Posts with the tag Hispanics

You People

Henry M — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 08:16:32 EDT

The meeting in the Capitol's Strom Thurmond Room on March 11 was a Republican effort led by Sens. McCain of Arizona, John Thune of South Dakota, and Mel Martinez of Florida to reach out to Hispanics. But two people who attended the session say they were taken aback by McCain's anger.
What began as a collegial airing of views abruptly changed when McCain spoke about immigration, according to these sources, who asked not to be identified for fear of retribution. Anonymity was also requested by a third source, who was not at the meeting but was told, independently of the other two, that McCain had displayed his notorious temper.
"He was angry," one source said. "He was over the top. In some cases, he rolled his eyes a lot. There were portions of the meeting where he was just staring at the ceiling, and he wasn't even listening to us. We came out of the meeting really upset."
McCain's message was obvious, the source continued: After bucking his party on immigration, he had no sympathy for Hispanics who are dissatisfied with President Obama's pace on the issue. "He threw out [the words] 'You people -- you people made your choice. You made your choice during the election,' " the source said. "It was almost as if [he was saying] 'You're cut off!' We felt very uncomfortable when we walked away from the meeting because of that."

Henry M

Latinos for Obama Meetings in New Mexico

William Henry Mee — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 15:51:56 EDT

campaigntrail@huffingtonpost.com

Latinos For Obama Meetings

Ms. Terry Rivera, a longtime Santa Fe County Democratic Party official, started a local chapter of the Latinos for Obama in June. She invited several people to the first meeting and had Democratic Activist Miguel Lucero talk to us about the political and social history of the Latino movement.

Miguel told us that, New Mexico’s Spanish-speaking population, was intrigued by the concepts of freedom, democracy and the “United States of America.” Under General Galven (namesake of Galveston, Texas) an army was raised to assist in the American Revolution of 1776.

Historically, New Mexico’s Spanish-speaking population, was guaranteed that elections and laws would be printed in BOTH Spanish and English by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848 that ended the “War with Mexico.” Spanish-speakers didn’t vote or voted through a ‘Patron system’ whereby a village elder would tell you who to vote for. The voters were mature males who owned land or animals. The Patron would be the largest landowner or a ‘Mayordomo’ who controlled the water rights or church properties.

As a Territory of the United States, New Mexico was desperate to become a state and local legislators knew that having people vote more and be registered in the party in power in Washington, D.C. would give the best possible support for statehood. All the Spanish-speaking voters registered Republican because Abraham Lincoln was a Republican and the idea of treating all men equally was an intriguing thought to the natives who had been conquered by the White army of the United States in 1846.

During the Civil War, the Territory (which included Arizona at the time) was divided in half and the southern half was Confederate and the northern half stayed in the Union. Most Spanish speaking people enlisted in the Union Army. The Confederates were mainly from Texas and the cotton field owners near Mesilla joined with them and Lt. Colonel John R. Baylor, CSA, made Mesilla the Capitol of the southern territory of New Mexico. The Confederate plan was to drive the Union Army out of New Mexico and then seize the gold fields near Denver to finance the War Between the States. The Confederates had won three major battles already and were ready to lay seize to Santa Fe. The Union Army withdrew and just outside of Santa Fe at Glorieta Pass they ambushed the Confederates and drove the Texans all the way back to Albuquerque and eventually Mesilla were they stayed the rest of the war. The Battle of Glorieta is dubbed the Gettysburg of the West. New Mexicans remember it as the second time Texas invaded New Mexico.

During this time, all the Spanish-speaking voters registered Republican because it was the party of the martyr Abraham Lincoln. The Republican Party also had a good platform for farmers and large landowners. It was very independent-oriented and the “rugged individualism” of President Teddy Roosevelt was a popular theme. The Spanish-speaking population stayed registered as Republicans until the Republican-caused Great Depression and the 1932 Election of FDR.

New Mexico’s Spanish speaking population is composed of the original descendants of the Spanish Conquistadors, and much later Mexican immigrants. The identity of these peoples is hard to categorize with a ‘one-size-fits-all’ label. Northern New Mexicans have always just said they were Spanish-Americans and have vehemently refused the ‘Mexican-American’ label that the U.S. Census Bureau imposed. The term “Hispanics” fit the older generation while the young activists adopted the term “La Raza” (The Race) in the 1960-70’s; even “Brown Power” and later “Chicano.” The term “Latino” which arose in the political scene in the 1990’s bundled Hispanics from Latin America, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Mexico and South America; and could cover the following racial categories: White/Caucasian or Black/African, Asian, Native American, or Pacific Islander.

But this term “Latino” had its historical roots with Maximilian I, Emperor of Mexico 1863-1867. He was placed on his throne by Napoleon III of France, the Austrian Hapsburgs and the Mexican Conservatives. The Mexican Liberals under Benito Juarez opposed him and revolution broke out. In an effort to bring all fractions together, Maximilian brought his allies from Brazil and what Napoleon III called “Latin America” and stated that all were “Latinos” including Mexicans since the Romance languages of Spanish, French and Portuguese linked them. It was a term that didn’t stick well with the locals and eventually the revolution deposed Maximilian and he was executed by President Juarez and the new democracy.

Latinos and Blacks have historically competed for jobs, housing and education; with the majority Whites pitting them against each other in this economic struggle to achieve political success.

Latinos complained about Mayor Tom Bradley’s election bid in Los Angeles in 1973, Mayor David Dinkens election bid in New York in 1989 and Mayor Willie Brown’s election bid in San Francisco in 1996; that for their voting support they were promised more economic support that never materialized.

Historically in New Mexico, we have not had a lot of Black people, but they have had generally good relations with the Latino population. In 1536, Spanish explorer Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca was shipwrecked on the coast of Texas with three others. One was Esteban (Estevan), a Moorish Servant. The four wandered through the Southwest in search of the Seven Cities of Cibola (the fabled cities of gold).

Esteban, came back with Coronado in 1540 to lead him to New Mexico and stayed in Zuni after Coronado left, welcomed as a Messiah. He eventually wore out his welcome and wreaked havoc amongst the tribal members and was put to death by them. The next Blacks in history were escaped and freed slaves that came in 1850’s out on the Santa Fe Trail from Missouri and through Texas. Then Blacks came as cowboys on the Goodnight-Loving Trail in 1866 and the Buffalo Soldiers stationed at Fort Selden from 1866 to the 1880’s. Blacks worked on the railroad in the 1880’s and 1890’s then in the Mesilla Valley cotton fields after the 1900’s. Blacks started working in the oil fields at Hobbs and at the military bases in the 1940’s at Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Clovis.

Hispano New Mexicans are very patriotic and have fought in many wars with distinction including the Indian Wars. This dates back to our quest for statehood. The Civil War required us to defend the Union to preserve our chance for statehood. Many joined the Roughriders and followed Teddy Roosevelt up San Juan Hill in 1898 hoping to win not just a war but also statehood; which was eventually won in 1912.

A few Hispanics went into World War One, but the National Guard had already been called into service to fight Pancho Villa after he attacked on American soil at Columbus, New Mexico in 1916. In World War Two, Latinos had the most casualties per capita. The New Mexico National Guard was rushed into the Philippines in 1942 to fight the Japanese and thousands died during the Bataan Death March. Korea and Vietnam also saw heavy Latino support. So that a John McCain as a war hero plays to the Latino community. It is important to educate people about his anti-veteran voting over the last 26 years.

John F. Kennedy, a Catholic, was immensely popular in New Mexico in 1960. A powerful speaker who came on a train tour---he became the hope for the poverty stricken Hispanics. His assassination devastated both the Hispanic and Blacks communities that were unified behind him. In 1964, LBJ, a Texan, was on the ballot and it didn’t thrill New Mexicans. But in 1968, Bobby Kennedy electrified crowds with his speaking ability and his ties and compassion with Cesar Chaves and farm workers gave hope to New Mexican Hispanics. To some, including myself, Obama, reminds our community organizers of the Kennedy’s message.

In the 1980’s Albuquerque became a relocation center for the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement. This included the Mariel Boatlift, the release of Cuban Prisoners by Castro, the relocation of San Salvadorian rebels, Vietnamese refugees (including Black Ameriasians children) and Haitian refugees. These relocations added different types of Spanish speakers and Blacks to the melting pot in New Mexico. Mexican and Guatemalan immigration in the 80’s, 90’s and today continue our diversity expansion.

In concluding, Mr. Lucero stated that although Northern New Mexico votes Democratic at a 60-80% rate it needs to be motivated by the Obama campaign to turn out. Instead of picking a unifying title for the organization that is better than Latinos for Obama, it is more important to be out in the local communities and be visible and use Spanish-language radio to educate people about Obama.

But why is this “unification” for Obama, the candidate, so foreign to us?

Many of the “Latinos for Obama” were in Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow Coalition. The symbol for the campaign was a rainbow of green (for environmentalists), red (for Native Americans), yellow (for Asians), white (for Whites), black (for Blacks), and brown for Hispanics. So each Democratic Party constituency had a stripe in the coalition. The fact that Jesse was Black was immaterial to the Coalition members---he was just the leader, a temporary CEO of this cause for the greater good. We had that brown stripe and that was all that mattered. When we called in phone banking and people answered “But he is a Black Man” --- and we said “So?”.

Taking this lesson from the Rainbow Coalition we have our own stripe again: it is in the ‘Hope’ and ‘Change We Can Believe In’ themes of the Obama campaign. These are messages and symbols that resonate in the Latino community that has been bypassed for so long.

William Henry Mee

Santa Fe, N.M.

Latinos are part of the US mix

Carlos E. C�rdenas — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 21:09:56 EDT

The country is about to elect it's first African American president. It's a historical moment

The image of an African American as the leader of the US will bring deep social changes to our country. His presidency will be a subtle reminder to all of us that color has no correlation with intellect. He will be a role model for the African American youth, some who will most likely follow in his footsteps. His presidency will redefine and expand the meaning of being a US American, to include more deeply the African American culture

Nevertheless, amidst this historical time, we are leaving out a large constituency. Hispanics are part of this country’s mix and they are shaping the direction of the US. However, mainstream media does not show this fact, just like they failed to showcase the political voice of African Americans for many decades. There is a lag from when the media chooses to showcase an image of our country to what is really happening. African Americans have been part of our countries’ political make up for many decades, but I feel it’s until recently that the media began to project this fact. Hispanics are currently part of this country’s political make-up but this fact is not being presented to the public.

Must 30 or 50 years pass for the media to recognize the political voice of Latinos and just then finally showcase this fact to the world?

PRE-WEEKEND BROWARD PLANS & STRATEGIES

Broward Amateur Strategist ( FL ) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 00:08:07 EDT

if your read the whole thing you'll appreciate it!! alot of info.. BUT SEND TO AS MANY FIRENDS AS POSSIBLE AND COMMENT!!!!! ''Maria Shriver said 8 inspirational words..
'We are the ones weve been waiting for'
but
'the world is the ones whos been waiting for us!'

waiting for us to lead on Global Warming..etc...ect.. (IND- favorablities)

(i think obama should use that as closgin campaign.)

Hello Everyone!! This blog is my ideas/suggestions for the weekend before the November election. We all now the United States is well aware of a massive movement that has swept across the country red and blue, he actually created a new American ''electoral color'' -- PURPLE. The human brain remembers alot, but when you vote on a Tuesday and your out on the weekend and you see massive...i mean M A S S I V E support for Obama that memory is going to stick with that person for that very important vote 3 days later. Broward County could/will offset the physical geography advantage of the conservatives in Florida (Broward County had risen to almost 1.8 million people, and increased by 10.1% between April 1, 2006 and July 1, 2006. This number is accounted for by an increase to 441,678 (25.3%) in its black population and an increase to 408,335 (22.8%)..Broward County is now "minority-majority". voter registarion needed though..35% of Floridas population in tri county area .I've listed resources and links to certain sites pertaining to the suggestion/idea.1. FRIDAY SATURDAY NIGHT (halloween/voters going out on the town)---We need big exposure in certain areas-las olas-a1a-downtown Ft. Lauderdale-downtown Miami-sawgrass mall-combing the beach-South Beach-Weston-Coral Springs-Parkland-swap shop-movie theaters in areas of higher dem pops/ & hispanic.. Also If you see parents try an angage!!!! A. FLAG WAVING-- Flag waving (Obama & American & State flag) visual is nothing but a positive.. 2 Areas of Flag Waving Needed (1)up and down las olas and a1a-downtown ft laud downtown miami south beach....(2) on major instersection/major offramps *oakland park-sr7*95-broward & 95-Sunrise-Borwas Blvd.*75 royal palm blvd area (coral springs)* YEARD SIGN ARE INMPORTANT IN ALL AREAS BUT ..in my opinions registration is over---go to the area with least supp. (w signage) http://www.united-states-flag.com/fl3x5p.html- FLORIDA STATE FLAG - PRICEhttp://www.united-states-flag.com/usflagprinpo1.html- USA Flag - PRICEhttp://bestcustomflags.com/- OBAMA FLAG/CUSTOM B. YARD SIGNS-BUMPER STICKERS-CONVERSATION-- I'll fist start off with bumper sticker (my niche is marketing/advertising) a bumper sticker is a visual advertiseent that us in south florida get an est. 800 cars a day that see that bumper sticker. (so i said it =)----Yard signs: We all know theres a sign war that has been going on for years but in this county the percentage is decresed because of the poltical lean in Broward - LIBERAL- but the point is agin VISUAL - READ THIS------------needed in all major broward (also tri county) instersections and offrapms to INTERSTATES/EXPRESSWAYS)There is growing interest in mental imagery for good reasons. First, imagery has ample potential for drawing information stored in long-term memory into working memory. This phenomenon has been called "high elaboration" by MacInnis and Price (1987), and tapping long-term memory is believed to lead to greater communications effectiveness (MacInnis and Jaworski 1989). Second, mental images have potential to be more personally relevant because they are anchored in the person's experience base and generated by his/her own mental processes. Strong relevance is a desirable facet of persuasive communications (MacInnis and Jaworski 1989). Next, imagery has the capability of being multisensory and thus could provide for multiple avenues of information processing. Triggering multiple channels of information processing is believed to enhance advertising effectiveness (Rossiter 1982; Lutz and Lutz 1978). Also, images are experiential rather than discursive; thus, they afford a richer base of raw stimuli. Finally, it can be argued that because imagery is believed to be more closely linked to long-term memory, is more personally relevant, and is richer, its effects on consumer attitudes and intentions will be more robust than stimuli which do not engage such depth and breadth of information processing. In fact, Richardson (1983) claims that the consequences of self-initiated thought imagery are indistinguishable from its genuine sensory counterparts. This contention underpins what should be the strong appeal of imagery to advertising strategists.--Conversation--conversate with people..example..''in the grocery line see a mag with obama- make a positive comment see there reaction-analyze it pos or neg...neg stae pos...pos well then...have a moment..lol =).... C. Media--keep ckeacking the event listing in the 150 mile range and if enough people call in and say theres 200 events going on today..belive they'll play a story. <---thats a big oneWell.. In my conclusion I am just a 22yo gay male working at technical support call center division in an internation satellitee company (whoms customer only get international channels 80% middle east i might add)..i make 10.00 an hour...I am just what I am but damnit I want this man in the white house!

