Michael Gerson wrote an insightful op-ed in the Washington Post. He talks about the future of the Republican Party if they continue to choose to ignore the extremists when it comes to immigration and reform. Although Senator Martinez has yet to publicize WHY he left the Republican Party, it is not too far fetched to believe it may be the hateful extreme rhetoric espoused by many on the extreme right about Latinos.
Mel Martinez’s recent resignation from the U.S. Senate was for personal and family reasons. But the departure of the Republican Party’s most visible Hispanic leader crackles with political symbolism.
Conservative shock radio, on its frightening fringes, can be overtly racist, referring to Mexican immigrants as “leeches,” “the world’s lowest primitives” and diseased carriers of the “fajita flu” who may “wipe their behinds with their hands.” Pat Buchanan sells books with this title: “State of Emergency: The Third World Invasion and Conquest of America.”
As Martinez points out, many Republicans who oppose his pro-immigration views are not divisive or inflammatory. But other, angry voices crowd them out. As a result, Republican support among Latinos is collapsing. In Martinez’s home state of Florida, for example, 56 percent of Hispanic voters cast ballots for George W. Bush in 2004. Four years later, 57 percent voted for Barack Obama.
This country needs a robust Republican Party, but if they continue to pander to the extremists on every issue, it will be some time before healthy productive debate returns.
The flyer Fitz sent out depicted Hispanic men in a horrible prejudicial light, alluding to illegal immigration as only a “south of the border” issue.
Slow,
The Democratic Party stands for equal opportunity in my mind. It believes that the “each man for himself” mentality is not how a great civilized society is built. The Democrats believe that government has a place in providing a foundation for its people. There is definately a John Locke belief system, wherein there is a “social contract” between the people and their government. To believe that corporations will behave benevolently and that pure capitalism without regualtion by the government is a sustainable economic paradigm is not reality based. The most recent events with the stock market and banking crisis has proven that. Throw in the greed of health care insurance companies and energy corporations, it’s a perfect trifecta of greed.
On a side not, I just received my renewal for the family insurance policy. Our ER visit copay just doubled! Something is definately broken and it isn’t my arm, thank G-d, I can only imagine how the insurance company would try and screw me out of that reimbursement!
Tito,
I can’t imagine finding the time to chit chat politics with you, as interesting as that would be mind you. So I guess we will just have to call it a draw. I wish you the best, I truly do.
Let me add, right now, the democrats aren’t impressing me either BTW. IF the Democrats behaved as I believe they should, I might find myself putting a big fat D by my name, however, there are too many times, I can’t distinguish between the two.
Elena I used to see the Democratic Party in line with what you stated.
After watching them, post-Clinton, on a number of topics, I don’t feel that way anymore. Not caring about illegal immigration lowering wages and creating greater wage disparity, for the sake of racial politics. Siting and watching while we fragment further towards a society of haves and a society of have-nots, as long as the have-nots remain convionced to pull the lever for them. Repeatedly just moving to take raw money from the wealthy and middle-class to give to the poor – already 47% of people pay no Federal taxes, something is seriously broken here. Colluding with drug companies to let them raise prices ad infinitum without the balance that drug reimportation would provide. Sitting and play-acting while their own policies hurt lower and middle class Americans. Feeding everybody hogwash – “we can’t afford not to do this bailout/health care giveaway/whatever the next big thing is”.
I watched Nancy Pelosi on Charlie Rose yesterday. She is a fine example of an ideologue with only a vague grasp on what is really going on in the world.