Daily Headlines: October 23, 2012

* Latin America: Aside from a brief mention on trade, the third and final U.S. presidential debate on Monday ignored issues pertaining to Latin America such as immigration, so-called "war on drugs" and the embargo on Cuba.

* Argentina: President Cristina Fernandez condemned the seizure of an Argentine naval vessel at the request of private creditors as a form of “blackmail by vulture funds.”

* Cuba: Lawyers for a Guantanamo prison detainee argued that their client shouldn’t have to face war crimes charges since they were approved by a Pentagon-appointed legal official.

* Colombia: Officials with the UN Human Rights Council blasted a proposed constitutional reform that would “undermine justice” by “expanding the jurisdiction of military or police tribunals.”

Video Source – YouTube via PBS


Online Sources- VOXXI, BBC News, Houston Chronicle, Colombia Reports

Polls Show Latino Problem Spots for Obama and Romney

Heading into the homestretch of the neck-and-neck race for the White House, President Barack Obama and Republican rival Mitt Romney are both seeking any advantage they can get.  While the Latino electorate could be decisive on November 6th, a pair of recently released polls showed that both candidates have some serious problems to overcome if they wish to capture the so-called “Latino vote.”

A poll from the Pew Hispanic Center published last Thursday found that most Latinos with religious affiliations back the president over the former Massachusetts governor.

The poll found that 50% of Latino evangelicals support Obama compared to 39% for Romney. For Latinos who identify themselves as Protestants 55% back Obama while 33% favor Romney. The gap between both candidates is noticeably larger among Catholic Latinos (73% Obama vs. 19% Romney) and religiously unaffiliated Latinos (82% Obama vs. 7% Romney).

Numerous evangelical organizations and prominent activists such as Ralph Reed have mobilized “massive” registration and get-out-the-vote efforts in favor of the Romney campaign.  Furthermore, the Pew poll showed that Latino evangelicals share the position of most evangelicals opposed to same sex marriage.  Yet it appears as if the GOP’s stance on immigration (especially during the presidential primaries) have discouraged some evangelical Latinos.

According to a May article from The Economist:

Daily Headlines: October 9, 2012

* Caribbean: Health officials in the neighboring countries of Haiti and the Dominican Republic agreed to working on a campaign aimed at eliminating cholera by 2022.
 
* U.S.: In the race for the White House, Mitt Romney may have closed the gap in the polls but the latest Latino Decisions tracking poll showed that President Barack Obama maintains a massive 52% lead over his Republican rival.

* Latin America: The International Monetary Fund cut its growth forecasts for Latin America and the Caribbean due to the possibility of a continued weakening global economy.

* Paraguay: Are members of the Mercosur bloc reconsidering the suspension placed against Paraguay weeks after the ouster of then-President Fernando Lugo?
 
Video Source – YouTube via user newsntn24 (Video uploaded in May 2011).

Online Sources- ABC News, Businessweek, Latino Decisions, Reuters, UPI

Pew Report Highlights Latino Voter Growth

There has been plenty of media hype focused on Wednesday’s U.S. presidential debate between incumbent Barack Obama and rival Mitt Romney.  Tonight’s discussion might appeal to members of several vital voting blocs that could tip the balance in favor of either Obama or Romney.  One of these is Latino voters, which, based on a new study, could play a key role in November’s election.

A Pew Hispanic Center report released this week concluded that the number of eligible Latino voters has reached a record of 23.7 million people this year. Compared to four years year ago the figure represents a 22% increase; thus, Latinos make up about one out of every ten voters in the U.S.

"Among Latino eligible voters, 58% are of Mexican origin, 14% are of Puerto Rican origin, 6% are of Cuban origin and 22% are of Central American, South American or other Hispanic origin," mentioned the report.

However not all was good news according to the Center’s analysis.  Voter registration and participation has lagged in comparison to other racial groups.  One of the possible reasons for this may be that Latinos moving to different states could have affected over registration. The young Latino population has grown but they are “less likely to hold citizenship than other groups.“

Another element that could affect Latino voter involvement are voter ID laws that have been approved in several states over the past few years.  One of these states with the toughest voter ID laws is Pennsylvania though yesterday a local judge halted a measure that opponents alleged would disenfranchise Latino voters.

World Watch: Lubanga Behind Bars

* Congo: The International Criminal Court sentenced Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga to fourteen years in prison for recruiting child soldiers in his rebel army a decade ago.

* U.S.: A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that President Barack Obama has a six-point lead over likely Republican candidate Mitt Romney while both candidates are tied according to a separate Washington Post-ABC News poll.

* Syria: United Nations special envoy Kofi Annan is seeking global consensus on a peace plan aimed at ending widespread violence in Syria.

* Spain: The European Union backed a “soft bailout” of Spain that could include pushing for pension reform, cuts in public spending and a sales tax increase.

Video Source– YouTube via International Criminal Court

Online Sources – The Guardian, Voice of America, ABC News, Reuters, Christian Science Monitor

Daily Headlines: March 30, 2012

* Honduras: At least 13 people are dead after a prison fire and riot in San Pedro Sula, which occurred weeks after over 350 inmates died as a result of a massive blaze in a Comayagua prison.

* Brazil: Is a new law in Bahia state banning public funding of concerts with “offensive music” insulting women and gays necessary or censorship?

* Guatemala: An estimated 10,000 indigenous demonstrators marched into Guatemala City and urged the government to help settle a series of land disputes.

* U.S.: Cuban-American Sen. Marco Rubio denied that he endorsed presidential hopeful Mitt Romney in order to be the former governor’s pick for vice president.

