Clinton's Ad Designed to Win Latino Vote in Nevada

Here is Hillary Clinton's new ad directed at Latinos ahead of the Presidential Primary contest in Nevada on February 20th.



The ad is meant to look like a spontaneous question during an unguarded campaign moment.  We are supposed to believe this 10 year-old girl with her hair and makeup perfectly primped just happened to be sitting in that circle of chairs. We can say that at least it was quasi-scripted with the local organizers placing all the important pieces in play to get the right composition of items to make an ad, but we really don't have to.  Seats so close to Clinton are not just randomly available, the whole of it is somewhat suspect just for that reason.  Yet, that doesn't matter.  Authenticity is not what this ad is trying to sell.  The message of the Clinton campaign is a simple one "Estoy Contigo" - "I am with you."  That's the campaign directed at Latino Democratic voters and that is the message that is being reinforced here. "Clinton  is with us,"  Only she understands "us."  It is a manipulative but brilliant campaign and one that I expect will be most effective with Latino women voters than with Latino males.

Notably the ad places Clinton in the role of "ally" of the Latino community and therefore deserving of its vote.  Note that nothing is being proposed, prompted, or promised here, simply the idea that Clinton will take care of "it." She will "worry " about it.  This is good campaign stuff and it cements the core idea that Clinton will support some kind of immigration reforms and will seek to bring relief from the current status limbo of many of the undocumented, without actually taking a clearly defined position.

But lets be real.  While we know that Clinton is "with us," but we should also remember that she is only "with us" for as long as it is advantageous to her campaign.  Immigration, with the Dream Act included, is just another card in Clinton's political deck.  Don't think she wont fold on us when the next hand is dealt.   

NCLR: It is now time to VOTE!

NCLR, The National Council of La Raza, has sent out a press release announcing the launch of their online voter mobilization campaign. Also known as a GOTV ( Get Out The Vote) campaign, this one is particularly unique as for the first time it looks like the full weight of the NCLR is going to be mobilized to this effort including the work of its affiliates and community partners. Check out the video below.

Hispanic voter registration campaigns have always been successful, but it is the GOTV, voter mobilization phase that usually gets left behind, and it is also the one that always requires the most funding to accomplish. NCLR is taking a step in the right direction with this campaign. Check out the video below the excerpt of the press release.

From the Press Release:

NCLR LAUNCHES ONLINE MULTIMEDIA CAMPAIGN FOR LATINO VOTER MOBILIZATION

Washington, DC—Building on the tremendous success of the citizenship campaign, ya es hora ¡Ciudadanía! (It’s Time: Citizenship!), the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States, today launched Yo Votaré, an online multimedia campaign to complement the ya es hora efforts and those of multiple other partners. The new website, www.YoVotare.org, will serve as a one-stop portal to connect Latinos with various unprecedented efforts to register new voters, provide voter information and education tools, and increase voter turnout in November. There are 17 million eligible Hispanic voters in the United States who can make a difference in this election.

Obama's New Spanish Language Campaign Ads

The latest ads coming out of the Obama/Biden camapign are targeting the Hispanic communities of states considered battleground contests for the November 4th election. The New Mexico ad is particularly important as New Mexico inches closes into the solid Blue category, but in Florida the contest will be tougher and the ads may be too little too late to generate a groundswell of support. The Nevada and Colorado Ads however may just be good enough to edge out a victory in these hard-fought states where the electoral difference is to to be in the fractions of a percent.

These ads are the first in Spanish using the now famous McCain gaffe "the fundamentals of our economy are strong."

Also interesting is how these ads are all essentially the same with the exception of the statistics in the first few seconds of the ads. It would be nice to see some polling numbers of the Hispanic community before and after the ads, as well as in comparison with each other state. Here are the ads:

NEW MEXICO AD:

FLORIDA AD:

NEVADA AD:

COLORADO AD:

Where's McCain's Hispanic Strategy?

Senator McCain, you may know him as "Maverick" though there is no relation to Tom Cruise's character in Top Gun, missed a prime opportunity to really earn the title. With the electorate leaning towards Senator Barack Obama, McCain could have made a play for the other brown meat of the Democratic Party, Hispanics.

SO WHAT HAPPENED?
First of all, there are virtually no nationally recognized Republican Hispanics eligible for the Vice Presidential position, considering they must be born in the U.S. Of the 26 Hispanics in Congress (24 in the House, 2 in the Senate) only five of them are Republicans. Of those, only 2 are natural born citizens.

