Re: Gonzales, GOP court Hispanics

[norton@cybertrails.com arminius]

"Don Gabacho" <jpas...@nettaxi.com> wrote in message
news:1117678524....@g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> Gonzales, GOP court Hispanics
> By Andrew Zajac
> The Chicago Tribune, May 27, 2005
>
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0505270258may27,1,2244283.story
>
>
> WASHINGTON -- It's no secret that Alberto Gonzales' appointment as
> attorney general was a watershed moment for American Hispanics--and for
> a yearslong effort to woo more Latino voters to the Republican Party.
>
> Though the political strategy is long-term, Gonzales has moved swiftly
> and energetically, more like a political candidate in a campaign than a
> Cabinet member, to reach out to kindred ethnic audiences and showcase
> his status as the first Latino U.S. attorney general.
>
> In office barely more than 100 days, Gonzales already has visited
> Mexico and met with Mexican President Vicente Fox and spoken to
> gatherings of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Latino Small
> Business Economic Conference and the National Council of La Raza.
>
> In addition, trips for two major speeches in the last month took
> Gonzales to Los Angeles and Scottsdale, Ariz., in the heavily Hispanic
> Southwest. On May 7, he gave the commencement address at Houston
> Community College, which is about 25 percent Latino.
>
> And when he held his first news conference in the Justice Department it
> was with Benigno Reyna, the head of the U.S. Marshals Service and a
> fellow Mexican-American. Numerous Spanish-language media were there to
> cover it.
>
> There's no denying the stakes in an appeal to Hispanics.
>
> In recent years, Hispanics have become, at more than 40 million strong,
> the largest and fastest-growing minority group in the U.S., and many
> are clustered in California and Texas, which between them offer 89
> electoral votes, which is nearly one-third of the total needed to
> capture the presidency.
>
> Record Latino voter turnout was crucial to the landslide last week that
> elected Antonio Villaraigosa as the first Hispanic mayor of Los Angeles
> since 1872.
>
> Even Democrats upset at Gonzales' work as White House counsel crafting
> post-Sept. 11 anti-terrorism policies have had to tread carefully.
> Gonzales was introduced at his Senate confirmation hearing in January
> by Sen. Ken Salazar of Colorado, the lone Hispanic Democrat in the
> Senate.
>
> Gonzales 'is trying to show that [President] Bush is serious about
> Hispanic voters,' said Columbia University political scientist Rodolfo
> de la Garza.
>
> Although Bush is popular with many Hispanics, it's not clear that that
> translates to the rest of the GOP--particularly among
> Mexican-Americans, who constitute by far the largest segment of the
> Latino population.
>
> 'Can you name [a federal] Hispanic Republican elected official, other
> than a Cuban?' asked de la Garza.
>
> Gonzales said he is not out to court Hispanics more than any other
> group.
>
> 'I'm the attorney general for all Americans, not just for the Hispanic
> community,' he said during a recent interview with the Tribune.
>
> His outreach to Hispanics and other audiences is meant 'to show the
> Justice Department is accessible,' Gonzales said.
>
> Still, he said, 'There are people, certainly, in the Hispanic
> community, younger people, that are looking at me as an example of
> what's possible in this wonderful country.'
>
> Democrats are keenly aware that such role modeling gives the GOP a
> powerful tool.
>
> 'Alberto Gonzales is the living, breathing embodiment of the Republican
> Hispanic strategy,' said Joe Garcia, director of the Hispanic Project
> for the New Democrat Network, which advocates centrist positions for
> the Democratic Party.
>
> What's more, Garcia said, it's a very effective strategy.
>
> Praise for administration
>
> 'I'll probably get in trouble for saying this, but nobody has done more
> for Hispanics in the last four years than this administration,' Garcia
> said. 'They didn't take us for granted.'
>
> Gonzales' stature is hard to overestimate, said Garcia, because as the
> chief U.S. law-enforcement official he is plausibly 'the most powerful
> Hispanic on Earth.'
>
> Not surprisingly, Hispanic media pay close attention to Gonzales. But
> so do key advocacy groups not known for their coziness with the GOP.
>
> Heads turned in the Latino community on the night of March 8 when