The Latino Constituency

Carlos E. C�rdenas — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 21:20:30 EDT

It's a momentous time in the US. The possibility that Barack Obama will be the first African American president in US history seems more and more likely as time passes. His campaign exudes a sense of inevitable victory...like it's destined to win. I feel the media has picked up on this. It seems there are more African American commentators are on TV and the the media is giving African Americans more equitable time on TV to voice their opinions. It’s fascinating to watch this happen, however this should have occurred many years ago.

The US is no longer the black and white world, literally and figuratively, that existed 100 years ago. Today, Latinos are a big part of this mix. Latinos will, in the near future, become the majority of the minorities. English no longer holds a monopoly on the means of communication; Spanish has become a fierce competitor in the US. The growing use of bi-lingual education is testament to this fact. Favorite fastfoods such as pizza, hotdogs and burgers are now no longer the number one choice. It's now Mexican and other Hispanic foods that are seducing the palates of many around the US. We are now becoming "green" people a long past tradition of our Latin American "Indian" ancestors. I hope an Obama presidency will lead the country to recognize this reality and thus show the world that the US is more than just a black and white world.

Minnesota Latino Community Demonstrates Unprecedented Organizing Strength

Xavier Lopez-Ayala — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:46:20 EDT

Earlier this afternoon, Minnesota Latinos for Obama launched a major effort to raise money for a national Latino GOTV operation designed to engage and turnout millions of new Latino voters.

We'll have pictures and a full write up soon, but for now, check out the press release about the event and fundraising effort:

ST. PAUL – Today, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson joined Minnesota state Sen. Patricia Torres Ray and hundreds of members of Minnesota's Latino community for a reception at the Landmark Center in St. Paul to kick off a major push to raise more than $100,000 as Minnesota's contribution to a national Latino voter turnout program that will engage millions of new Latino voters for Barack Obama's Campaign for Change. This unprecedented financial haul is a symbol of the growing Latino organizing strength in Minnesota and the strong base of support Senator Obama has mobilized among Minnesota Latinos.

Governor Richardson spoke to hundreds of supporters about Senator Obama's plans to strengthen families, restore our economy for working Minnesotans and build strong communities.

"Barack Obama is the only candidate who can bring this country together to get the economy working again for middle class families," Governor Bill Richardson said. "John McCain just does not get what families are dealing with in this tough economy. We just cannot continue with four more years of the failed policies of the last eight years. Senator Obama will invest in our families, get a hold of this economic crisis and get this country back on track by re-focusing on middle-class families."

Torres Ray, the first Latina state senator in Minnesota history, has long been a strong and active Obama supporter.

"Latinos are a critical and growing group of voters who will help determine the course of this election in key states," Torres Ray said. "Here in Minnesota, the Latino community has never been as strongly organized and activated as it is now. This outpouring of support for Senator Obama reflects the fact that he has stood with us time and again on issue after issue. John McCain has let Latinos down, letting the radical wing of his party shape his views and undermine his principles. We need Barack Obama and Joe Biden in office to return a strong voice for the issues we care about."

Hispanics Overwhelmingly for Obama in US Swing States'

Irish Musician for Progressive Solutions — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 18:39:51 EDT

MIAMI (AFP) - A great majority of Hispanic voters in US swing states favor Democratic Barack Obama over Republican John McCain in the race for the White House, a Newslink poll said Friday.

Obama: Rebuilding and Protecting the Economy During My Presidency : Prepared Remarks, Espanola, New Mexico September 18

Stephen Fox, Contributing Editor New Mexico Sun News — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 23:20:27 EDT

Obama's Remarks in Espanola, New Mexico on Solutions for Financial Market Turmoil
By Stephen Fox, Contributing Editor New Mexico Sun News - Sep 18th, 2008 at 10:14 pm EDT

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Espanola, New Mexico
As Prepared for Delivery

I just want to begin by saying a few words about the turmoil in our financial markets. We are in the midst of the most serious financial crisis in generations. Three of America's five largest investment banks have failed or been sold off in distress. Our housing market is in shambles, Monday brought the worst losses on Wall Street since the day after September 11th, and the Fed has had to take unprecedented action to prevent the failure of one of the largest insurance companies in the world from causing an even larger crisis. Just this morning, we learned that the Fed had to act with central banks around the world to maintain the functioning of our financial system.

Everywhere you look, the economic news is troubling. But for so many Americans, it isn't really news at all.

600,000 workers have lost their jobs since January. Home values are falling. Your paycheck doesn't go as far as it used to. It's never been harder to save or retire; to buy gas or groceries; and if you put it on a credit card, they've probably raised your rates. In so many cities and towns across America, it feels as if the dream that so many generations have fought for is slowly slipping away.

So I know these are difficult days. And I know there are a lot of families that are feeling anxiety right now about their jobs, about their homes, about their retirement savings. But here's what I also know. This isn't a time for fear or panic this is a time for resolve and for leadership. I know we can steer ourselves out of this crisis. That's who we are. That's what we've always done as Americans. Our nation has faced difficult times before. And at each of those moments, we've risen to meet the challenge because we've never forgotten that fundamental truth that here in America, our destiny is not written for us, but by us.

But another thing I know is this we can't steer ourselves out of this crisis by heading in the same, disastrous direction. We can't change direction with a new driver who wants to follow the same old map. And that's what this election is all about.

My opponent's first reaction to this crisis on Monday was to stand up and repeat the line he's said over and over again throughout this campaig "the fundamentals of our economy are strong." The comment was out so out of touch that even George Bush's White House couldn't agree with it.

But the truth is, John McCain's attitude was nothing new. It reflects the same economic philosophy that he has had for twenty-six years in Washington. The same philosophy he shares with George Bush.. It's the philosophy that says we should give more and more to those with the most and hope that prosperity trickles down. It's the philosophy that says even common-sense regulations are unnecessary and unwise. It's a philosophy that lets Washington lobbyists shred consumer protections and distort our economy so it works for the special interests instead of working people.

That's the philosophy John McCain believes in, and has always believed in. He's spent decades in Washington supporting financial institutions instead of their customers. Phil Gramm, one of the architects of the de-regulation in Washington that led directly to this mess on Wall Street, is also the architect of John McCain's economic plan the man John McCain wants to put in charge of the Treasury Department if he's President. You remember Phil Gramm he's the guy who said that we're going through a 'mental recession'; and the same man who called the United States of America a "nation of whiners."

That's who John McCain listens to. He has consistently opposed the sorts of common sense regulations that might have lessened the current crisis. When I was warning about the danger ahead on Wall Street months ago because of the lack of oversight, Senator McCain was telling the Wall Street Journal and I quote, I'm always for less regulation."

Except now, with the magnitude of the crisis apparent even to the Bush White House, John McCain wants to reverse course. Now, all of a sudden, he's unleashed an angry tirade against all the insiders and lobbyists who've supported him for twenty-six years the same folks who run his campaign.

On Monday, he said the economy was fundamentally sound, and he was fundamentally wrong.

On Tuesday, he said the government should stand by and allow one of the nation's largest insurers to collapse, putting the well-being of millions of Americans at risk. But by Wednesday, he changed his mind.

He said he would take on the ol' boy network, but he seemed to forget that he took seven of the biggest lobbyists in Washington from that network and put them in charge of your campaign.

John McCain can't decide whether he's Barry Goldwater or Dennis Kucinich. Well, I have a message for Senator McCain:

You can't just run away from your long-held views or your life-long record. You can't erase twenty-six years of support for the very policies and people who helped bring on this disaster with one week of rants.

What we need is honest talk and real solutions. Senator McCain's first answer to this economic crisis was get ready for it a commission. That's Washington-speak for "we'll get back to you later." Folks, we don't need a commission to spend a few years and a lot of taxpayer money to tell us what's going on in our economy. We don't need a commission to tell us gas prices are high or that you can't pay your bills. We don't need a commission to tell us you're losing your jobs. We don't need a commission to study this crisis, we need a President who will solve it and that's the kind of President I intend to be.

Now that this disaster has hit, John McCain is calling for the firing of the Security and Exchange Commissioner. Well here's what I say: In 47 days, you can fire the whole Trickle-Down, On-Your-Own, Look-the-Other-Way crowd in Washington who have led us down this disastrous path.

Let's be clear: what we've seen the last few days is nothing less than the final verdict on an economic philosophy that has completely failed. And I am running for President of the United States because the dreams of the American people must not be endangered any more. It's time to put an end to a broken system in Washington that is breaking the American economy. It's time for change that makes a real difference in your lives.

It was two years ago that I introduced legislation to stop mortgage transactions that promoted fraud, risk or abuse. It was one year ago that I called on our Treasury Secretary and our FED Chairman to bring every stakeholder together and find a solution to the subprime mortgage meltdown before it got worse. In March, when John McCain was saying "I'm always for less regulation," I called for a new, 21st century regulatory framework to restore accountability, transparency, and trust in our financial markets.

The events of the past few days have made clear that we need to do more right now. We do not have time for commissions and we can't afford to lurch back and forth between positions when dealing with an economic crisis, like my opponent has. That is why I am calling on the Treasury and the Federal Reserve to use their emergency authorities to maintain the flow of credit, to support the availability of mortgages, and to ensure that our financial system is well-capitalized. Tomorrow I will be convening a meeting with my top economic advisors to discuss a plan based on the ideas I've been talking about with former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker and other advisors of mine. Then I'll call for the passage of a Homeowner and Financial Support Act that would establish a more stable and permanent solution than the daily improvisations that have characterized policy-making over the last year. Specifically, it would accomplish three primary goals.

First, it will provide capital to the financial system. Second, it will provide liquidity to enable our financial markets to function. And third, it will do what I've been calling for since I supported legislation on it early last spring, which is to get serious about helping struggling families to re-structure their mortgages on more affordable terms so they can stay in their homes. We've made a good start but we need to do much, much more. We cannot forget that there are many homeowners who are in crisis through no fault of their own, and a solution that does not have them at its core is no solution at all.

To jumpstart job creation, I've also proposed a $50 billion Emergency Economic Plan that would save 1 million jobs by rebuilding our infrastructure, repairing our schools, and helping our states and localities avoid damaging budget cuts.

To help people stay in their homes, I will change our bankruptcy laws, and I'll offer a tax credit to struggling families that will take 10% off your mortgage interest rate. I'll institute a Home Score system that will help every consumer figure out whether they'll be able to make their mortgage payments before they buy their house. And I will crack down on predatory lenders, lenders who all too often target Hispanic communities, with tough new penalties that will treat mortgage fraud like the crime that it is.

But the most important thing I will do as President is restore opportunity for all Americans. To get our economy growing, we need to recapture that fundamental American promise. That if you work hard, you can pay the bills. That if you get sick, you won't go bankrupt. That your kids can get a good education, and that we can leave a legacy of greater opportunity to future generations.

That's the change the American people need.

Change means a tax code that doesn't reward the lobbyists who wrote it, but the American workers and small businesses who deserve it. I will stop giving tax breaks to corporations that ship jobs overseas, and I will start giving them to companies that create good jobs right here in America. I will eliminate capital gains taxes for small businesses and start-ups that's how we'll grow our economy and create the high-wage, high-tech jobs of tomorrow.

I will cut taxes cut taxes for 95% of all working families. My opponent doesn't want you to know this, but under my plan, tax rates will actually be less than they were under Ronald Reagan. If you make less than $250,000 a year, you will not see your taxes increase one single dime. In fact, I offer three times the tax relief for middle-class families as Senator McCain does because in an economy like this, the last thing we should do is raise taxes on the middle-class.

I will finally keep the promise of affordable, accessible health care for every single American. I know this is a critical issue in the Hispanic community, where one in three people don't have health insurance. Under my plan, if you have health care, my plan will lower your premiums. If you don't, you'll be able to get the same kind of coverage that members of Congress give themselves. And I will stop insurance companies from discriminating against those who are sick and need care the most

I will create the jobs of the future by transforming our energy economy. We'll tap our natural gas reserves, invest in clean coal technology, and find ways to safely harness nuclear power. I'll help our auto companies re-tool, so that the fuel-efficient cars of the future are built right here in America. I'll make it easier for the American people to afford these new cars. And I'll invest 150 billion dollars over the next decade in affordable, renewable sources of energy wind power and solar power and the next generation of biofuels; an investment that will lead to new industries and five million new jobs that pay well and can't ever be outsourced

And now is the time to finally meet our moral obligation to provide every child a world-class education, because it will take nothing less to compete in the global economy. I refuse to accept that overcrowded, underfunded schools are the best we can do for our kids. I refuse to accept four in ten Hispanic students dropping out of high school. I know we can do better than that. So I'll recruit an army of new teachers, and pay them higher salaries and give them more support. But in exchange, I will ask for higher standards and more accountability. And we will keep our promise to every young American if you commit to serving your community or your country, we will make sure you can afford a college education.

This is the change we need the kind of bottom up growth and innovation that will advance the American economy by advancing the dreams of all Americans.

Times are hard. I will not pretend that the change will need will come without cost though I have presented ways we can achieve these changes in a fiscally responsible way. I know that we'll have to overcome our doubts and divisions and the determined opposition of powerful special interests before we can truly reform a broken economy and advance opportunity.

But I am running for President because we simply cannot afford four more years of an economic philosophy that works for Wall Street instead of Main Street, and ends up devastating both.

I don't want to wake up in four years to find that more Americans fell out of the middle-class, and more families lost their savings. I don't want to see that our country failed to invest in our ability to compete, our children's future was mortgaged on another mountain of debt, and our financial markets failed to find a firmer footing.

This time this election is our chance to stand up and say: enough is enough!

We can do this because Americans have done this before. Time and again, we've battled back from adversity by recognizing that common stake that we have in each other's success. That's why our economy hasn't just been the world's greatest wealth generator it's bound America together, it's created jobs, and it's made the dream of opportunity a reality for generation after generation of Americans.

Now it falls to us. And I need you to make it happen. If you want the next four years looking just like the last eight, then I am not your candidate. But if you want real change, if you want an economy that rewards work, and that works for Main Street and Wall Street; if you want tax relief for the middle class and millions of new jobs; if you want health care you can afford and education so that our kids can compete; then I ask you to knock on some doors, and make some calls, and talk to your neighbors.