One is Luis Fortuño, who is technically eligible, but as the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico and a resident of the same has never voted in Congress or as far as I could tell for any American election. Not exactly what you might want in a Vice President.

The other is Mario Diaz-Balart the Congressman from Florida - born in Fort Lauderdale and therefore eligible - also known as the most right-wing of all Hispanic members of Congress. The kind of right-winger that only the most affluent Cuban-Americans can appreciate, the kind of guy who believes everyone who disagrees with him is working for Fidel Castro. However, all that is a plus on the Republican scales of worthiness.

So given that George W. Bush made such historic strides into the Hispanic community, at times reported as having won 40% of the Hispanic vote, and with Republican support among Hispanics now hovering lower than 20%, why would McCain not choose someone to help him split the Hispanic vote like Bush did in 2004? With such a close race against Senator Obama and with Florida in play, why would he not be the "maverick" and name Mario Diaz-Balart as his running mate?

Well, here's the rub. McCain definitely wants the Hispanic vote and will surely continue to pander about for it, but he cannot afford to lose the right-wing vote while he's pandering some more. Specially if you consider that he might be asking those voters to support a Hispanic Vice President who may become President as soon as McCain dies. Not that he would die in office, at least not right away, but we all must admit that it is a consideration. How would right-wing America motivated by xenophobic anti-Hispanic sentiments react to such a consideration?

You might just as well hand over the Republican Party to Ron Paul and his backwards revolution. Ron Paul of course is the non-candidate/candidate most likely to declare war on Mexico faster than on Iran.

Basically to summarize, there is no Hispanic strategy, only "un aguaje" like we say in Puerto Rico**.

Meanwhile, Republicans are trying to spin Sarah Palin as a "maverick" choice, since she's a political dark horse. But how "maverick" was it really to choose an evangelical, anti-abortion, creationist, lifetime-NRA member, pro-oil, anti-environment Republican. If anything he's chosen exactly what the Christian right hoped he would choose, other than the fact that she's a political nobody, she's a safe bet for the hearts and minds of the conservative right.

So here's my final question... at what point does McCain bend-over enough for the Christian-right, that we may stop calling him a "maverick"?

**"aguaje" = faking it.

Nydia Velazquez speaks at DNC

The Puerto Rican Congresswoman from New York took the floor at the DNC and laid out her support for Obama. Probably, out of the many who have spoken at the DNC, hers is a better performance than most. However in the back of my mind I find it a little difficult to see her as a strong Obama supporter given her adamant support for Hillary Clinton's campaign. Nevertheless, she is the definition of a fighter and there is much respect for her across the party. She may soon become a leader within the party, which may open the door for some national recognition, maybe. All in all, she's easily one of the most influencial Puerto Rican voices in American politics.

Joe Baca of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus at the DNC [Video]

This speech is perhaps as forgettable as your last drink of water. Hispanic Congressman Joe Baca looks nervous and seems to be a little rattled by the teleprompter. The fact that he mispronounces Obama's name as "Orama" was a little disappointing, though he is probably the most disappointed of all. In all, it's good that he got the floor to express his support and the support of the Caucus for the Obama/Biden ticket.

Denver's First Latino Mayor Federico Peña speaks at Democratic National Convention

About Federico Peña: Born in Laredo, Texas, Peña earned a B.A. (1969) and a J.D. (1972) from the University of Texas at Austin and The University of Texas School of Law. Moving to Colorado, where he became a practicing attorney, Peña was elected to the Colorado House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1979, where he rose to become Minority Leader. In 1983, Peña defeated a 14-year incumbent, William H. McNichols, Jr. to become the first Hispanic Mayor of Denver, a post to which he was re-elected in 1987.

Peña advised Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton on transportation issues during Clinton's successful 1992 presidential campaign, and Clinton chose Peña to head the United States Department of Transportation. Although he had intended to leave Clinton's cabinet after a single term, Peña also served as Secretary of Energy for one year, from 1997 to 1998.

Information from Wikipedia

Pandering McCain tries to woo Hispanic voters, bash Obama

It seems that after years of Republicans arguing how "Iraq is NOT Vietnam", McCain is really trying to make the case that Iraq IS a lot like Vietnam since it just might suit him now. Speaking before the American GI Forum, McCain again draws the Vietnam card with a little spice.

After the release of two reports one showing Obama's lead in McCain's home state of Arizona, and the other showing Obama's lead among Hispanic voters, McCain has compelled the ghost of Roy Benavides, a real true American hero and Medal of Honor honoree.

