. Pete Wilson, who inspired anger among many Hispanics for his support of Proposition 187. The 1994 initiative that denied many services to illegal immigrants has since been mostly voided by the courts.
Schwarzenegger has said he supported the proposition and named Wilson as a co-chairman of his campaign. Bustamante opposed it.
With the crowd chanting, "Viva Bustamante, Viva Cesar Chavez," UFW President Arturo Rodriguez said the union didn't want "another governor who is against farmworkers and for corporate agriculture."
Schwarzenegger spokesman Sean Walsh responded that Schwarzenegger has been a consistent advocate for children, including those of immigrants.
"Arnold Schwarzenegger has been in with the immigrant community, is an immigrant himself, and through his actions has demonstrated hope, opportunity and made a real difference in the lives of Latino immigrants and all children," Walsh said.
In another campaign issue, Schwarzenegger criticized Davis' recent decision to offer tribal leaders a lead role in selecting two of the five members of the California Gambling Control Commission.
Schwarzenegger said the offer presents a potential conflict of interest, but Davis, a frequent recipient of tribal campaign donations, said he made it because he's trying to find quality candidates.
California gambling tribes have reportedly spent more money on state political campaigns than any other interest group since 1998, in excess of $120 million.
A $500,000 donation Bustamante received from the Pechanga Band of Mission Indians has helped fuel questions about the propriety of his fund-raising methods.
The state's Fair Political Practices Commission contends he is violating the spirit of laws that limit donations to $21,200 per donor.
Bustamante lawyers said it's legal to donate significantly higher amounts to a campaign committee that existed before the rules changed. The commission is supporting a bill in the Legislature that would ban the practice.
In the San Francisco Bay area, meanwhile, 38 of the record 135 gubernatorial candidates gathered aboard the decommissioned aircraft carrier USS Hornet in Alameda on Saturday to discuss ways of raising their profiles. Members of the group said they have grown tired of being lumped into a huge batch of recall candidates.
"My goal was to change it from entertainment to a serious news event. I think we've been successful," said Cheryl Bly-Chester, one of the candidates who helped organize the informal meeting.
Candidate Gino Martorana said he was frustrated that the meeting didn't produce a unified direction for the candidates, but instead highlighted their disparate voices.
"Not one of us has a chance to win, so we have to be able to say something that has some kind of substance," Martorana said. "It was basically posturing. I'm not looking for that kind of publicity."
It was the first in a series of Labor Day weekend appearances planned by candidates in the Oct. 7 recall election.
"I'm proud to stand with United Farm Workers, who I have marched with shoulder to shoulder, the farmworkers who are the heart of the agriculture industry," Bustamante, the grandson of Mexican immigrants, told a cheering crowd of more than 100 farmworkers and their families, speaking first in English and then Spanish. "Those hands bring food to our tables."
The UFW last week endorsed Bustamante while opposing the recall effort against Gov. Gray Davis, who faced questions Saturday about his offer to allow Indian tribes a role in selecting members for a commission that oversees tribal gambling.
Bustamante's enthusiastic welcome in Delano, the symbolic heart of the state's farm labor movement, was countered by questions about his fund-raising and his previous involvement with a Mexican-American student group that opponents have labeled racist.
On Fox News, he was questioned about his involvement with the Chicano Student Movement of Aztlan, or MEChA, while a student at Fresno State University in the 1970s. Republican candidate state Sen. Tom McClintock last week called MEChA a racist organization and asked Bustamante to renounce his membership in the group, which has called for a separate Chicano nation.
Bustamante was asked whether he renounced a slogan of the group: "For the race everything. For those outside the race, nothing."
He responded that he loved his culture and would represent the entire state if he became governor.
"My politics ... have grown to a point where I'm a very inclusive individual, and all you have to do is look at the politics I've shared and the kind of politics that I've had," he said. "I think that I've demonstrated not by words but by deeds who I am and defined myself and my politics."
When pressed a fourth time for a more direct answer, Bustamante said, "Racial separatism is wrong... You have to look at what people do, not just what they say, and I think I've demonstrated my ability."
Later in the day, McClintock told Fox News that "any candidate who believes that race ought to be used for politics has disqualified himself from serious consideration by the voters of California."
Arnold Schwarzenegger, the leading Republican seeking to replace Davis if the governor is recalled, last week faced criticism about his membership on the advisory board of U.S. English, a group that supports making English the country's official language.
A leading national Latino group urged Schwarzenegger to resign from the board, saying his involvement raised questions about his commitment to immigrants.
The UFW sought to draw a distinction between Bustamante and Schwarzenegger. Near the speakers' podium was a photograph of the action star hugging former Gov. Pete Wilson, who inspired anger among many Hispanics for his support of Proposition 187. The 1994 initiative denied many services to illegal immigrants but since has been mostly voided by the courts.
Schwarzenegger has said he supported the proposition and named Wilson as a co-chairman of his campaign. Bustamante opposed it.
The UFW held Saturday's event in one of the union's most sacred places. The site is where Sen. Robert F. Kennedy embraced Chavez, the farm labor movement's legendary leader, in 1968 after Chavez ended a 25-day fast.
With the crowd chanting, "Viva Bustamante, Viva Cesar Chavez," UFW President Arturo Rodriguez said the union didn't want "another governor who is against farmworkers and for corporate agriculture."
Quoting Chavez, Rodriguez said, "'There's something more important than the color of your skin. It's what side you're on,'" he said. "We support no on recall but yes on Bustamante, because Cruz Bustamante is on the right side and Arnold is not."
Schwarzenegger spokesman Sean Walsh responded that Schwarzenegger has been a consistent advocate for children, including those of immigrants.
"We agree with Cesar Chavez: Arnold Schwarzenegger has been on the side of children for over a decade in working in the schools to make sure they go to college, stay out of gangs and have a safe place to be when they have two parents working," Walsh said. "Arnold Schwarzenegger has been in with the immigrant community, is an immigrant himself, and through his actions has demonstrated hope, opportunity and made a real difference in the lives of Latino immigrant and all children."
Schwarzenegger also criticized Davis' offer this week to tribal leaders, offering them a lead role in selecting two of the five members of the California Gambling Control Commission. He said it presents a potential conflict of interest.
Davis, a frequent recipient of tribal campaign donations, said the offer was made to find quality candidates.
California gambling tribes have reportedly spent more money on state political campaigns than any other interest group since 1998, in excess of $120 million.
Bustamante also faced questions about the propriety of his fund-raising methods after receiving a $500,000 donation from the Pechanga Band of Mission Indians.
The state's Fair Political Practices Commission contends he is violating the spirit of laws that limit donations to $21,200 per donor. But Bustamanate lawyers said it's legal to donate significantly higher amounts to a campaign committee that existed before the rules changed.
Bustamante has received $1.1 million in four separate donations in recent days to his 2002 lieutenant governor's campaign account. The money is then being shifted to a new committee raising money for his candidacy in the recall election.
-- By Kim Baca, Associated Press Writer
http://www.sacbee.com/content/politics/recall/story/7322679p-8266917c.html
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