The Hispanic community will play a critical role in this election. Some of the closest contests this November will be in states like Florida, Colorado, Nevada, and here in New Mexico: states with large Hispanic populations.

And if you have any doubt about whether you can make a difference, just remember how, back in 2004, 40,000 registered Hispanic voters in New Mexico didn't turn out on Election Day. Senator Kerry lost this state by fewer than 6,000 votes. 6,000 votes. And today, in 2008, an estimated 170,000 Hispanics in New Mexico aren't registered to vote.

So I'm not taking a single Hispanic vote for granted in this campaign. We're meeting with Hispanic leaders, and reaching out to Hispanic organizations, and holding Hispanic voter registration drives across America.

And if you help me organize and get people to the polls to cast their votes on November 4th, then I promise you we will win New Mexico, we will win this election, and we will change America together.

Barack Obama, a Democratic Senator from Illinois, is the Democratic presidential nominee. Page Printed from: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/09/obamas_remarks_in_espanola_new.html

see also: McCain Team Includes 83 Wall Street Lobbyists: Even More Corporate Control of Government than Bush/Cheney?

http://www.opednews.com/articles/McCain-Team-Includes-83-Wa-by-Stephen-Fox-080917-377.html

Why is immigration so hard?

Frustrated Independent — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 02:36:40 EDT

I don't get the immigration debate. More specifically: I don't understand why it is so complicated to figure out!!

The solution is simple: if you're here illegally, you should be prosecuted and deported. Simple as that. I follow the laws, and I don't have a get-out-of-jail-free card, and I'm a citizen. There are hundreds of thousands of highly skilled individuals who have abided by the process and waited in line to enter this country and lawfully become citizens. Fifty of those people are members of my family. My father and mother waited in line back in the 60's and 70's. The point is that they followed the law! Proximity to our borders and gambling ones life to trek across the sierra nevada should not be an on-ramp to legal work status and certainly not to citizenship. If that becomes the norm, any argument for helping the poor, which is fundamental democratic thinking, immediately becomes "helping the poor and the people that broke the law to be poor but within our borders", which is an idea I (and I expect many independents) will not subscribe to. I'm not a charity. I don't mind helping people out from time to time, but I'm not going to provide free support to anybody that had the guts to cross the border.

I graduated from a highly reputable university. I have *many* friends that are brilliant, law-biding individuals. They could have easy overstayed their visa's and scrounged for some type of job. Instead, they followed the law, left the country, and waited for a corporation to sponsor their H1B visa. By giving amnesty, you are telling foreigners, particularly foreign students, that instead of adhering to the laws and policies of the US, they instead should ignore them and expect amnesty. "Intelligent immigration" is about providing incentives to those with skills and the capabilities of significantly contributing to society (which in part implies assimilation too), should be the objective. Not "charitable immigration".

Amnesty in any form is unacceptable. We need to encourage individuals to follow the law, not give them a way out because we as a government were too stupid to understand how to enforce the laws. More over, we should encourage those who have studied at our universities, graduated with good gpa's, and have quite a bit of promise to stay, work, and contribute to society. The whole mantra of "give us your weak, your poor, ..." made sense pre-depression, but now that we have social services, where our tax money is used in-part to support those that can't support themselves, that ideology no longer is ideal. I refuse to have any of my tax dollars spent caring for those that broke the law and are getting away with. If that's the case, why should I adhere to any law?? I'll walk into best buy and walk off with a playstation and a new plasma tv. Anybody that stops me is two-faced.

To me, amnesty => democrats. But at the same time, anti-immigration => republican. Both are dumb positions. We as a country need to enforce our laws and encourage intelligent immigration policies, where we encourage highly educated people and their families to immigrate to the US and establish their roots. By the way, we need to "import" highly educated people (particularly in math and science) because well, quite frankly, those educated in the US high school system (as well as most of people that graduated from the weaker 50-500 ranked universities) simply don't cut it in the marketplace, but this is for another blog post.

Finally, any candidate that panders to illegal immigrants and their supporters automatically loses my vote. Additionally, anybody that argues the people here illegally are fleeing repression, should go visit India, China, and other countries because my relatives are represessed too, but they are abiding by the law and are waiting (for $50k I could have them snuck over the border tomorrow, but it is *ILLEGAL*). If the candidates for both major parties pander, I simply wont vote at all, and I will encourage as many people as possible to not vote too. It's a matter of pride and being right. I expect this to be a sentiment held by *many* of the first and second generation immigrants in this country, because they are the ones whose family are following the legal process and waiting for US visa's in their home country. Breaking the law is breaking the law. Nothing anybody says can change that fact. Any law breakers should be prosecuted. People that follow the law should be afforded priveledges. Period.

Howard Dean: Latino Issues -Translation into Spanish

Matiax — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 01:58:54 EDT

Audio in English @

http://lineasemanal.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/howard_dean091208email.mp3

------

Gobernador: La popularidad del senador Obama está incrementando entre los latinos. ¿Qué razones nos puede dar que expliquen este fenómeno?

El senador Obama es de la opinión de que todos los ciudadanos americanos deberían tener seguro médico. El senador McCain se opone a esto.

El senador Obama tiene un programa para mejorar las escuelas públicas. El senador McCain no considera que el Gobierno Federal debería participar en esto y así es que en asuntos de familia y educación, el senador Obama tiene más firmes convicciones que el senador McCain.

Además, el senador McCain le dio la espalda a los latinos al ni siquiera votar por su propia propuesta migratoria. El senador Obama comprende que en América todos deben ser incluidos, y no solamente en tiempo de elecciones. Y que no se puede usar a una parte de la población como chivos expiatorios.

¿Qué tipo de impacto tendría una administración Obama en la relaciones exteriores de los EEUU, específicamente en los países hispanohablantes?

Ya hemos visto que la personalidad del senador Obama es popular en otros países. Principalmente porque él cree que todos deberíamos trabajar juntos en vez de dictarles a los otros lo que hay que hacer. Esto es algo muy sensible para la gente en Latinoamérica.

Yo me he reunido con lideres latinoamericanos, como el presidente de México, y les he hecho saber que con el gobierno del senador Obama, las relaciones con Latinoamérica serían muy diferentes a las que se tendrían o se tuvieron con George Bush o John McCain.

La Fe es una parte importante de la cultura latina. Los republicanos se presentan como el partido de las gentes de Fe. ¿Qué filosofía se acerca más a la Fe, la Republicana o la Demócrata?

Los demócratas. Creo que el senador Obama ha expresado claramente que es una persona de Fe. Pero como dice la Biblia, La Fe sin hechos no significa nada. Los republicanos hablan de la Fe, los demócratas la ponen en práctica. Y lo más importante acerca de la Fe es cómo la ponemos de manifiesto en nuestras vidas personales.

El senador Obama es una persona honesta y honrada. La campaña de McCain está dirigida por "Lobbyists" (Agentes de los grupos de presión). Y se puede hablar mucho acerca de la Fe, pero si no se practica a diario entonces tenemos un problema.

La Igualdad Salarial es otro asunto. El senador Obama tiene la convicción de que las mujeres deberían ser remuneradas igual que los hombres. John McCain votó en contra de esto. McCain cree que las mujeres no deberían ganar tanto como los hombres y que el gobierno no tiene parte en esto. El senador Obama ha puesto su Fe en práctica. Y McCain habla de su Fe pero no incluye la igualdad de derechos para las mujeres.

Sobresale entre los grupos de presión el de "English Only" . Este es un tema muy importante para muchos latinos. ¿Cuál es la postura del Partido Demócrata sobre este asunto?

Nosotros creemos que es bueno aprender diversos idiomas, pensamos que los latinos que vienen a los EEUU aprenden inglés sin que se les diga que lo tienen que hacer; todos los inmigrantes lo aprenden. Pensamos que sería muy beneficioso para los americanos hablar otros idiomas también.

Nosotros sabemos qué es verdaderamente este asunto del "English Only". Sabemos en realidad que está dirigido contra los inmigrantes latinos. Nunca tuvimos una ley como esta para los inmigrantes irlandeses, italianos o judíos y no creo que la necesitemos para los latinos.

Se ha reportado que el senador Obama puede que esté listo para dejar que las "Organizaciones 527" como Moveon.org aumenten su agresividad contra la campaña de McCain. ¿Cree que es esta una buena idea? Y si es así, ¿Se debería haber hecho antes?

No se nada de eso, no he escuchado esos reportes. Esto es lo que queremos hacer:

La campaña de McCain quiere hablar acerca de todo excepto de McCain. Quieren hablar de Sandra Palin, de lápices de labios, de todo, menos del propio McCain. Esto pasa por que McCain es un candidato del pasado. Nosotros vamos ha hablar sobre temas importantes. Como usted sabe el lema del movimiento del senador es "Si Se Puede" o "Yes We Can".

¿Y cómo se siente usted cuando ve que los republicanos están adoptando sus lemas y sus formas?

¿Pero quién les va a creer?

Gordon Smith y John McCain han estado en Washington casi el mismo tiempo, si se pone a sumar, del que yo llevo viviendo. Y la realidad es que nunca se van a obtener cambios con personas a las que que sólo les interesa hablar de cambios en las elecciones.

Sólo se obtienen verdaderos cambios con las personas que lo viven. Barak Obama fue un organizador comunitario, en la comunidad latina hay un gran número de organizadores; los demócratas se pasaron tres días burlándose de los organizadores comunitarios en Minnesota.

Sabemos bien del lado de quién está Barack Obama. Se sabe también de que lado está John McCain, y este no es el lado de los latinos.

Una última pregunta, y esta es una pregunta general: Si el senador Obama es elegido, ¿Cuáles son los cambios más importantes que podemos esperar de su presidencia, algo que la gente podrá ver?

Lo más importante es que habrá más trabajos disponibles, que todos los americanos tendrán cobertura médica y que pondremos fin a la guerra de Irak de forma honorable.

Traducción: Abelardo Magaña, Rodrigo Alvarez y Matías Trejo De Dios

Audio in English @

http://lineasemanal.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/howard_dean091208email.mp3

Thursday Obama's in New Mexico! Hispanic s, Please Vote as a Block for Obama!

Stephen Fox, Contributing Editor New Mexico Sun News — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:59:51 EDT

Obama plans Española visit Thursday; Richardson launches new group while courting Hispanics in battleground states; BATTLEGROUND and FENCESTRADDLER STATES' ELECTORAL VOTES ARE NOT DOOMED TO BE FOR MCCAIN!

http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stephenfox/gG5qzp
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stephenfox/gG5XtP

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

BREAKING NEWS; "Being the 'detective' that I am, I got the message below
from the McCain camp today. I can understand why he wants people to vote for
him now, by absentee ballot. He doesn't want people to be able to change
their minds as they hear the upcoming debates."

JaneAnne
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

BRILLIANT!
SO HERE IS THIS AGAIN:

By Stephen Fox, Contributing Editor New Mexico Sun News -

First thoughts: The Electoral Map 50 days out : from MSNBC:

Turn on the Steam in (leaning Obama) IA, MN, NM OR, PA, WA (61 votes) Toss
up: CO, MI, NV, NH, OH, VA, WI (78 votes)

http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stephenfox/gG5ZBz

A lot of letters to the editor from you, and emailed all over your state
might turn the tide, if they were well reasoned and hard hitting, to the
point, about why Obama would be best for your state, in the long run! If you
speak with the Editorial Page Editor, ask for an op/ed slot, 600-800 words,
to really make your point, and don't forget that these are the very editors
who are likely to be writing their endorsements in a few short weeks for
President, so don't bombard them with blast emails: they won't get printed,
and you will just irk the person.

Editorial page editors are listed in EDITOR AND PUBLISHER in your library,
and indirectly through

usnpl.com : unitedstatesnewspaperlist

And no doubt, as Dr. Howard Dean III pointed out in Santa Fe about a month
ago, nothing works better than going door to door, and personally talking at
length with your neighbors, colleagues, and family, to answer any questions
they might have regarding Obama's strengths and McCain's failures.

You may find the earlier articles in my blog (there are 109 of them) to be
helpful as all have been filed with strategy and tactical considerations in
mind, above all.

Truly,

Stephen Fox, Contributing Editor New Mexico Sun News
Founder, New Millennium Fine Art
stephen@santafefineart.com

MSNBC:

The Palin bounce has erased Obama's lead in the national polls, and it has
now cut into his electoral-vote advantage, according to NBC’s latest map.
Obama holds a 233-227 edge here, down from his 228-200 advantage from last
week.

The biggest changes: We moved Florida -- with its 27 electoral votes -- from
Toss-up to Lean McCain, and New Mexico from Toss-up to Lean Obama. We also
shifted Oregon and Washington from Likely Obama to Lean Obama, as well as
Alaska, Georgia, North Dakota and South Dakota from Lean McCain to Likely
McCain.

The good news for McCain is that the map looks better for him than at any
point so far in this race, and many of those red states that looked like
opportunities for Obama (AK, GA, IN) look to be longer shots for him. The
bad news for McCain is that given the wave his campaign has been riding from
the Palin bounce, is this as good as it gets?

If he isn’t leading in some states now, he might not ever lead in them.
Bottom line: You'll know the map is starting to move in one direction or the
other if either Pennsylvania or Florida moves back into Toss-up before
Election Day.

VIDEO: NBC Political Director Chuck Todd discusses the Sarah Palin affect on
the NBC electoral vote map.

Likely Obama: CA, CT, DE, DC, HI, IL, ME, MD, MA, NJ, NY, RI, VT (172
electoral votes)

Lean Obama: IA, MN, NM OR, PA, WA (61 votes)

Toss-up: CO, MI, NV, NH, OH, VA, WI (78 votes)

Lean McCain: FL, IN, MO, MT, NC (67 votes)

Likely McCain: AL, AK, AZ, AR, GA, ID, KS, KY, LA, MS, NE, ND, OK, SC, SD,
TN, TX, UT, WV, WY (160 votes)

__________________________________________________________________________

Obama plans Española visit; Richardson launches new group while courting Hispanics in battleground states

Photo: Santa Fe County Commissioner Virginia Vigil screams ‘Obamanos!’ on Monday during the opening of a new Barack Obama campaign office on Santa Fe’s south side. Gov. Bill Richardson used the opening as an opportunity to launch a group called Hispanics for Obama and announce an upcoming visit by the Democratic presidential candidate to Española.
More on this siteAdvertisement

Steve Terrell | The New Mexican

9/15/2008 - 9/16/08

Gov. Bill Richardson on Monday launched a group called Hispanics for Obama , and announced that the Democratic presidential candidate himself will appear Thursday in Española.