But could he not find someone alive? We don't know that Sergeant Roy Benavides would have approved of McCain, the man died ten years ago as McCain explains in his speech, only to then add...

I wouldn't want to live in a country that didn't recognize how much we needed such a good man.

He died TEN YEARS AGO, how about remembering the man a little sooner. How about living in a country where great men like Roy Benavides do not have to die on a daily basis, in fruitless, ill-conceived wars like Vietnam or Iraq. Just for the record, Sgt. Benavides died in retirement, but how many like him did not make it back from Vietnam, or are waiting to die in Iraq.

Excerpt of speech delivered at the 2008 American GI Forum of the United States National Convention in Denver:

...
Let me close by expressing my gratitude for the contributions Hispanic-Americans have made to the security of the country I have served all my adult life. I represent Arizona where Spanish was spoken before English was, and where the character and prosperity of our state owes much to the Arizonans of Hispanic descent who live there. And I know this country, which I love more than almost anything, would be poorer were we deprived of the patriotism, industry and decency of those millions of Americans whose families came here from Mexico, Central and South America.

When you take the solemn stroll along that wall of black granite on the national Mall, it is hard not to notice the many names such as Rodriguez, Hernandez, and Lopez that so sadly adorn it. When you visit Iraq and Afghanistan you meet some of the thousands of Hispanic-Americans who serve there, and many of those who risk their lives to protect the rest of us do not yet possess the rights and privileges of full citizenship in the country they love so well. To love your country, as I discovered in Vietnam, is to love your countrymen. Those men and women are my brothers and sisters, my fellow Americans, an association that means more to me than any other. As a private citizen or as President, I will never, never do anything to dishonor our obligations to them and their families.

No story better exemplifies the sacrifices Hispanic Americans have made for our country than the story of Roy Benavidez. I have told it before, and this won't be the last time I tell it. All Americans need to hear it.

Roy Benavidez was the son of a Texas sharecropper, a seventh grade dropout who suffered the humiliation of being constantly taunted as a "dumb Mexican." He grew up to become a master sergeant in the Green Berets, and served in Vietnam. He was a member of that rare class of warriors whose service was so honorable and brave they are privileged to wear the Medal of Honor. He was decorated by Ronald Reagan, who said that if the story of his heroism were a movie "you would not believe it."

On May 2, 1968, in an outpost near the Cambodian border, Sergeant Benavidez listened on his radio as the voice of a terrified American, part of a 12 man patrol surrounded by a North Vietnamese battalion, pleaded to be rescued. Armed with only a knife, Roy jumped into a helicopter and took off with a three-man crew to rescue his trapped comrades.

When they arrived at the battle, the enemy was too numerous for the helicopter to evacuate the surrounded soldiers. It had to land seventy-five yards away from their position. After making the sign of the cross, Sergeant Benavidez jumped out of the helicopter as it hovered ten feet above the ground, and ran toward his comrades carrying his knife and a medic bag.

He was shot almost immediately, but he got up and kept moving. A grenade knocked him down again, shrapnel tearing into his face. He got up and kept moving. Reaching the Americans' position, he found four men dead, and all the others badly wounded. He armed himself with an enemy rifle, and began to treat the wounded, distribute ammunition and call in air strikes. He was shot again. He then ordered the helicopter to come in closer as he dragged the dead and wounded aboard. After he got all the wounded aboard, he ran back to retrieve classified documents from the body of a fallen soldier. He was shot in the stomach, and grenade fragments cut into his back. He got up and kept moving, and made it back to the helicopter.

The pilot was shot and the helicopter crashed. Roy pulled the wounded from the wreckage and radioed for air strikes and another helicopter. He kept fighting until air support arrived. He was shot several more times before a second helicopter landed. As he was carrying a wounded man toward it, a North Vietnamese soldier clubbed him with his rifle and stabbed him with a bayonet. Sergeant Benavidez fought him hand to hand, to death. After rescuing three more soldiers, he was finally flown with them to safety.

Bleeding profusely, and completely immobile, a doctor thought him to be dead. Roy was placed in a body bag, before anyone discovered he was still alive. He spent a year in hospitals recovering from seven serious gunshot wounds, twenty-eight shrapnel wounds, and bayonet wounds in both arms.

It took thirteen years for Roy Benavidez to receive his Medal of Honor. But it didn't seem to matter to him. He stayed in the Army. The war, and his forgotten heroism never embittered him. He spent his retirement counseling troubled kids, encouraging them to stay in school and off drugs.

