GOP Prez Debates: On Second Thought, We Just Love Tacos
After repeatedly refusing to appear before black and Hispanic audiences, most of the Republican presidential candidates have now agreed to participate in Univision’s GOP Spanish-language debate on December 9 in Miami
A similar Republican debate in September was canceled due to the leading candidates’ non-participation, but the Miami Herald reports that Fred Thompson, Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, John McCain, Ron Paul and Duncan Hunter have agreed to appear.
Only McCain and Hunter said they would participate in the original debate.
The difference, according to the Herald:
“Fred Thompson wasn’t an official candidate when the debate was proposed, giving him an opening to take the lead. With their candidate facing mixed reviews after two months in the race, the Thompson campaign said Thursday afternoon that he was in.”
Other candidates quickly said they would be there, too.
Why the change of heart about an Hispanic debate?
Simon Rosenberg, writing at the progressive NDN website, wonders if the Republicans aren’t throwing in the towel of welfare reform:
“Just three days after their 2nd consecutive election where a massive investment in demonizing immigrants did not pay off their Party, the leading GOP Presidential candidates have agreed to participate in [the debate]. There is simply no way to read this action as anything but a national repudiation of their extreme anti-immigrant strategy of recent years, and a desperate attempt to beg the Hispanic community for forgiveness.
“The GOP’s decision to go to Miami next month is a good one for the country. Let us hope it signals a new era for the Republican Party, one that ends both their demonization of immigrants and their strategy of blocking all common sense immigration reform legislation.”
Methinks Rosenberg is engaging in wishful thinking, and it should be noted that no decision has been made whether to reschedule a Congressional Black Caucus debate postponed after no GOP candidate committed to appearing.
Note further that the Miami debate appears to be happening not because the Republican candidates have a newfound symbiosis with Spanish-speaking voters, but because they didn’t want to be one-upped by Thompson. Until proven otherwise, the Republican Party is determinedly white — and is likely to stay that way.
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7 Responses to “GOP Prez Debates: On Second Thought, We Just Love Tacos”
Republicans appealing to Hispanics voters is a total waste of time. The only advantage to appearing in front of Hispanics instead of blacks is that the minefield is not nearly as dangerous. There is much less risk of a major gaffe that causes a candidate to be called a racist in the national media.
However, the Republicans will never be able to out pander the Democrats for the Hispanic votes. And in the long run, the massive growth in the Hispanic vote will make the Republicans irrelevant to the political process.
I wonder howthe elite whites at the Ivy Leagues (those that staff the Democratic candidates campaigns) see the U.S. when the U.S. is majority Hispanics and whites are about 1/3 of the population. Is it a world that they will want for their children and grand children?
If Republicans want to change and begin to appeal to non-Caucasians, they have to start somewhere. Baby steps.
I wonder the elite whites of circa 1900 felt about the world of Irish and Italian and Pole and Jew they were leaving to their children and grandchildren.
sd- When Republicans spout anti-immigrant screeds on issues that they can’t realistically control (like sending back 12-20 million people to Mexico) to an all white conservative audience- they are pandering. All politicians pander.
If they decide to write off minority audiences they will surely lose in ’08. How can they expect to win the key state of Florida that has a heavy Hispanic population if they don’t even show up at a Univision debate?
Those children are now Pat Buchanan and Rudy J, who will take over the current mantle Alan keyes daughter?
kritt, the Republicans are not going to win in 2008 no matter what they do. However, the idea that pandering to the La Raza crowd will somehow get middle class whites to donate again and to show up to the polls. Look at how pandering to Hispanics worked for Senator McCain and President Bush.
Of course, instead of the idiot of deporting millions, the Democrats want another 20 million and then another 20 million until the politicl/social/economic power of the current middle class Americans is dilute to the point or irrelevance.
At least the past, the political leaders stopped the flood gates occasionally and allowed time for assimilation. Today, the political elite benefits more from non-assimilation and the balkanization of American.
SD- Bush won over 40% of the Hispanic vote in both of his two wins- so pandering to Hispanics certainly paid off. The current strategy of scare tactics on illegal immigration is a loser because it doesn’t offer realistic solutions to the problem. It may appeal to a conservative audience, but it won’t solve anything in the long run.
Many Republicans in Virginia ran on an anti-illegal immigrant platform- in state races, where they had no authority to enforce the stands they were taking. For that reason, they deserve to go down in defeat.
There are many hardworking socially conservative Hispanics that don’t belong in the same category as LaRaza. When the GOP disses Univision, they are turned off as well.
But since you’re ready to concede the ’08 election to the Democrats. . . . .
kritt,
The 40% number for Hispanics voting for Bush has long been discredited. It is based on incorrect assumptions on Hispanics turnout. The maximum that Bush won is about 33% and that was as a favorite son from Texas whose brother was governor of Florida. However, over 90% of Hispanic elected politicians are Democrats. That is a much better indication of the overwhelming suppport that Hispanics give Democrats.
The idea that poor, blue collar Hispanics are natural conservatives is the same kool-aid that Karel Rove was drinking. Hispanics are poor, pay a very low rate of income taxes, are heavy consumers of government services, and are not business owners. Most Hispanics in the U.S. are natural Democrats because Hispanics want a big government to get benefits from while they ignore many of the laws.
The real question is why Asian-Americans are so overwhelmingly Democratic. They earn like Republicans but vote like Puerto Ricans.
In the long run, the Republicans are caught in a demographic trap that will make them irrelevant to politics. For every Hispanics or black vote they get by pandering by lose 10 white voters. There is not way they can win with those numbers.