Barack Obama is relying on Richardson to help court Hispanics in battleground states including New Mexico, which narrowly went for Republican George W. Bush four years ago and where John McCain also has visited several times this year.

In informal remarks to dozens of local Democrats at the opening of a new south-side Santa Fe campaign office, Richardson began with a hearty "Buenos tardes." He laughed and made joking asides to enthusiastic audience members as he happily played the role of Obama cheerleader.

"As the Hispanic vote goes nationally, so goes the presidency," Richardson said. He got loud cheers by predicting big margins for the Illinois senator among Hispanic voters in New Mexico as well as in Colorado and Nevada.

"And we want that number to be close to 65 or 70 percent," he said of New Mexico's Hispanic vote for Obama.

It was a chance for locals to see Richardson do what he's been doing increasingly on the national level.

During the weekend, he attended several Obama events in Las Vegas, Nev. He met Saturday with Hispanic leaders there, spoke to Obama volunteers at a North Las Vegas campaign office, had a town hall at the College of Southern Nevada, attended a soccer tournament sponsored by Spanish-language television network Telemundo and spoke at a dinner for Las Vegas Democrats.

(The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that boxing fan Richardson also attended a title fight between Juan Manuel Marquez and Joel Casamayor.)

Also on Saturday, Richardson, in his role as Obama surrogate, taped an interview on MSNBC. On Sunday, he appeared on Late Edition With Wolf Blitzer, opposite Republican Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

During last month's Democratic National Convention in Denver, Richardson told The New Mexican that the Obama campaign mainly wanted him to campaign in New Mexico, Nevada and Colorado, three swing states with significant Hispanic populations.

But Obama apparently isn't limiting Richardson to those Western states. The New York Times last week listed Richardson among surrogates including Sen. Hillary Clinton and Caroline Kennedy who were scheduled to appear at high-dollar fundraisers this month in New York.

A spokeswoman for the Governor's Office said Monday that travel expenses for such out-of-state trips are paid by the Obama campaign. He normally travels with a state police officer, a state Public Safety Department spokesman said. Although the officer's salary is paid by the state, the spokesman said, travel expenses are covered by the campaign.

Some at Monday's event in Santa Fe seemed to want to use Richardson to pass advice to Obama.

"Governor, tell him to toughen up those ads," one man said as Richardson left the building.

Hispanics for Obama is a statewide group, Richardson said after the event. It will hold policy forums involving Hispanic leaders around New Mexico.

Although Hispanic voters traditionally have favored Democrats, the percentages targeted by Richardson are hardly guaranteed. In 2004, President Bush attracted about 40 percent of the Hispanic vote according to exit polls conducted for The Associated Press and television networks.

Richardson said the campaign's goal is to register 12,000 new Hispanic voters as part of a statewide effort to boost total voter registration by 30,000 during the next 30 days.

Contact Steve Terrell at 986-3037 or sterrell@sfnewmexican.com.

IF YOU GO

What: Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama visits Española

When: Rally starts at 12:30 p.m. Thursday at the Española Plaza

Tickets: Free, available starting today at two Obama campaign offices in Santa Fe, 720 St. Michael's Drive 2-N and 3494 Zafarano Drive Suite B, as well as at campaign offices in Las Vegas, Taos, Española, Los Alamos and Raton.

Not enough to reach Latinos

Jennya — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 19:25:00 EDT

I don't understand what's happening with the Latinos in this nation. I'm Latina, born in the Dominican Republic and stepped on US soil when I was seven years old. I became a citizen as soon as I turned 18 and have been an active voter ever since. But I've never been as vested in an election as I am with this one. What has really riled me up is the nomination of Sarah Palin, and the comments I hear from women who say "wow, he picked a woman...I’m voting for McCain." How ignorant! These women are often single moms, in their 20's and 30's, who are smitten by sound bites and shallow images. Instead of digging deeper to understand who Sarah Palin really is, or what McCain has stood for over the past eight years, they're voting because there is a vagina in the ticket!

The Obama team must do a better job of reaching the Latino community, especially the Spanish dominant who rely on Univision, Telemundo, and local radio stations to get their information. I've been watching the Spanish media outlets and they're failing their community. The coverage is very skewed towards McCain's favor. And it seems like no one form the Obama camp is noticing, because it continues without objections. Obama needs to speak to Latinos directly. In my opinion, he should be booked on the two most popular radio stations in the nation, La Mega in NYC and Piolin in LA. Let him talk to the people, answer the questions, and correct all the misconceptions out there about him. (A good friend of mine told me she wouldn't be voting for him because she's a small business owner and he plans to raise her taxes. This is someone who has two kids who are now of voting age and doesn't understand the real issues, yet makes blanket statements that will not only influence her young adult children, but everyone else around her.)

The older generation Latino is a true challenge. They're completely uninformed and because of the biases in our culture, are ignorant enough to say they won't be voting for a "black" guy. I've heard this personally from friends who are aghast and horrified to hear their elder family members make these types of comments. The 50+ Latino will bring prejudices from their own country/culture and will most likely vote for McCain because he is not Black. Yes, there is a tremendous amount of prejudice in the Latino culture. Even though it's the most diverse ethnicity on the planet, it's riddled with biases and inequality for darker Latinos. On the upside, it's a community that understands struggles, respects the opinions of their children -- specially those educated and mainstreamed, and can be convinced to vote for Obama "if" they are given the facts. If they are told the truth. If they hear from Obama directly what he plans to do for the issues that matter to Latinos (education, immigration, taxes). If the Spanish media starts behaving more responsibly and provides both sides of the story.

Latinos Matter...

RACISTS WILL ALWAYS FEAR OBAMA - OR ANY MINORITY...AND WOMEN

Madera Strong - Team Co-ordinator For City of Madera — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 23:38:36 EDT

Republicans and racists came out in force to drag Obama down after his speech.

There is fear in their eyes because America might become inclusive and they fear Asians, Hispanics, and all minorities. For some, Obama will never be right based on his racial background.

I ask Americans who do not have these race-based fears to vote for Barack Obama.

Hispanic Dems warn Obama he risks losing Latinos

Stephen Fox, Contributing Editor New Mexico Sun News — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 23:21:42 EDT

Contributed by Jared Allen, THE HILL

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) must commit to helping illegal immigrants achieve citizenship or else risk losing the vital Latino vote in the general election, Hispanic Democratic lawmakers are warning.

If he does not promise so-called comprehensive immigration reform, the lawmakers say, the only other way to win over. Hispanic supporters of his erstwhile rival, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.), may be to pick her as his running mate.

Obama's National Latino Vote Director, Cuauhtemoc "Temo" Figueroa, will have his first meeting in Washington Thursday with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC).

They carefully avoided calling explicitly for Clinton's selection as the party's vice presidential nominee, but some indicated that her bond with Latino voters will get them to the polls in November, just as it drew them into the primaries.

"Hillary holds the entire Latino community in the palm of her hand," said. Rep. José Serrano (D-N.Y.), whose district went heavily for Clinton.

But Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), Obama's Republican opponent, is also liked by Latinos. He co-sponsored with Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) the immigration bill that the CHC is demanding, which would put the country's 12 million illegal immigrants on a path to citizenship. And he did not buckle under pressure to abandon that position during the GOP primary.

Cecilia Munoz, the senior vice president of research, advocacy and legislation with the National Council of La Raza, said whether McCain can win over large enough numbers of Latino voters is "still an open question."

"But Latinos are brand-loyal, and after the Clinton brand, the McCain brand is the second-strongest among Latinos because of his military service and his immigration record," Munoz said.

CHC Chairman Rep. Joe Baca (D-Calif.) said that if Obama chooses someone other than Clinton, it will not be a dealbreaker for Latinos.

"But I hope he does make the right decision and picks someone who draws together our communities," Baca said. "Is that Hillary? I think she's certainly one of those candidates."

While Obama won the Latino vote in his home state of Illinois and in Colorado, and stayed competitive in New Mexico and Arizona, he was walloped among Latinos - 64 percent to 24 - throughout the 24 contests making up Super Tuesday.

In California, Clinton won over Latinos 67 percent to 29.

Latino voters comprised 30 percent of California Democratic primary voters, an increase of 17 percent from 2004. In Texas, the number of Latinos voting in the Democratic primary rose 8 percent, to 32 percent of the electorate, according to the Pew Hispanic Center.

In harnessing such enthusiasm, Baca also said that the CHC will be looking - but not necessarily asking - for Obama to make as strong of a pledge as Clinton did to putting comprehensive immigration reform on his "first 100 days" agenda.

"He says he wants to, but he needs to show that he's serious about taking it up."

Obama's campaign coordinator for Spanish-language media, Vince Casillas, said that while Obama has promised to take up immigration reform in his first year in office, he has not yet laid out his detailed plan for comprehensive reform.

"As soon as he's ready and has a plan in place, he'll announce it," Casillas said.

In the Florida Republican primary, where Latinos made up 12 percent of the total vote and where McCain edged out Romney by only 4 percentage points, the Arizona senator won 54 percent of the Latino vote compared to Romney's 14 percent.

And many Republicans remember that it was in 2004 when 40 percent of Latino voters abandoned the Democratic presidential nominee, Sen. John Kerry (Mass.), to vote for President Bush, Munoz said.

Munoz called 2004 the Democrats' "low-water mark" in pulling in Latino support. The "high-water mark," she said, came in 1996, the last time a Clinton was on the ticket.

And even longtime Obama backers in the CHC - including Reps. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) and Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.) -said that Obama has a lot of work to do in drumming up support among Latinos who are still fiercely loyal to Clinton.

"I have encouraged the [Obama] campaign for a year now that retail politics is very important to us, but they don't yet seem to have gotten the message," Gutierrez said. "We really need to see more of that from him."

Becerra said that once he gets out there, Obama will be a "natural at connecting with the Latino community," but he acknowledged that more outreach is needed.

"And first and foremost, the discussion will need to be about how to reach out to the Clinton supporters and then [get] them incorporated into his campaign."

Baca said that if Obama fails to do that, and fails to give his "strongest types of surrogates" in the Latino community the

ammunition they need to help seal support for his candidacy, the record Latino turnout that was seen in the primaries could disappear.

"We have a tendency to not go to the polls to vote," Baca said. "[The CHC] can help get them out to vote, and it'll make a big difference. But in the end it's up to him."

Confounded in Culmore

Brandon — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 15:36:47 EDT

I've had an interesting day of volunteering for the campaign. I started the day doing a voter registration drive in the heavily Hispanic Culmore neighborhood of Fairfax County, Virginia. I expected to encounter a good number of non-citizens but I was shocked to find that virtually every one of the 50+ people I spoke with was ineligible to vote. I guess I'm naive, but I thought that there would be more of a mixture of citizens and indocumentados- but I was wrong.

My experience in Culmore brought all my usual internal conflicts to the surface in regards to illegal immigrants. I recognize that we need people who are willing to perform the many jobs and services that illegal immigrants tend to provide, but at the same time I am furious at our government's inability or unwillingness to control our borders and implement a process by which these people can be integrated into our society.

What I saw today was nothing short of a suburban ghetto, acre after acre of crumbling, littered apartments whose inhabitants are primarily interested in flying as far below the radar as possible. I very much want to see these neighbors of mine enfranchised in our society, and I very much want our Congress to create a realistic, sustainable path to citizenship so that this shadow society no longer exists. In the meantime, we need to crack down on employers who hire illegal immigrants to reduce the supply of magnet jobs and increase economic aid to the feeder countries in Latin America.

Democrats in particular are missing a huge opportunity here. The overwhelming percentage of the people I spoke with wholeheartedly support Obama, even though they are unable to vote for him. There are potentially millions of would-be Democratic voters out there for the taking if only Congress would belly up to the bar and take action.

It was a frustrating, but instructive morning of volunteering, and I'm looking forward to participating in more events soon.

Obama campaign reaches out to Tulsa Hispanics

Mike W — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 22:06:05 EDT

Obama campaign reaches out to Tulsa Hispanics
By William R. Wynn
La Semana del Sur.
Sunday, 13 Jul 2008

TULSA, OK – Local supporters of Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama have launched an effort to reach out to Tulsa Hispanics, with a special emphasis on registering new voters. A group affiliated with Tulsans for Obama set up a registration table at Plaza Santa Cecilia on July 5, returning again the following Saturday.

David C. Phillips is the Voter Registration Coordinator for the "Obama Vote for a Change Campaign." It was Phillips’ idea to take the registration campaign to the heart of Tulsa’s Hispanic population at 21st and Garnett, and the event was, by Phillips’ measure, at least moderately successful for a first attempt.

Acknowledging concerns about the language barrier and the fact that the Hispanic community in Tulsa has largely gone ignored by political party activists, Phillips expressed a positive outlook in an email sent out to supporters the day after the inaugural effort.

"We had a good time [and] we registered six people," Phillips said, adding, "We registered no Republicans. They all either declared themselves Democrats or Independents."

Phillips’ experience in fact represents in microcosm what has become a growing nationwide trend among Latino voters, particularly new and younger voters, to abandon traditional allegiances with the Republican Party, allegiances that were formed based on a shared social conservatism. With the national debate over how to deal with the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants living and working in the United States having become increasingly partisan over the past several years, more and more U.S. born children of immigrant families, especially those of Latino heritage, are seeing the Democratic Party as more friendly – or at least less hostile – to their issues and concerns.

This is particularly true in Oklahoma, where not a single Republican in the State House and only one in the State Senate voted against the draconian anti-immigrant HB 1804 last year. A similar disenchantment with the Republican Party is becoming evident among Hispanics on a national level.

Getting more hispanic votes

EMatt — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:23:24 EDT

I just would like to start off by saying that my thoughts are to be meant well and not in any way to offend anyone. If I offend anyone I would like to apologize in advance. I am a Puerto Rican, born in New York therefore making me a New York Rican and PROUD.

It is in my opinion that the Obama campaign needs to advertise more in the spanish speaking communities. I feel and again this is only my opinion, that the reason the majority of hispanics whom voted for Clinton in the primaries voted for her was out of familiarity of the name itself. I do not believe the reason he did not get their votes had anything to do with color but rather who they were familiar with already. This is to be said especially for the older hispanics. For a lot of hispanics Bill was a great President and was usually compared to Kennedy. I feel a lot but "not all" hispanics especially older hispanics are naive when it comes to politics.They will vote for what they know or whom their friends/family vote for or not at all. I believe the Obama camp should continue to get his message out for all americans but in the hispanic communties even more. Hispanics need to know more about Obama and his beliefs and what he will do for us as a people united as one. The more he becomes familiar the better our chances for their votes this November. This is my opinion...