"I'm proud to be an American," Roy Benavidez said as he lay dying in a San Antonio hospital ten years ago. May God bless his soul. And may Americans, all Americans, be very proud that Roy Benavidez was one of us. I wouldn't want to live in a country that didn't recognize how much we needed such a good man.

I prefer to live in a bigger place. I prefer to live in a growing America, as proud of its variety as it is of the ideals that unite us. I prefer to live in a hopeful country. I prefer to live in Roy Benavidez' America. Thank you very much.

Thanks for the pandering and platitudes.

Hispanic Voters favor Obama, Democrats in 2008 Election

The Pew Hispanic Research Center, the nation's most well-regarded and credible source for Hispanic population studies has just released its "2008 National Survey of Latinos" and its an interesting read. The full report can be downloaded in PDF format by clicking here.


KEY FINDINGS
•
Among Hispanic registered voters, 66% would vote for, or lean toward voting for, Barack Obama; 23% would vote for, or lean toward, John McCain.
•
More than three-quarters (76%) of Hispanic registered voters have a favorable opinion of Obama, and 73% have a favorable opinion of Hillary Rodham Clinton. In contrast, 44% of Hispanics have a favorable opinion of McCain and 27% have a favorable opinion of George W. Bush.
•
More than three-in-four Hispanics who voted for Clinton in a Democratic primary or caucus this year say they would vote for Obama or lean toward voting for him, while 8% of Clinton voters say they would vote for McCain or lean toward voting for him.
•
Latino registered voters are almost three times as likely to say that being black will help Obama (32%) with Hispanic voters than hurt him (11%); the majority (53%) say his race will make no difference.
•
More Latino registered voters say that being white will hurt McCain (24%) than say it will help him (12%); the majority (58%) say his race will make no difference.
•
Family and pocketbook issues, such as education (93%), the cost of living (92%), jobs (91%) and health care (90%), are most important to Hispanic registered voters. Fewer Hispanics say that crime (82%), the war in Iraq (75%) or immigration (75%) is an extremely important or very important issue to them personally.
•
By a ratio of more than three-to-one, Hispanic registered voters believe that Obama would do a better job than McCain in dealing with education (66% versus 18%), jobs (65% versus 19%), the cost of living (64% versus 19%), health care (64% versus 19%) and immigration (59% versus 19%). They also believe, by a ratio of about two-to-one, that Obama would do a better job than McCain on crime (50% versus 26%) and the war in Iraq (58% versus 27%).
•
Among Latino registered voters, 55% believe Obama is better for Hispanics, 11% believe McCain is better and 29% say there is no difference between the candidates.
•
Half of all Latino voters (50%) believe Obama is better for immigrants, 12% believe McCain is better and 32% say there is no difference between the candidates.
•
More than two-thirds (70%) of Latino registered voters are dissatisfied with the country’s direction. In contrast, 27% of Latino voters are satisfied with how things are going in the country.
•
Nearly four-in-ten (38%) Hispanic voters say that Latinos’ situation in the country has gotten worse in the past year, compared with just 18% who say it has improved.
•
More than half of Latino voters (55%) say that the Democratic Party is better for Latinos while just 6% say the Republican Party is better for Latinos.
Hispanic voters increasingly identify with the Democratic Party. Among Latino registered voters who identify with either political party or who say they lean toward a party, Democrats now hold a 39 percentage point advantage—larger than at any time in the past decade—with 65% of registered voters identifying as or leaning toward the Democrats, and 26% identifying as or leaning toward the Republicans.
•
Latino voters are following the presidential campaign more closely than in 2004. This year, 78% of Hispanic registered voters say they are following the presidential race very closely or somewhat closely, compared with 72% who said that at a similar time in the 2004 race.
•
About one-in-seven Latino voters (15%) say they contributed money to a candidate running for public office in the past year. Half of those who contributed money to a candidate say they did so using the Internet.
•
Among Hispanic registered voters, more than half (56%) say that they voted in a presidential primary or caucus this year. Almost three-quarters (72%) say they voted in a Democratic contest, and 21% say they did so in a Republican contest.

About the Report
The 2008 National Survey of Latinos focuses on Hispanic registered voters’ views on the presidential candidates, the presidential campaign and Hispanic political participation. The survey was conducted from June 9 through July 13, 2008 among a randomly selected, nationally representative sample of 2,015 Hispanic adults, 892 of whom report that they are U.S. citizens and registered to vote. The margin of error for the full sample is plus or minus 2.8 percentage points; for registered voters, 4.4 percentage points.