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A second congresswoman said Thursday she is quitting the Congressional Hispanic Caucus over opposition to its male leadership. The announcement came from Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Calif., whose sister, Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Calif., quit the caucus in January and accused the group's leader of calling her a "whore." The chairman, Rep. Joe Baca, also a Democrat from Southern California, has denied saying that. But other women also have complained about his leadership. When Baca was elected chairman in November, he was supported by only one of the six women in the caucus. Since January, the 21-member, all-Democratic group has been meeting...

WASHINGTON — A Democratic love-fest came to a screeching halt Friday after a high-ranking Hispanic party official abruptly resigned amid allegations he used a racial slur during a heated argument with a black aide to Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean. Alvaro Cifuentes was chairman of the DNC's Hispanic Caucus and is well-known in national Hispanic Democratic circles. Cifuentes was attending the DNC's winter meeting in Washington, D.C., on Friday when he and the aide got into an argument. It's not clear what started the fight, but sources said Cifuentes called the aide, who is black, "boy" twice during the...

California Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez has quit the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, accusing its chairman, fellow Democrat Joe Baca, of calling her a "whore.” Sanchez was insulted when she found out that Baca had made the disparaging remark about her to California Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez and other lawmakers last year, Rep. Sanchez told The Politico. Nunez "is a friend of mine,” an angry Sanchez said. "Did he think he wouldn’t tell me?” Sanchez also cited concerns regarding the legality of Baca’s election to the chairman post in November, and about his attitude toward female legislators. Earlier this month, four female lawmakers...

Several members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) and their allies off Capitol Hill were furious that House Democratic leaders urged some of their colleagues to vote for an immigration-enforcement bill. Democratic leaders encouraged members of the Democrats’ Frontline program — which aids the party’s 10 most at-risk incumbents — to vote for the bill to avert Republican attacks that could paint the vulnerable members as soft on illegal immigration, Democratic aides and lobbying sources said. Every Frontline member ultimately voted for the immigration bill, which enjoyed the support of 36 Democrats overall. The move by Democratic leaders troubled Hispanic...

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) voted 14-1 Tuesday night to oppose the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), with four Texans abstaining and one voting against the position. The four who abstained — Democratic Reps. Charles Gonzalez, Ruben Hinojosa, Solomon Ortiz and Silvestre Reyes — are all publicly undecided about the sweeping trade agreement, but pro-CAFTA forces have said they believe they have secured the support of Ortiz and Reyes. keri rasmussen Rep. Charles Gonzalez was one of four Texas Democrats to abstain. The CHC will circulate its opposition statement this morning and make it public later in the afternoon,...

Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus are withholding their party membership dues until they receive assurances from House Democratic leaders that the party will make a concerted effort to engage Hispanic voters and better serve the needs of the Hispanic community. Lawmakers withholding their dues said that their decision was the culmination of several years of frustration with what they view as the Democratic Party’s failure to reach out to Hispanics and include them in the decision-making process. They are also increasingly concerned by results at the ballot box and of post-election surveys showing that President Bush won 44...

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Teresa Heinz Kerry, wife of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry (news - web sites), said that President George W. Bush (news - web sites)'s policies have taken educational and health care opportunities from US Latinos as they grew poorer. She said that under the Bush administration about 50 percent of Hispanic students have been unable to finish high school and that one out of three Latinos lacks health insurance. "The price of this president's failed health care policies is paid in the coin of human suffering, and for Latinos, that price is far too high," Teresa Heinz...

Ciro gives up the fight to keep seat BY T.A. BADGER Associated Press Writer SAN ANTONIO - After several ballot recounts and legal appeals, U.S. Rep. Ciro Rodriguez has conceded defeat in his fight alleging vote fraud in March's District 28 Democratic primary. Laredo lawyer Henry Cuellar ends up beating Rodriguez by 58 votes out of nearly 50,000 cast in a contest marked by barrages of bitter accusations flying in both directions. Rodriguez threw in the towel late Wednesday after the Texas Supreme Court again rejected his request that it hear his appeal from a lower court. Just as it...

Ciro surprised, disappointed by Cuellar's bid for Congress BY TRICIA CORTEZ Times staff writer If the federal courts and U.S. Department of Justice approve the new Texas redistricting map, half of Laredo will fall under the congressional district represented by Ciro Rodriguez (D-San Antonio). Rodriguez, a six-year member of Congress and chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, spoke with the Laredo Morning Times this past week about his current and future legislative priorities. He also spoke about the current political mood in Washington and what he described as the difficulties of working with the Republican administration and Republican-held Congress on...

The Democratic Party could pay a price for Senate Democrats’ effort to block President Bush’s nomination of Miguel Estrada for a federal judgeship, according to an internal GOP poll. The poll, which questioned 1,000 registered voters about the impact of the nomination on Senate Democratic candidates, found that 42 percent of respondents have a less favorable view of Democratic candidates while only 32 percent had a favorable view. Further evidence of the negative effect of the Democratic filibuster on its own party came from the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), a traditionally Democratic organization, which has become an...

Cuba’s REAL Rebels – and DuncesHumberto FontovaSaturday, Feb. 15, 2003Mayor Ed Koch’s recent article jolted me from my seat. It reminded me that Kurt Waldheim was persona non grata in the U.S. because he’d been a Nazi functionary in the Balkans and either participated in or "had knowledge of" Nazi executions of partisans. Actually, that’s fine with me. Even before those revelations, Waldheim always struck me as a sleazy liar, an obfuscator and a rat. No wonder he rose so high so fast at the U.N. He was the perfect U.N. secretary-general. But let me get this straight: "Having knowledge"...

HISPANIC LAWMAKER ANGERED BY E-MAIL By KAREN MASTERSON Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau WASHINGTON -- Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-El Paso, demanded an apology from President Bush after a White House intern circulated a strongly worded e-mail that attacked Hispanic lawmakers for voting against an Iraq war resolution. The e-mail message -- written by someone outside the White House, but forwarded to Hispanics active in politics by White House intern Jennifer Hugo -- particularly targeted the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. The caucus membership currently is all Democratic. "If they have a defense for their actions, they should deliver it to the...