Obama and the Hispanics

Michael Stickings — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 14:16:02 EDT

Remember back during the primaries when Hillary was pretty much trouncing Obama among Hispanic voters and there was all that talk about how Hillary's success among Hispanics contributed to her so-called "electability" and how doing so poorly among Hispanics would be a big problem for Obama come general election time?

Yeah, well... here's Gallup:

Hispanic registered voters' support for Barack Obama for president remained consistent and strong in June, with Obama leading John McCain by 59% to 29% among this group.

While Hispanics generally preferred Hillary Clinton to Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination, a solid majority of Hispanics have consistently backed Obama against McCain in general-election trial heats. Obama has led McCain by about a 2-to-1 margin since Gallup began tracking general-election voting preferences in early March.

I don't want to say I told you so -- after all, I don't know who you are -- but, well, I told you so. McCain has some support among Hispanics because, unlike most Republicans, he isn't completely crazy (in that xenophobic sort of way that characterizes so much of the nativist GOP) when it comes to immigration -- he worked with Ted Kennedy on a compromise bill, but it's not quite clear where he stands on the issue now, what with all the flippin' and floppin' and panderin' -- but Obama is clearly much more attractive to them, given his positions on the Iraq War, the economy, and other key issues.

Besides, it was clear all along, if not so much to the short-sighted and narrow-minded punditocracy, that Obama was only doing poorly among Hispanics relative to Hillary, not in absolute terms. Hispanics may have preferred her to him, but that never meant that they preferred anyone to him, let alone a warmongering faux maverick who sucks up to the GOP's right-wing base like McCain. Remember that Hillary, like Bill, is especially strong among Hispanics. But now, with the long and sometimes bitter Democratic race over and done with, "Hispanics of differing demographic backgrounds all tend to solidly support Obama."

Which, needless to say, bodes well for November.

(Cross-posted from The Reaction.)

Obama must not be bamboozled by the Clintons

rwordplay — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 20:01:28 EDT

I find the notion of negotiating with the Clinton--for money, for position at the Convention, for ego gratification, a disturbing triumph of the imaginary over the real. The idea that the Clintons have serious power and support that they can withhold from Obama is utter nonsense. There hold on power grows more tenuous with each passing hour--hence their vehemence, the shrill tone of their supporter and allies in the media.

The loss of the die-hard, or should I describe them as bought and paid for, Clinton supporters, pale beside the number of new and young voters, independents and moderate Republicans. The notion, say, that Obama needs Hillary to reach Hispanics, is risible when one considers the time and fortune the entire Clinton family spent in Puerto Rico and the ridiculous small turn out--her supporters the day before spoke of two million voters turning out and fewer than 400,000 did. The indifference was palpable. I will be greatly disappointed in Obama should he allow himself to be bamboozled b the Clintons. Obama must display the strength of leadership, including the laying down of terms, must not be pushed into a negotiated settlement, set in motion by a couple that has everything wagered on the fact, they can frighten Obama.

African-Americans and Jews

Randy — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 00:12:23 EDT

There is an underlying reality that if recognized helps to unite African-Americans and Jews. Those people that are anti-semitic are the same people that are prejudiced against African-Americans. While there has arisen some mutual hostility and misunderstanding between these two groups the bulk of the hatred resides with that virulent minority of "white" people who have an equal hatred for Jews and African-Americans (and Native Americans, Hispanics, Asians, Gays, Catholics,,,the list is long and many of us are on it).

These people use their considerable wealth and power to harness the media in reporting inflamatory incidents. This is not to say that these incidents do not occur but they are found like nuggets of gold by the prejudiced and trumpeted via the media (Fox News anybody?) to fan the flames of division between minority groups like ourselves. For every incident we read about or see on t.v. that serves to make our blood boil and inflame hatred between our groups there are THOUSANDS of unreported incidents of mutual admiration, kindness and respect. When we see something like this on t.v. let's think right away, why is this being reported? Is this typical or a tragic aberration? Is this news or a way to further divide groups that if united would present a serious challenge to the status quo?

DISPATCHES FROM THE GROUND WAR ... Co-Chair Of Clinton's Hispanic Council Endorses Obama

Martin Edwin "Mick" from Churchton, MD — Sun, 25 May 2008 09:30:05 EDT

DISPATCHES FROM THE GROUND WAR ...

THE MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPER GROUP REPORTS ...

Co-Chair Of Clinton's Hispanic Council Endorses Obama

By Michael Doyle

A California congressman who is co-chair of Hillary Clinton's National Hispanic Leadership Council has defected and pledged his support to Barack Obama, Clinton's rival for the Democratic presidential nomination.

The defection came as a new poll showed that Obama would handily defeat John McCain in California in November_ and do so by a larger margin than Clinton would. ...

Big Mistake

Sharon from Las Cruces, NM — Sun, 25 May 2008 01:18:45 EDT

I received an invitation today to attend a roundtable with Barack and a group of veterans here in Las Cruces, New Mexico, on Monday, May 26, at noon at the Farm and Ranch Museum. I was informed that this appearance will be a small round table event with only a few tickets.

THIS IS A BIG MISTAKE. People across the borderland are fired up to see Obama. Please don't disappoint with just a small gathering. The Farm and Ranch museum has a huge parking lot. Please have a public appearence after the roundtable.

I attended an art opening this afternoon and was bombarded with questions about plans for the Monday appearance. I came home to messages on my answering machine with the same question.

Please don't blow it in the borderland. This is a hugely Hispanic area. Limiting the appearance to a roundtable with veterans is totally inadequate.

We need a public appearance and we need the particulars asap so that we can fire up the email lists.

Happy Cesar Chavez Day!

Douglas from South Gate, CA — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 02:48:26 EDT

March 31st was the birthday of Cesar Chavez; and that's also the date California has set aside to honor the late, great labor leader ...

http://chavez.cde.ca.gov/ModelCurriculum/Intro.aspx

Even though we weren't Latinos, Cesar Chavez meant a lot to my family.

My dad was a working man -- a ready-mix cement truck driver -- who worked with a lot of Latinos on the job sites; they respected one another as men who worked hard to provide for their families. One of his dearest friends was a Latino, Jim Gomez, who was ultimately Dad's broker (Dad was an independent owner-operator, who never crossed a picket line): Unlike some others in the business who treated Dad less than honorably, Jim was always fair and square with Dad and the others he represented and with the companies he dealt with. So when Jim and the other Latinos Dad knew spoke highly of Cesar Chavez, Dad listened and told Mom and me to listen well, too.

Mom was a Catholic, and the United Farm Workers' work on behalf of the "least among us" resonated well with her and with the better angels of our Church. In fact, before coming to the archdiocese of Los Angeles, now-Cardinal Roger Mahoney worked side-by-side with farm workers in his Central Valley diocese -- a position that, last I heard, was occupied by a bishop, Stephen Blair, who had once been a young priest at our parish in Temple City, a priest I knew when I served as an "altar boy."

Dad, Mom, and I looked up to Cesar Chavez because he showed that even those whom society considers as the "lowest" -- even though they work the hardest -- have as much dignity as, if not more than, many of those whom society honors as the "highest." There was something just decent and right and just in all of that, and Cesar Chavez and those who worked alongside him sacrificed much to make sure that idea was not forgotten (and that society backed up that ideal with some better pay and working conditions).

I think that made Cesar Chavez a great man, representing the very best in what is truly American or simply human; and I'm proud that California chose to honor him and what he stood for with this holiday.

With Bill Richardson, A Call for Unity, for a New Majority

Franklin Katunda — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 21:12:35 EDT

Dear Governor Bill Richardson,

I thank God for your leadership, sincerity and courage you have shown with your endorsement to the American people's aspirations, reclaiming CHANGE in the way Washington DC is doing business.

The entire country will recognize former presidential candidates and superdelegates like you, whom with great experience in the commands of our country since the 1990s have been humble to recognize what's at stake in America, today.

Senator Obama and our campaign are grateful to you for your support to this once-in-the-generation's movement, more importantly for raising, during your 2008 conversation with America, the debate's issues that meet the American voters expectations:

1)You have championed the reduction of our dependency on foreign oil; (2) you called for an immediate withdrawal of our troops from Iraq, without residuals; (3) You stood up for an affordable healthcare, (4) the repealing of "No child Left Behind" and (4) You advocated for restoring our diplomacy in the world; (5) You called on for reforms of the VA medical treatments (mental health and post traumatic disorders) for our troops returning from wars, etc.

We appreciate much your participation in the 2008 civic debate, and are honored, in spite of the negatives from both, the democratic and republican status quo's attacks, you have embarked, at an unexpected moment, on the side of the American People, calling other superdelegates to start descerning that America is ready for a type of "CHANGE (that) We Can (all) Believe In"

Yes, senator Obama will (1) bring our country together and will restore the government's trust; He will (2) push lobbysts out of their DC comfort zone. He will (3) end the racial divides, the profiling of Hispanic-Americans and many other races are being victims of; he will lead the country to producing other renewable sources of energy that will cut our dependency on foreign oils. He will end the war in Iraq. (4) He will be ready to be commander-in-chief with a good, sound judgement and wisdom to take any 3am phone call.

The USA needs Unity in the light of Sen. Obama's race and religion speech, and I'm glad you are, by endorsing Barack Obama, positioning yourself and many other Hispanic-American voters to be part of this process. With this "NEW MAJORITY" vote, which includes Caucasians, Hispanics, Blacks (African-Americans, other recent US-born and naturalized Africans), Asians and Natives Americans, we are more than confident that, having won the most red states already, the Obama movement will seek the vote from Reagan-Democrats, the older and Blue-collar voters to form a working majority that will defeat John McCain, the presumptive nominee, who represents Bush and the G.O.P.'s agenda ( GOP here stands for the Government Of the Past)

I have worked in the the Obama campaign for little over a year now (since February 2007) and I have launched two online support groups; I have worked with devoted staffers and tireless grassroots volunteers from all racial backgrounds and walks of life in NH, MA, VA and TX.

Governor, I can guarantee you, as you know now, that NO remaining candidate in this 2008 election has the potential to unite America and energize our citizens to take back their government like Senator Barack Obama Jr.

Now, lets take it to the pundits and make them stay more confused til the november showdown, because when they attack our movement, predict negatives on (Obama's) our chances to lead, our campaign will always get another good bounce, another endorsement, like yours today.

We will prevail, even when this has been an unfair but welcomed "vetting process"; made of smears and negative attacks from the Clintons and the right-wing cells.

With the " Rev. Wright's Episode" that made it possible, all things considered, to shine Obama's leadership skills and wisdom, I believe that our candidate's speech-response to the incident was the best political tactic ever. Barack Obama responding to the American people, sent an ultimate call for racial and political unity in America; Now, we have no other alternative but to stand still for Change. In that respect, I am ready and proud like many other members and activists of this generational movement to be tested and called to reality-check, before our candidate's nomination.

This 2008 election remains the continuation of the 1960's movement... And that is why, for those who don't descerne yet, this election will certainly be different the ones in 1980s and 90s.

At the Obama Camp, we will stay strong and unwaivered in the face of threats of racial divisions that are known to be a longtime plague to our nation's structure, as older as the Consitution of America; Yet, we have a mission to bring hope to the cynics among us and within the Republican Party. I strongly believe that Philadelphia, the first capital-city of the Union, witness to the ideals of the Union is learning about the need for a more perfect union, under the sound of Senator barack Obama's speech.

Welcome, Governor, and lets stay "fired up" by our love for this country and "ready to-go" against McCain and his GOP's machine.

Si Se Puede, Yes We Can !!!

I'm Franklin Katunda, an Obama Surrogate and I approve this message.

March, 22 2008

Get Specific

Dena, St. Thomas — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 10:25:27 EST

Here are my thoughts on focus for the remaining primary season:

Obama needs to probe those "35 years" Hillary claims for experience which prepares her for the presidency. There's not that much there, and he needs to be specific about it.

Obama needs to go into the hispanic communities and get specific about what he will do. Again he needs to distinguish himself from Hillary. What has she done or Hispanics since her voter registration drive many years ago?

Obama needs to hit back hard to Hillary's negative campaigning.

He doesn't have to lead on hitting her, just respond forcefully. Any thoughts from the rest of you?

A Bilingual US

Carlos E. C�rdenas — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 18:10:49 EST

In some near future the US will become a bilingual nation. English, as well as Spanish, will serve to unite our country. An Obama presidency will set the path for this change.

From all the other candidates, it appears an Obama presidency will be more accepting to changes in society. In his last debate with Hillary, he brought up matters concerning Hispanics that, to my knowledge, other candidates have not addressed. He often spoke about the US being a country of immigrants, about passing the Dream Act and about stopping hate crimes against Hispanics. He also spoke about not creating two classes in the US and working with Mexico as a solution to illegal immigration.

I feel Obama prepared himself to discuss Hispanic issues in this last debate. At the least, it shows that he is aware of problems and ideas that Hispanics having been talking about for awhile. I feel no other candidate has done the same. Considering this fact, I feel that as Spanish becomes more widespread in the US, an Obama presidency will be more accepting to this social change. Furthermore, I believe his administration will be better attuned to Hispanic issues and thus will allow Hispanics to a play a greater role in the US.

Reach Out to Latinos or Lose Out in Elections

Douglas from South Gate, CA — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 19:08:08 EST

Latinos represent a vast, mixed group of voters with great influence and potential. They have determined outcomes in primary elections; they will continue to do so, very likely in the upcoming Texas primary; and in the general election, they can make the difference between a President Obama and a President McCain for the next four, or eight, years. What have we done to reach out to Latinos? And what can we do better?

There is good news and bad news when you consider Latino voting. The good news begins with the fact that despite much-publicized inroads made by George W. Bush in the last presidential election -- which were perhaps significantly overstated -- Latino voters continue to identify with Democrats by a more than two-to-one margin. Also good news is that in 2004, according to U.S. Census figures, of the more than 27 million Hispanics of voting age, about 16 million were citizens (about 18 million now); and of those, over 9 million were registered, 82% of whom voted (compared to 89% of all registered voters who voted), representing 6% of the total votes cast. The bad news is that means almost 7 million U.S. Hispanic citizens (some 42% of those eligible to vote) did not register, let alone vote -- over twice as many votes as put George W. Bush in the White House! Obviously, registering Latinos and getting out their vote is extremely important to the success of our campaign; but that depends upon our effectively reaching out to them and seriously addressing their concerns.