> Gonzales spoke to La Raza, one of the nation's most influential
> Hispanic advocacy groups, which, though non-partisan, has roots in the
> civil rights movement and historically has leaned left and toward the
> Democratic Party.
>
> With Republicans controlling the White House and Congress, however, La
> Raza has been eager to establish a beachhead with Republicans.
>
> The group has invited Bush to its events, to no avail, according to La
> Raza spokeswoman Lisa Navarette.
>
> Speaking moments before Gonzales, La Raza President Janet Murguia
> acknowledged that outreach to the GOP is controversial within her
> group.
>
> 'Some may not think this is the right thing to do, but I respectfully
> disagree. We have too much on the line,' she said.
>
> Gonzales is tailor-made for this kind of bridge-building, said Roberto
> Suro, director of the Pew Hispanic Center.
>
> 'He is an important symbol and will be a conduit for organizations that
> haven't had a great relationship with the Bush administration,' Suro
> said.
>
> The message to Democrats, Suro said, is that the Hispanic vote can no
> longer be taken for granted.
>
> Republicans have been busy developing other ties to Hispanic
> organizations, particularly those receptive to their conservative
> philosophy.
>
> While federal funding for many social service agencies has dried up,
> the administration has delivered hefty grants to Nueva Esperanza Inc.,
> a Philadelphia-based social service agency rooted in conservative
> evangelical Protestantism, which has been supportive of Republican
> policies.
>
> Bush has twice appeared at the National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast, run
> by Rev. Luis Cortes Jr., the Baptist minister who heads Nueva
> Esperanza.
>
> This month, Bush and Gonzales spoke at the Latino Small Business
> Economic Conference sponsored by the Latino Coalition, a 10-year-old
> Republican-leaning group. Last month, both spoke to the U.S. Hispanic
> Chamber of Commerce.
>
> At least for now, Gonzales' remarks to Hispanic audiences emphasize his
> rags-to-riches biography and his desire to clear away obstacles so
> others also have a shot at the success he has enjoyed.
>
> 'As the son of poor, uneducated Mexican migrants, I have lived the
> American dream,' Gonzales, 49, told the small business conference.
>
> Except for calling for renewal of the USA Patriot Act, Gonzales, who is
> famously cautious and circumspect, has mostly steered clear of
> controversial measures.
>
> Avoiding hot topic
>
> For instance, Gonzales has not used his platform before Hispanic
> organizations to talk about his support for the so-called REAL ID
> legislation recently approved by Congress. REAL ID would greatly
> tighten requirements for illegal residents and others seeking a
> driver's license, and it is vehemently opposed by many immigrant and
> Latino groups.
>
> For now, it's OK that Gonzales is not taking high-profile stands on
> issues, because much of the Hispanic media still are celebrating his
> status as a trailblazer and his importance as a role model, said Lupita
> Colmenero, associate publisher of El Hispano News in Dallas and
> president of the National Association of Hispanic Publications.
>
> But eventually, the honeymoon will end, and Gonzales will be assessed
> on how he deals with tough issues, 'especially . . . immigration, which
> is a very delicate issue,' said Colmenero.
>
> 'Whatever results he brings . . . that's how he will be judged,' she
> said.
>
> 'Obviously,' Colmenero said, 'the Hispanic community has big
> expectations.'

Meantime, the flood of illegals continues. America sold-out for the promise
of votes. Thank Bush and a wimp Congress.

Hank
>

[Pooty Lizard]

"arminius" <richard nor...@cybertrails.com> wrote in message
news:WOadnVwOBrm...@sedona.net...

> Meantime, the flood of illegals continues. America sold-out for the
> promise
> of votes. Thank Bush and a wimp Congress.
>
> Hank
>

Next time, I'm voting Democrat. From what they say, gas will be 75 cents per
gallon, we'll all make more money and pay fewer taxes, with free health
care, an unchanged, everlasting Social Security, and of course we'll have no
need for the military because everyone in the world will greet us with hugs.
But best of all, I have got to see those flying pigs!

[Ben Arthur]

I'm voting Demonkrap too.
When KennyKornholer and Elephantman Walton
can exchange nuptials, instead of just body fluids,
u-dopia is around the corner...