The Hispanic voting in presidential elections has traditionally been more bipartisan than most people realize. Upward of 30 percent of Hispanics voted for Presidents Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush (1988) and George W. Bush, with Reagan and George W. Bush winning more than 40 percent in their re-election bids. But since Republican candidates decided to make illegal immigration a wedge issue in recent elections, Hispanics have been fleeing the G.O.P. This year doesn’t bode well either.
In an effort to woo conservatives needed to secure the nomination, Mitt Romney took tough rhetorical stands on illegal immigration. He suggested that the 11 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. should “self-deport,” a fantasy that, if it came true, would devastate the American economy. And he counted some of the nastiest anti-immigrant characters around among his supporters, including Joe Arpaio, sheriff of Maricopa County in Arizona.
Romney has to turn his image around among Hispanic voters, and if he doesn’t his chance of winning in November becomes tougher.
Romney will have to work hard to turn his image around among Hispanic voters, and if he doesn’t his chance of winning in November will become tougher. He needs to win in key states where Hispanics make up a significant portion of eligible voters: Colorado, Florida, Nevada and New Mexico.
But all is not lost. While Romney may favor “self-deportation,” President Obama has actually deported more illegal immigrants than any president in history — and he’s done so without regard to whether deportation splits families that include U.S. citizens. And the president has done almost nothing to advance immigration reform, never making it a top legislative priority or using any political capital even when Democrats controlled both houses of Congress.
Romney’s best bet if he wants to soften his image is to embrace the Dream Act, which would grant legal status to illegal immigrants who came here as children if they join the military or attend college for at least two years. If he doesn’t, he could lose not just the overwhelming majority of Hispanic votes, but also the election.
Courtesy of Linda Chavez and The New York Times Opinion column.
We (here at ZINE SCENE) do not support the views of Linda Chavez and feel Romney is out of touch with the American values of the large Hispanic population. Futhermore, we feel Romney needs to consider creative government expenditures that will stimulate hurting company's as Obama did for Chevrolet while in office.