Obama Gaining Among Middle-Aged, Women, Hispanics

RNC_for_Obama — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 08:28:05 EST

PRINCETON, NJ -- The momentum in the Democratic nomination race has clearly swung toward Barack Obama. Not only has he won all of the post-Super Tuesday contests, but he has steadily gained in Gallup Poll Daily tracking to the point where he has overtaken Clinton as the national leader for the first time, holding a statistically significant lead in each of the last three tracking poll results.

Obama's standing has improved among most Democratic subgroups over the past several days. But one of the more substantial shifts has been the changing preferences of middle-aged Democratic voters, who have moved away from Clinton and toward Obama in the past week. Obama has also made gains among three other groups that have favored Clinton throughout much of the campaign -- women, Hispanics, and self-identified Democrats. Obama and Clinton are now running even among these three key groups in the most recent Gallup tracking data.

These findings are based on a comparison of Democratic voters' nomination preferences in Feb. 5-9 polling with those in Feb. 13-17 polling. Each of these five-day tracking periods consists of interviews with roughly 2,000 Democratic voters nationwide. Overall, in the Feb. 5-9 data, Clinton led Obama by an average of 49% to 42%. In the most recent five days (Feb. 13-17), the candidates' standings have basically flipped, with Obama leading Clinton by an average of 49% to 43%.

The Age Effect

Throughout the campaign, exit polls have shown that Obama has appealed to younger voters, and Clinton to older voters. Even as the momentum has swung in Obama's favor, those basic relationships at opposite ends of the age spectrum still hold. The change in recent days has been in middle-aged Democratic voters' preferences. In the Feb. 5-9 period, Clinton led among Democratic voters aged 35 to 54 by a 49% to 42% margin. Now, Obama is the leader among this group by 51% to 42%.

This suggests that middle-aged voters will be a key swing group to monitor in the remaining Democratic primaries and caucuses. For the moment, Obama has captured their allegiance.

The Gender Gap

Clinton's primary victories to date have been fueled in large part by support from female voters. The former first lady and current New York senator has always demonstrated a particular appeal to women.

When Obama has closed the gap with Clinton nationally -- as he did in the days leading up to Super Tuesday (see "Hillary Clinton's Gender Advantage Over Obama Narrows" in Related Items) -- he has usually been able to do so by reducing her lead among women.

In the days immediately after Super Tuesday, Clinton rebuilt her lead among women, enjoying a 53% to 38% lead in the Feb. 5-9 polling. But her gender advantage has once again dissipated, and in the latest data, female Democratic voters are about as likely to say they prefer Obama (45%) as Clinton (46%).

Hispanics

Many credited Clinton's strong appeal to Hispanics for helping her win the important Feb. 5 California primary, and her support among this key group gives the campaign hope for a comeback victory in the March 4 Texas primary. But the tracking data suggest her support advantage among Hispanics may be eroding, at least on a national level. In the Feb. 5-9 data, Clinton led Obama by nearly 2-to-1, 63%-32%, among Hispanic Democratic voters. In the most recent polling, the two are essentially tied among this constituency, with 50% preferring Obama and 46% Clinton.

Party ID

Clinton looked like a solid bet for the nomination early in the campaign process not only because of her consistent lead, but also because she was typically the preferred choice among core Democrats (those who identify as Democrats when asked to give their party affiliation). Meanwhile, Obama tended to fare better among those who initially identify as independents but then say they "lean" to the Democratic Party.

In the Feb. 5-9 data, Clinton continued to lead Obama, 51% to 41%, among Democratic identifiers, while trailing slightly (48% to 42%) among independents. In the most recent results, Obama has expanded his lead among independents (58% to 36%) while achieving parity with Clinton among core Democrats (46% Obama, 45% Clinton).

Other Democratic Voter Groups

The following table shows how the race has shifted among other Democratic voter groups of note.

Among the highlights:

Obama has further expanded his dominant positioning among black Democrats.
Both candidates have maintained their leads among their core supporters by education -- Clinton among those with less formal education and Obama among college graduates. The middle group of those who attended college but did not graduate shows movement toward Obama in the latest polling.
Married Democratic voters have shifted from a Clinton-leaning to an Obama-leaning group.
Clinton's leads among Democrats in the Northeast and West have dissipated.

Hillary's Glass Ceiling; Barack's Open Door

Halford Fairchild, Ph.D. — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 09:28:54 EST

I read a piece in today's LA Times that is worth sharing. On page A12 (LA Times, February 18, 2008, a Texas business owner was quoted this way:

"I see more of myself in Barack than I do in Hillary," said Sergio Zarate, 46, who owns a chain of dry cleaning stores in the Rio Grande Valley and attended Saturday's party. "He's not just going to crack a glass ceiling. He can really kick the door off its hinges, and clear the way for all of us, ven Hispanics."

I concur with Zarate's metaphorical vision.

Si' Se Puede!

Nervie — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 01:37:22 EST

OBAMA 2/13/08 New York Daily News Viva section writer, Dolores Prida, offers some common sense and great advice, why not have Latina, Latino reporters speak on the wave of increasing Hispanic voters necessary to the Texas Democratic presidential campaign coming up soon? They know the culture, language and the people. Latinos who understand the geography of the Barrio instead of the frat boys use demeaning, stereotypical descriptive (often wrong) to posture the “we” and “them concept” into the Clinton and Obama contest. “I had never heard that the brown man would never vote for the black man until the frat boys came along”, she says. I agree. I grew up in Riverside where African Americans and Hispanic speaking families lived next door to one another. Our commonality was that we were all “making it” and “sharing resources” and information whenever we could. It wasn’t such a big deal for the Avilas to come over and it was better having meals at their houses then ours because they had been eating “soul food” and didn’t know that that was what it was called and Mexican dishes were new to us but Delicioso, heck yeah! And tastier, because it was different, varying textures, sauces, crispiness, and the varying layers of cheese and sautéed vegetables! The Avilas was three different homes all members of the same family who owned the local gas station, grocery store and auto repair shop. They even eat chit’lin’s to my chagrin. My mother couldn’t get us to eat them, but we had plenty neighbors who ate our share. You add bleach, onions, and white or apple vinegar I still won’t eat them. But I digressed.

Obama is frightening the old traditionalists. Media and shameless Democrats have attacked ‘his well-crafted speech writers”, accused him of “trying to be like Martin Luther King, Jr.,” as the great orator; they have attacked his color, his name, religion, loyalty, patriotism, the man is running for President of the United States, what are they talking about. His lineage (he’s part white and African, but he isn’t an African American; I thought that is what made us African Americans that Heinz 57 blood line combination with the brown outer coloring and having accepted certain language, style and culture on the outside. I even heard our 25 Congressional District leader referring to him in public, as a “brown man”. Whatever that meant! Let’s face it; this man is bringing out the “rawness” in a lot of folks. And this is coming from Democrats. Lord help us when the Republicans jump into this fray, but maybe they’ll play nice this summer, since they have as much contempt for McCain as they do for Hillary. But you have to admit, this man has everyone “rocking, talking, responding and most of all VOTING”. And they thought young folks weren’t paying attention and didn’t care. We never gave them a reason to care; now they do. ROCK ON, ROCK ON, ROCK ON OBAMA….yeah. Si’ Se Puede!

Substance Issue

John S. Dowd — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 17:47:02 EST

Here's a way to hit two trees with one stick.

Mr. Obama could easily compile a list of Executive Orders that begin to ameliorate the immigration mess. He should compile such a list and announce it as soon as practically possible. Second he should put forth his immigration position on a point by point basis. Again a widely advertised public announcement would be wise. His position needs to be more favorable to illegal immigrants than H. Clinton's in some easily identified and carefully noted way

This would have four effects:

1. He can point to this as a detailed position well spelled out and not lacking of substance.

2. It hits McCain on the softest part of his own relationship with his own party. McCain will either have recant (as he recently did with torture) or widen the gap with his own base.

3. It separates in a clear way Mr. Obama's position on immigration from Senator Clinton's making it a clearer choice.

4. It shows the Latino population that Mr. Obama understands and is sympathetic to their issues.

Worth considering, I think.

Battling for independents and the art of linkage

Rafael from Antioch, CA — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 20:26:46 EST

As a non-affiliated voter I am shocked why all those campaign big brains are not using all the weapons they have at there disposal to gain votes of others who have not identified with a party. Myself, I am for Obama but a lot I know are not, or they are sitting the fence. If, and I do mean if, you of the Obama nation really want to put this to bed and put a cap on this listen up. What Obama needs to be doing now before Texas and such is hammering Clinton with a blanket wrapped baseball bat. I am not talking about assault; it is a metaphor for digging her without appearing negative. Clinton has her husband who has sway with a lot of these super delegates. Obama doesn’t have that type of “insider”. I hear all the time Obama has to make better in rows with Hispanics, and lower income, and working class whites. Obama can not only do this, but also slam Clinton without openly slamming her. All Obama has to do is link the current economic hardships and or recession to the war in Iraq, which Clinton supported. If Obama can convince the other independents like me that the money saved by ending the war can flow into their communities to help rebuild and stimulate growth, he will gain much, and at the same time keep Americas thoughts that Clinton voted for the war which caused them pain. Why are those big brains not taking an effective page from G.W. Bush’s playbook on linkage? That is how we got into this war, linkage and doctored info. Obama doesn’t have to manufacture info, the money is being spent, and all he has to do is keep showing America what four billion a month could do here for America instead of being flushed down the rabbit hole. Plus he needs to quietly remind America who voted to flush the money, mainly Clinton, and McCain.

Texas, Hispanics and the vote for Obama

texsun61 — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 11:55:05 EST

I want to see more of an effort by the Obama camp to reach out for the Hispanic vote. I'm Hispanic and I support Barack but in order to win the state of Texas Barack must win the Hispanic vote. Here is a speech I found by Barack for Hispanic Heritage month.

Microtrends: Hispanics, Women, and Catholics

Benjamin Vos, Nashville — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 23:22:06 EST

Mark Penn, who is chief political strategist for the Hillary Clinton campaign, outlined his views on marketing and campaigns in his book, "Microtrends". In the book, he looks at trends in American culture and how small groups of people tend to drive big changes.

http://www.microtrending.com/

Hillary Clinton's campaign manager, Patti Solis Doyle, is a Hispanic woman. She has used her expertise on these groups of people - Hispanics and women - and has a great impact for the Clinton campaign.

For instance, Hillary Clinton has made a lot of noise in her mailings about the fact that "Barack Obama voted present on choice" and that Obama's record on abortion rights isn't very clear.

Why?

1. Attacking Barack Obama's record of being pro-choice will affect Evangelicals and drive them away from supporting Obama. (How many friends have you talked to who won't vote Democratic because they are pro-life? Isn't it ironic, when you consider the fact that the "pro-life" Republicans are supporting a war in Iraq that has killed hundreds of thousands of people, with no end in sight? Isn't it ironic that Republicans oppose healthcare reform that will provide care for more children?)

2. Catholic Democrats (another group that is strongly supportive of Clinton) will hear about Obama's pro-choice record and move away from him. This will neutralize the talk of "unifying the country".

3. Latinos, many of them Catholic, will hear that Obama didn't "take a stand" and think that Obama is not a strong leader.

Of course, all of the loud noise from Clinton's campaign will drown out the wisdom of Obama's position. He's most concerned about protecting the Constitution. As he has said, everyone is "pro-life". No one wants to see abortions happening. But we have to attack the root causes of abortion - sexual immorality, economic inequality, and selfish ambition. Those issues are moral issues, and we need moral leadership to address those issues.

To mobilize Latinos / Hispanics... First, make a resolute commitment

Sergio — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 11:51:56 EST

As I crossed a Virginia bridge to D.C. into work this morning, I read Alec MacGillis' Washington Post article titled "Obama Echoes King's Call for Unity at Atlanta Church" and although I was inspired by the imagery and truth in Barack Obama's speech [so much so that as I read attentively -cars behind me honked repeatedly and some gave me the finger while they veered around me]... I also took special notice of Obama's mention of "anti-immigrant bias in the black community"... I quickly lost my train of though and drifted into resonating thoughts of many instances of 'this' in my past. But the subject of this Blog is not where or how to point fingers, but how to mend our differences and [in the spirit of our candidate's Jan.20 speech at Rev. MLK's church] find ways to bring Unity amongst All Americans.

From my corner of the nation, I make a call to all Hispanics, for us to put differences aside and pay special attention to this candidate's unique qualities. We pride ourselves in family values and community; but are we doing anything to reach out to our family and friends? We need to mobilize towards changing the trend of "2 to 1 Latinos favoring Hillary over Barack". Let's make a resolute commitment... Let's put the facts on the table, ask the questions, until we understand how this all applies to us. Then strategize to get the word out to Latinos in America, who want change as much as everyone else. First, make a resolute commitment.

race and gender

Kevin Coleman — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 20:55:26 EST

This morning, the Guardian reported that the Obama and Clinton campaigns have called a halt to their exchanges over race. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uselections08/barackobama/story/0,,2241050,00.html

The glaring problem with this story in the Guardian is the absence of a discussion of gender. The Guardian wasn’t the only media outlet to focus exclusively on the racial, while ignoring the gendered, aspects of this debate. CNN and MSNBC also delivered the story as if it were all about Hillary Clinton’s mention that it took a president, LBJ, to make the Civil Rights Act a reality. But actually this race row is tightly linked to Hillary’s very gendered performance in New Hampshire. As Melissa Harris-Lacewell put it in Slate: “[Obama] is asking voters to peer through the veil of America's racial history and actually see him. It is a hard thing to do. When Hillary Clinton's eyes welled up with the strain of the campaign, she evoked immediate recognition from many white women of her generation. "Oh, yes," they thought, "I remember feeling like that." Former President Bill Clinton rallied angrily for his wife, as he claimed that the media were picking on her while being soft on Obama. This is a familiar American narrative of race and gender, and it resonated with thousands of New Hampshire voters. Clinton cried about being attacked in the debates, but there are no public tears shed for the strain Obama must feel as a result of death threats, which caused the doubling of his Secret Service detail.”

http://www.slate.com/id/2181782/nav/tap3/

It was this eleventh-hour connection to a large pocket of previously unmobilized, undecided, older white women voters that defied the pollsters who had been predicting a ten-point victory for Obama in New Hampshire. Why was it, Harris-Lacewell rightly asks, that Hillary’s pain could so readily be understood while Obama’s could not be? That’s a question at the heart of all politics—the ability to identify with others, with a chosen representative and with other members of the body politic.

The attempt to appeal to Hispanic voters is examined in an article in today’s New York Times, highlighting the intersection between gender, ethnicity, and race. The article says that Obama will have overcome two hurdles to capture the Hispanic vote, first, historic rifts between African Americans and Hispanics in the U.S. and, second, the gendered appeal that Hillary is increasingly seeking to create.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/15/us/politics/15hispanic.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ei=5088&en=2af8c56c9ecaf9f1&ex=1358139600&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

In Salon.com, Gary Kamiya also took on the issues of race and gender at play here: “Would you rather be born in the U.S. today as a white woman (to choose the most privileged subset of Steinem's "restricted" caste) or as a black man? Few would choose to be black. More white women are not in prison than in college, thousands of young white women are not shot down on inner-city streets every year, few if any white women have ever been arrested for driving while female, and so on. Steinem's historical arguments are unconvincing because they aren't up to date: She ignores the exponential advances made by white women and the failure of black men to keep pace. Leaving aside her omission of Jim Crow laws, and no matter how many black men may have made it into boardrooms before women (and there weren't too many), it was never better to be a black man than a white woman at any time in U.S. history.”

http://www.salon.com/opinion/kamiya/2008/01/15/race_gender/

Es Usted Hispano?

NO A LA MARCHA EN CONTRA DE OBAMA — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 14:28:00 EDT

<img src="http://www.atlatinos.net/upload/loading.gif" align="left" alt="God Bless America" width="32" height="32" />Que espera amigo, participe, ayude a que de una vez portadas nuestra comunidad que es la segunda minoría en esta gran nación sea tomada en cuenta por lo que merece no por lo que grupos racistas pretenden que los ciudadanos americanos crean. Piense en estos números que no son un invento, son la realidad de nosotros mismos, pero desgraciadamente nuestra participación hasta ahora ha sido mas que nula> Somos aproximadamente:

43 millones de hispanos
17.5 millones están hábiles para votar en las próximas elecciones y por supuesto los candidatos de uno y otro partido lo saben. Ahora bien no olvide REGISTRARSE PARA VOTAR, esto es muy importante.
7.5 millones de hispanos en las elecciones pasadas votaron (desgraciadamente se equivocaron muchos al votar por el partido republicano, Usted amigo (a) esta viendo y viviendo en carne propia lo que nuestra comunidad esta sufriendo con el nefasto gobierno de George W Bush.

The Republicans Flunk Spanish

Roseville City School Board Member — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 18:12:00 EDT

The Republicans Flunk Spanish
By JAY NEWTON-SMALL/WASHINGTON POST

To many casual political observers, it may have seemed remarkable that seven of the eight Democratic presidential candidates showed up in Miami on Sunday for the nation's first Spanish-language debate. But the more extraordinary thing is that only one G.O.P. candidate is apparently willing to take part in a Republican follow-up.

The Univision debate showed the growing power of Latino voters; it also showed how that group - which has the potential to swing electorally crucial states like Florida, Nevada and New Mexico - is trending increasingly Democratic. Univision invited all of the G.O.P. candidates to the same forum next week. But only one, Senator John McCain of Arizona, accepted the invitation and the debate has been indefinitely postponed.

That kind of snub wouldn't have seemed possible only three years ago. President George W. Bush won reelection in 2004, in part, due to historic Latino support for a Republican candidate. Fulfilling the dream of Karl Rove, his former top political adviser, Bush drew nearly 40% of the Latino vote, double that of any previous G.O.P. presidential nominee.

So why are 10 G.O.P. candidates so unwilling to face Hispanic voters this year? In one word: immigration. Most Republican platforms on the divisive issue - which are variations of beefing up border controls - serve to shore up their base, but anger most immigrant communities, not just Hispanics. "For the Republicans, if they had a debate in Spanish, on Univision, they would get as many questions on immigration and so they would have to speak about immigration in the same way they speak about immigration on CNN on MSNBC and all the other networks," said Sergio Bendixon, a leading pollster of Latino voting trends. "And that, I'm sure they have figured, would be offensive, almost insulting to most Hispanic voters and definitely to Latin American immigrant voters."

The flip side of that political calculation was apparent on Sunday night. In Miami, all the Democratic candidates rushed to show their support in answering the first question, one clearly aimed at the G.O.P.: "Do you consider that participating in a forum run in Spanish and addressed specifically to Hispanic voters is a political risk for you?"

"It's an opportunity," Illinois Senator Barack Obama said via translator (all responses were given in English and simultaneously translated). "It's a privilege to be here," said New York Senator Hillary Clinton. "An extraordinary privilege," echoed former North Carolina Senator John Edwards.

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney's campaign said he had a scheduling conflict with the proposed Republican Univision debate, but his campaign is in "regular contact with Univision about other opportunities in the future," said Alex Burgos, who handles Hispanic outreach for Romney. Burgos was quick to note that Romney was the first candidate from either party to run Spanish-language ads, is the only G.O.P. candidate with an Hispanic steering committee and has an extensive Spanish-language website. Romney was also, notably, the only Republican candidate to put out a statement on the Democratic debate Sunday, contrasting his record with Democratic statements on taxes, health care, trade, relations with Latin America and abortion. (Tellingly, immigration was not mentioned.) A spokesperson for former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said, "We would love to attend all of the debates we're being asked to participate in, but our campaign has had to make tough decisions based on the accelerated schedule and fundraising demands about the number we can realistically participate in." Calls and e-mails to the campaigns of former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson were not immediately answered.

As one of the authors of an immigration reform bill that did more than just push heightened border security, McCain is the only G.O.P. candidate that has a chance to appeal to Hispanic groups, says Eduardo Gamarra, a specialist in Hispanic studies at Florida International University. "There are many people that think that Senator McCain is going to be a formidable candidate, not only because he's taken a middle-of-the-road approach, but because he's positioned to take votes from the Democrats," Gamarra said.

The few G.O.P. candidates who have bothered to campaign in Florida's Hispanic communities have done so on a single-issue platform: keep the Cuban embargo in place. This tactic is a mistake, Gamarra contends, because not only are Cubans no longer the largest Hispanic group in Florida, but many younger Cubans don't have the same strong feelings about the embargo. "Voters are telling us that they don't really give a damn about what they say about Cuba," Gamarra said. "They care about immigration, health care, education and the Hispanic presence in Iraq."

Rove's 2004 strategy was to focus on Hispanic voters in swing states like Florida, Arizona, New Mexico and Ohio. "Those groups are now firmly back in the Democratic camp," Gamarra said. Republicans "are losing their base, so they're much less concerned with solidifying what they gained with Hispanics in 2004." And the Democrats have been quick to pick up on Rove's strategy: All four of the top Democratic candidates have aggressively been courting Hispanic voters in those states, Gamarra said.

Fernando Romero, president of the non-partisan Hispanics in Politics, an activist group in Nevada - which now holds an important caucus slot between Iowa and New Hampshire early in 2008 - has also seen little or no G.O.P. outreach this cycle. Romero's group last year endorsed Jim Gibbons, the successful G.O.P. candidate for governor, but this year didn't like the Republican presidential field in part because of the immigration debate and in part because Republicans have neglected the community. "They have certainly really brushed off the Hispanic vote," Romero said. "Not even one of the 10 that are running has made an effort to contact any of the Latino groups in the area."

Not surprisingly, Romero's group has endorsed Bill Richardson, the only candidate of Latino background, for the Democratic nomination. "We have in Bill Richardson an individual who has 15 years in Congress, served as an ambassador to the U.N., was nominated four times to the Nobel Peace Prize, governor of New Mexico. The fact that he's also Hispanic is just the cherry on top."

During the Univision debate, Richardson made the most of his ethnic advantage. Going against the debate's rules, which called for all answers to be given in English, Richardson answered in Spanish. "I'm very proud, first of all to be the first Latino - major Latino candidate to run for President," said Richardson, who has been gaining in polls of early voting states, though he only averages 3% nationally. "I'm disappointed today that 43 million Latinos in this country, for them not to hear one of their own speak Spanish."

Ultimately, it's unfortunate that the Republican candidates seem to be paying little attention to Latino voters, said Bendixon. Historically, the group has been notoriously fickle and capable of swinging from one end to the political spectrum to the other in just two years' time. "If I were a Republican, I wouldn't give up on it," he said. "Though this might be the toughest year yet for them."

An Historic Forum

Michael Negron — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 18:38:44 EDT

Barack brought his message of unity and hope to the Univisión presidential forum last night at the University of Miami. This historic forum took place in Spanish (with live English translation) and is a testament to the importance of the 43 million Hispanic-Americans in the United States today.

From start to finish, Barack stressed that all Americans share the major concerns of Hispanic-Americans. Quoting Martin Luther King’s letter to César Chavez, Barack said that Hispanics share a common struggle for equal rights and opportunity that transcends language and racial boundaries. During his days as a community organizer, Barack lived this struggle, working with leaders of all backgrounds to achieve progress on important issues that affect every family.

Roberto Fuentes of Nashua watched the forum last night, and said he was “surprised at how original it was. It will most certainly engage the Hispanic community.” He added: “Barack did a phenomenal job and connected with Latino voters around the country with his life story and with his ideas to make this a better America for all.”

As the debate ended, Barack said he most admired Hispanic-Americans for their unyielding belief in the future and in the American Dream. Helping make this belief into a reality for others has been the cause of his life.

The Hispanic Community, the reality of his contribution to the American Society.

NO A LA MARCHA EN CONTRA DE OBAMA — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 10:58:30 EDT

One of the speeds up community in this country is the Hispanic community.

Unfortunately, his contribution to the society is misrecognized for the American society itself most of them due the misinformation of some groups who the only purpose is mistreat this enterprising community.

There are too many examples but they never talk about it.

This community with powerfull and strong presence in tha American societe, and believe or not for those racist groups they are the negation of the society.

From people working at NASA in highly and high-tech program of investigation, to well organized society's of professional, bigger and smalls entrepreneurs, everywhere around the nation, even in each government in the last 25 years and for those Racist Neo-Nazis always the Hispanic community are the poorest community of this country.

They are no happy with his campaign of disrespect our community, they go far from this, with his proposal of draconian laws with the unique objectives to intimidate our community.

Now in this electoral time they are playing the double face of the happiness and the fears!

Percy H Florez

Obama Goes Bilingual With Other Candidates

Roseville City School Board Member — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 12:35:49 EDT

Hopefuls going bilingual to woo Hispanic voters
By EUNICE MOSCOSO
Cox News Service

WASHINGTON -- With a record number of Latinos eligible to vote in 2008, presidential hopefuls are increasingly going bilingual.

Five candidates -- Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.; Gov. Bill Richardson, D-N.M.; Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.; former Republican Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, and former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C. -- have Web sites in Spanish, some with links to Spanish-language videos, candidate biographies, issue statements and press releases.

Clinton, Edwards and former Sen. Mike Gravel, D-Alaska, also have profile pages on the bilingual social networking site www.mygrito.com, similar to the popular myspace.com.

The Web sites

Clinton answers a question each week in Spanish on her mygrito.com Web site. She also shares details of her life, including that her favorite TV show is American Idol and that her worst habit is eating chocolate.

Romney is the only GOP candidate with a Spanish version of his official campaign Web site. It includes a video of his son Craig, who speaks fluent Spanish, saying that his father is "un hombre de familia, de fe, y de integridad" -- "a man of family, faith and integrity." Craig also says in Spanish that Romney has been a good father, husband and grandfather.

Richardson's Spanish-language site includes video testimonials from Hispanic leaders in various states and his own announcement in Spanish that he is pursuing the Oval Office.

Obama's site includes Spanish subtitles on videos of speeches and events.

Edwards' site consists of a single page that lists challenges for the next president and includes the slogan, "El Mañana Empieza Hoy," or "The Future Begins Today."

Speaking Spanish

Richardson's mother is Mexican and he grew up in Mexico City. He is fluent in Spanish and uses it often on the campaign trail. At a recent event in Orlando, Fla., he told an audience of Latino officials that they were "mi familia" and "mi gente," which means "my family" and "my people."

At the same forum, Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., also spoke in fluent Spanish. Dodd, who is also seeking the Democratic nomination, learned the language as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Dominican Republic and regularly does interviews with Spanish-language media.

Newt Gingrich, former House speaker who is considering a run for the GOP nomination, has been learning Spanish for months.

Why it matters

Thomas Mann, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, said the Spanish-language outreach is the most extensive he's ever witnessed.

"Candidates see a growing segment of the population that might well be up for grabs," he said.

The number of Hispanics eligible to vote has increased from about 14 million in 2000 to 17 million in 2006, according to the Pew Hispanic Center, a nonpartisan research group in Washington. The number will be even higher for next year's election.

President Bush received 40 percent of the Latino vote in 2004, a record for a Republican presidential candidate. But exit polls showed that Latino support for Republicans in the 2006 midterm elections fell to about 27 percent.

John Pitney, a professor of American politics at Claremont McKenna College, said that if Republicans fail to hold at least a third of the Latino vote in the 2008 general election, they could lose swing states such as Florida, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico.

Federico Subervi, a journalism professor at Texas State University-San Marcos, said that candidates are using Spanish more and more as a tool in their arsenal to attract every possible voter and that its use will increase in the future.

Online: pewhispanic.org

On the Web

Candidate Web sites in Spanish:

Barack Obama: www.barackobama.com/espanol/tv

Hillary Clinton: www.hillaryclinton.com/es

Mitt Romney: www.mittromney.com/Espanol/index

Bill Richardson: www.richardsonparapresidente.com

John Edwards: johnedwards.com/espanol

SOURCE: Cox News Service

A growing voice

The number of eligible Hispanic voters has increased

Year Eligible Hispanic voters Percentage of total eligible voters
2000 13.9 million 7.4
2002 15.6 million 8.1
2004 16 million 8.2
2006 17 million 8.6
SOURCE: Pew Hispanic Center

Obama's Way Is With Words - Not Hugs And He Is A Good Listener

Roseville City School Board Member — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 14:16:15 EDT

Obama's way is with words, not hugs
The neophyte presidential candidate works hard on the campaign trail. His answers may wander, but there's that smile and he's a good listener.

By Mark Z. Barabak, Times Staff Writer
June 7, 2007
In Hanover, N.H.
NORTH CONWAY, N.H. -- A busload of reporters and TV cameras awaits Barack Obama as he steps forward, notes in hand, and begins speaking in his sonorous baritone.

Chicken fingers, he says. Cheeseburgers. Barbecued ribs. Baked scallops. Meatloaf.

His words are greeted with utmost seriousness. Reporters scribble notes as the White House hopeful stands in the parking lot of the Wild Boar Tavern, reading the evening's dinner menu and fielding questions about who aboard his campaign RV will enjoy which takeout entree.

Obama does a good job ignoring the absurdity of the moment -- or perhaps he highlights it, this Harvard-trained lawyer and political phenom, by keeping a straight face.

A presidential campaign is a long, grueling and, sometimes, uplifting exercise. It is serious business. But from the ground level, it is also a series of days sprinkled with odd episodes, like the scene in northern New Hampshire, requiring not just stamina but a willingness to surrender to a number of strange protocols.

For the cerebral senator from Illinois, this may be tougher than, say, devising a plan for universal healthcare.

On a recent swing through the first primary state -- two days, eight stops, 330-odd miles -- Obama seems game enough. He holds town hall meetings and a Dartmouth rally, where he plunges into the crowd, shaking hands with both arms, flashing a smile that extends from one big ear to the other, throwing a wave to those 10, 20 feet away. He discusses AIDS and global warming, Iraq and healthcare, habeas corpus and Social Security.

He also takes a carefully choreographed walk across a covered bridge, wields the scooper at an ice cream social and clogs the aisles at a general store when he stops, along with his media and Secret Service entourage, for sandwiches and fudge squares.

Holding back

But oftentimes there seems a certain distance, a physical remove, a part of Obama that he holds back for himself. He is not a hugger, like Bill Clinton or Bill Richardson, New Mexico's garrulous governor and another candidate for the Democratic nomination.

In the mountain hamlet of Berlin, at the ice cream social, about 200 people gather on a gently sloping lawn as Obama faces them from the steps of a white gazebo. Megan Wilson, 22, stands braced against a cane. She is disabled and shares her dream of becoming a teacher, to help others like herself. She urges Obama to support the federal programs she needs to get by. Later, it is the candidate's wife, Michelle, who embraces the woman and her mother; Obama, summoned by his wife, places a fatherly hand on Wilson's shoulder and thanks her for offering to help his campaign.

The connection Obama forges is through the spoken word, not touch. It was his soaring rhetoric at the 2004 Democratic convention that launched his national political career and it is his voice -- rising to a shout, falling to a whisper, as finely tuned as any symphony orchestra -- that moves audiences. But he is also a careful listener, hands clasped before him, neck craned slightly forward, eyes earnestly locked on his subject.

"Over the years I've heard candidates come by," said Farrell Seiler, a 62-year-old veteran who accompanied Obama as the candidate placed a wreath at Littleton's small monument for the war dead. "It looks like they open up a mental filing cabinet, pull out a folder, give the script, say, 'Thank you very much,' kiss babies, shake hands and walk out and go to the next function. I think with Obama, he's more of a natural."

But running for president is not a natural lifestyle, and there are things Obama resists.

He skips candidate roundups that others feel obliged to attend. (He is adamant, however, about his hour on the treadmill.) He ignores the complaints of TV crews and holds his town halls in the round, turning small circles at the center of the crowd, even if that means sometimes speaking with his back to the cameras. The media obsession with sound bites is an irritant in itself.

"That's just not how I normally speak," he tells reporters. "That's a part of it that I have to practice." Although, he adds, "I'm not sure that it actually is a measure of whether you'd be a good president or not."

Freed of constraints, his answers tend to meander, lasting two, three, four minutes or more. At one stop, a woman asks about Social Security; she receives an $800-a-month disability check. Obama talks about efforts to partially privatize the program (which Obama opposed), changing demographics, government accounting practices, businesses that "weasel out" of worker pensions.

"It's also true that disability payments sometimes are not sufficient," he says, "and I would have to know exactly what your situation is to determine the category you fall in." He never asks.

Obama's place in the Democratic race -- at or near the top in fundraising and polls -- means he can hew to the high ground. Over two days, he never directly criticizes his rivals, and President Bush is rarely mentioned. Instead, Obama offers an autobiographical sketch: the mother from Kansas, the father from Kenya. His first run for state office after consulting two higher powers -- God and his wife -- and how people fumbled with his name -- "Alabama?" "Yo, Mama?" Those lines always get a laugh, and Obama chuckles along, as if he hasn't uttered them countless times.

He speaks of cynicism, of broken politics, of healing, community, reconciliation. Let's put our shoulders to the wheel, he says, and we can move history.

He reiterates his unswerving opposition to the war in Iraq -- a line that always gets the biggest cheer -- leaving unsaid the fact his two main rivals, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina voted to back the invasion before turning against the war. He outlines his proposal to draw down U.S. troops, bringing them home by April 2008.

He offers other specifics, spaced over an hour or so: He would shut down the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He favors a big boost in the mileage standards imposed on U.S. automakers. He would increase the money the U.S. spends on foreign aid from 1% to 2% of the federal budget, make the U.S. a leader in fighting global warming.

Voters have questions

But he is vague about some things -- how he would force those standards on automakers, for example -- and simplistic about others. "It's not rocket science," he says of achieving universal healthcare, a goal that has stymied politicians for generations.

Some walk away less than satisfied. "He was telling me the problems, which I agree with," builder Steve Larson, 50, says in Conway.

"He was telling me solutions in general. But specifically he wasn't telling me how big this pill was that we need to swallow."

A day later, George Hathorn is part of the sprawl covering a grassy swath at Dartmouth. But the 63-year-old architect is more curious that convinced. "I'm concerned about the hype," Hathorn says of Obama's comet-like candidacy. "I haven't seen the substance yet."

It is this question -- involving the percentages of steak and sizzle -- that dogs Obama, and it clearly irks him. Told of the criticism expressed by some in the crowd, Obama blames those covering his campaign. "One of the questions that I think I would ask back at you," he says, "is what do we need to do to get the national press to focus on those speeches we've been delivering in great detail?"

His tone, however, is even, not angry.

Suffering fools and reporters is very much a part of running for president and if that bothers Obama, if the atmospherics, the minute scrutiny and stagy photo opportunities ever get to him, he doesn't let on.

As he stands on the porch of the Littleton Area Senior Center, making small talk with the gray-haired ladies, one of Obama's two daughters, 5-year-old Sasha, pipes up and asks, "When are we going to do fun things?"

"This is fun things," her father replies.

--mark.barabak@latimes.com

Obama on ABC Tonight for National Council of La Raza ALMA Awards

Roseville City School Board Member — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 18:12:01 EDT

SENATOR OBAMA TO JOIN IN HONORING SEN. GRAHAM, REP. GUTIERREZ, AND CARDINAL MAHONY AT THE 2007 NCLR CAPITAL AWARDS

Washington, DC - Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) will join the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., in honoring Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Representative Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), and Roger Cardinal Mahony at the 2007 NCLR Capital Awards gala at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC. Senator Obama will give remarks at the opening reception beginning at 5:30 p.m.

"We are honored to recognize these three great leaders for the courage they have shown, and continue to show, in paving the way for true immigration reform," said Janet Murguía, NCLR President and CEO. "Our nation needs this kind of leadership from the business, faith, labor, and community sectors to come together and work toward real solutions."

Senator Graham and Representative Gutierrez will be recognized for their bipartisan efforts to enact comprehensive immigration reform legislation. NCLR will also present the Public Service Award to His Eminence Roger Cardinal Mahony, Archbishop of Los Angeles, for his long-standing commitment to immigrants and his efforts to combat anti-immigrant policies.

Joining NCLR in honoring these outstanding leaders will be their colleagues from Capitol Hill including Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Representatives Joe Baca (D-CA), Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus; Xavier Becerra (D-CA); Bob Filner (D-CA); Nydia Velázquez (D-NY); José Serrano (D-NY), Hilda Solis (D-CA); Al Green (D-TX); and Chris Cannon (R-UT). Also expected to attend are U.S. Treasurer Anna Cabral and Deputy Administrator of the Small Business Administration Jovita Carranza.

The gala begins with a reception at 5:30 p.m., which will be followed by the awards program and dinner at 6:30 p.m. Janet Murguía will also address the more than 700 persons who are expected to attend this year's event. Citigroup is the Chair of the event, Vice Chairs are the Fannie Mae Foundation and Frito-Lay/PepsiCo, and Reception Sponsors are Comcast and Ford Motor Company.

News media interested in attending the event should contact Jacqueline Pacheco at (202) 785-1670 or jpacheco@nclr.org

Latino Outreach Campaign Promotes Barack in Key Primary States

Roseville City School Board Member — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:46:18 EDT

Latino Outreach Campaign Promotes Barack Obama in Key Primary States

Nueva Vista Media, Inc.
(WebWire) 5/29/2007 8:40:44 PM
Related Topics
• Internet Technology
• Multimedia/Online/Internet
• Music
• Politics

Burbank, CA - May 30, 2007 - Nueva Vista Media, has launched an outreach campaign, "Amigos de Obama," to promote Presidential candidate Barack Obama and motivate Latinos to vote in key primary states. The campaign's slogan and song: "¿Cómo Se Dice… Cómo Se Llama? Obama, Obama" is featured on the website: www.amigosdeobama.com, along with downloadable MP3, ringtones and blog. The website's goal is to organize "Amigos de Obama" groups in key primary states where Latinos could represent the swing vote.

The outreach campaign was created to fill a void in media outreach to Latinos. Every election year, last minute voter registration drives yield little success. Media campaigns often consist of TV spots showing candidates speaking a few words of Spanish in an attempt to win Latino votes or attack ads about 'illegal aliens' to scare non-Latino voters. "We are desperately seeking a voice that can speak authentically. Race and politics aside, it's leadership, not sound bites that we need. Barack Obama represents a defining moment for our generation and we must be agents of change and bring awareness to the Latino community," said Miguel Orozco of Nueva Vista Media, Inc.

The outreach campaign will focus on eligible Latino voters and the thousands that marched for immigration reform last year in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, and other cities. Over 13 million eligible Latino voters live in states with primary elections on or before February 5th. According to the Pew Hispanic Center, over 425,000 Latino U.S. citizens turned 18 and became eligible voters between 2000 and 2004. To connect with these young voters, the song uses popular reggaetón music to make Latinos aware of their power in numbers if they register and vote. "Capture our imagination, and greatness will follow. We are ready. We are listening. We will vote," says Miguel Orozco.

Amigos de Obama is inspired by Barack Obama, but not affiliated, nor funded by the Barack Obama 2008 Presidential Campaign.

About Nueva Vista Media, Inc.

Nueva Vista Media produces films and creates integrated media campaigns. Nueva Vista Media co-founded Novelas Educativas, LLC to produce and distribute films that teach Latinos how to navigate through educational, financial and health systems in the U.S.

Related Links

Amigos de Obama
www.amigosdeobama.com

Nueva Vista Media
www.enuevavista.com

Novelas Educativas
www.novelaseducativas.com

Contact Information

Miguel Orozco
President
Nueva Vista Media, Inc.
818-459-3775
miguel@enuevavista.com

Obama Tries To Lure More Latinos Voters

Roseville City School Board Member — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:29:05 EDT

Obama tries to lure more Latino voters
By Manu Raju
June 05, 2007

This week's charged Senate debate over immigration may give Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) a chance to chip away at Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's lead with the crucial Hispanic voting bloc.

The New York Democrat won the prized endorsement last week of Los Angeles's Hispanic mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa, but Obama is working closely with Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), one of a handful of nationally known Latino officials yet to endorse a presidential candidate.

Taking a break from the presidential campaign trail, Obama this week will be visible on Capitol Hill, as the Senate resumes work on its immigration bill. He is cosponsoring four amendments, including two with Menendez, to the legislation, which would create a path for citizenship for the 12 million immigrants in the country illegally. And this Saturday, Obama's campaign plans to highlight his work as volunteers go door to door in a host of cities, including several with major Hispanic populations, to support his candidacy.

The success of Obama's efforts on immigration may be known as early as today. Republican and Democratic negotiators will hold a potentially decisive meeting to determine which of 14 pending amendments will pass muster with their fragile,
bipartisan coalition, whose support is crucial to the fate of the bill.

Republican negotiators are expected to oppose family-reunification amendments, which are central to the efforts this week by Obama and other Democratic presidential candidates. Conversely, groups representing Hispanic immigrants are opposed to the bill unless family provisions are added to the measure.

But if the Senate adopts amendments opposed by the bipartisan group, it could be enough to create a rift within the coalition and sink the underlying bill. And failure in the Senate could provide ammunition for the non-senators in the Democratic presidential race.

"The politics of immigration are still so new and so raw that it's hard to say with any certainty how this all plays out," said Frank Sharry, executive director of the National Immigration Forum, which supports earned citizenship for illegal immigrants. "But if immigration reform fails, incumbents in both parties will have a difficult time explaining it to the voters."

For Democratic presidential candidates, the rewards for making headway this week with Latinos on one of their key issues are potentially enormous.

Under the reshuffled primary schedule, more than 80 percent of the Latino electorate may cast a vote by early February, according to the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO). In Nevada, the state that will host the nation's second caucus, almost 9 percent of the electorate is Latino.

The number of Latinos voting in 2008 is expected to surpass the record of nearly 8 million who voted in 2006.

Clinton's campaign also has ammunition. It announced the Villaraigosa endorsement in the middle of the recess week, and it cited poll numbers showing she has the support of 60 percent of Latinos. According to that poll, the next closest candidate was Obama, who secured a 12 percent favorability rating among Latinos.

Clinton's campaign attributes the strong poll numbers in part to her work on the immigration bill, which includes an amendment she is offering this week with Menendez that would reclassify spouses and children of legal permanent immigrants as "immediate relatives." That would allow them to be exempt from visa caps.

But rival strategists argue that Clinton's name recognition may be the true reason for the strong poll numbers, and they note that working-class voters, including immigrants, generally don't follow the presidential contest this early in the process.

"Once Latino voters know these candidates, they will vote for them on their merit," said André Pineda, a senior strategist for Democratic presidential candidate Bill Richardson, New Mexico's Hispanic governor.

Obama and Clinton will not be the only Democratic presidential candidates in the Senate this week courting Hispanic voters. Sens. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) are also teaming up with Menendez on different amendments with backing from immigrant groups. Dodd is already a candidate, while Hagel will decide on a run later this year.

At month's end, the presidential candidates will be able to point to their work during this week's debate at a presidential forum hosted by the NALEO.

Obama's campaign points to endorsements from two Hispanic legislators -- fellow Illinois Democratic Rep. Luis Gutierrez and California state Senate Majority Leader Gloria Romero. Another Latino Democratic senator, Ken Salazar of Colorado, is staying neutral for now, a Salazar spokesman said.

To beef up his policy credentials, Obama is joining Menendez in offering an amendment that would sunset after five years a new point system in the bill that would place a greater emphasis on bringing higher-skilled immigrants into the country.
Their second amendment would alter the point system to add greater weight to the prospect of unifying families.

Even though immigrant groups are wary of the current bill, they warn that a lack of progress could come back to haunt lawmakers.

"I think the emotional resonance of the family issue is profound," said Deepak Barghava, head of the Center for Community Change, which supports a path for citizenship for illegal immigrants. "I think those questions at some point or another will result in a powerful reaction, and we are already starting to see the seeds of it."