Video Source – YouTube via JoAnaProducciones

Online Sources- Huffington Post, Fox News Latino, BusinessWeek, CNN, The Latin Americanist

Daily Headlines: March 19, 2012 (Updated)

* Cuba: Police detained dozens of dissident activists over the weekend, including Ladies in White leader Berta Soler, ahead of next week’s visit from Pope Benedict XVI. (Update: Police reportedly released seventy members of the Ladies in White detained on Sunday. Meanwhile, a White House statement urged the Cuban government to "abandon their tactics of intimidation and harassment to stifle peaceful dissent.")

* Puerto Rico: Mitt Romney easily won over his GOP rivals in the Puerto Rico primary that included the participation of less than six percent of the commonwealth’s electorate.

* Venezuela: Twelve police officials were detained over the killing of Karen Berendique, the daughter of Chilean Honorary Consul Fernando Berendique, in Maracaibo.

* Bolivia: President Evo Morales warned that he would close the U.S. embassy in La Paz if diplomatic officials “continued bothering Bolivia.”

Video Source – YouTube via euronews

Online Sources (including Updates) - Comision Estatal de Elecciones de Puerto Rico, Reuters, CNN, AFP, The Guardian, Voice of America

Weekend Headlines: March 17-18, 2012 (Updated)

* Venezuela: President Hugo Chavez arrived in Caracas yesterday after staying in Cuba for three weeks and undergoing cancer surgery. (Update: On Saturday a homecoming celebration seemingly became an impromptu campaign rally after Chavez claimed that he will give the opposition a "beating" in this October's presidential election).

* Puerto Rico: Mitt Romney's criticism of Supreme Court judge Sonia Sotomayor might not sit well with voters in tomorrow's Puerto Rican primary or with his most prominent local supporter, Gov. Luis Fortuño.

* El Salvador: Did the government make a deal with two of the country’s largest street gangs to reduce violence?

* Brazil: Chevron suspended oil drilling operations off the Brazilian coast after a “small new seep” of oil was detected in the same area where a major leak occurred four months ago. (Update: Federal prosecutors will reportedly bring up criminal charges against seventeen Chevron and Transocean executives in relation to the new oil leak).

Video Source – YouTube via euronews

Online Sources (including Updates)- Reuters, Christian Science Monitor, Fox News Latino, Bloomberg, BBC News

Florida Latino Republicans Choose McCain

Republican Senator John McCain won the Republican Florida primary yesterday, taking all of the state's 57 delegates. Mitt Romney came in second, and former NYC Mayor Rudolph Giuliani came in a sad third, despite focusing all his recent campaigning there.

With 73 percent of precincts reporting, McCain had 36 percent of the vote, compared to 31 percent for Romney.

With it's large Cuban community, all eyes were on the Latino vote. Half of voters who self-identified as Cubans voted for McCain and 10 percent voted for Romney. The Latino vote made up 10 percent of the vote in the GOP primary.

Source : CNN

Commentary: Three-piece suit vs. the guayabera

An open letter to all the U.S. presidential candidates:

With the primary season heating up it’s understandable that you are trying to go the extra mile in appealing to the many different voter groups in this diverse nation of ours. The Latino vote is certainly not an exception to that and one can appreciate most of the efforts you set forth.

However, there is a thin line between endearing yourself to a constituency and shameless pandering:

According to this post, the snapshot of a guayabera-clad Mitt Romney “was taken at a rally in a heavily-Cuban section of Miami-Dade (County)”.

One understands that it’s a very tight race in the Florida primary, and candidates are more prone to risk-taking and possibly underhanded tactics. Yet the above example gives the impression of a candidate far too desperate for attention. It looks tacky, sad, and silly.

Would it be acceptable for Hillary Clinton to travel to Spanish Harlem clad in a Taino nagua? What about John McCain sporting a sombrero and huaraches while in East Los Angeles? How about Barack Obama dressed as a gaucho while visiting Florida’s Argentine-American communities?

Please, dear candidates, refrain from the ethnic wear. Your words and policies are more than sufficient and the ultimate sign of respect.

Sources- politico.com, AHN, Palm Beach Post, Wikipedia, about.com, Migration Information Sources

Image- politico.com

GOP hopefuls seek Cuban exile support in Florida

Several Republican presidential hopefuls have eyed the Cuban exile vote in Florida as critical in winning the state’s primary a week from today. Though the national Latino vote leans towards the rival Democrats, the Cuban-American voting bloc has been strongly Republican and they are expected to make a difference during the closed primary.

Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani has focused most of his resources to winning in Florida and he has been actively campaigning there for weeks. He appeared in a Spanish-language ad being played across the state despite his October campaign appearance at a Philadelphia “English-only” steak stand. While other candidates stumped in New Hampshire and Michigan, Giuliani spoke at a Hispanic evangelical Christian church in Miami and held a campaign rally at a Three Kings Day Parade in the Little Havana neighborhood.

Senator John McCain appeared in Little Havana yesterday while flanked by Cuban-American legislators Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Lincoln Diaz-Balart. As he sipped a cortadito at the famed Versailles restaurant, McCain called Hugo Chavez “a threat” to the Americas and said that he would open an investigation against Fidel Castro. However, McCain was ambiguous when asked about the possibility of changing U.S. travel restrictions on Cuba.

Recent poll numbers have given ex-Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney a slight lead in Florida over McCain and Giuliani. Yet Romney is also courting the Cuban exile vote via his bilingual son Craig who narrated an ad in Spanish.

Unlike the other Republican candidates mentioned above, former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee has placed little emphasis on Florida and is campaigning elsewhere.

Image- New York Daily News (John McCain drinks Cuban coffee during an appearance in Miami yesterday)

Sources- South Florida Sun-Sentinel, MiamiHerald.com, Guanabee, Wonkette, CBS News, Baltimore Sun, Associated Press, The Latin Americanist, New York Daily News

Daily Headlines: January 8, 2008

* The killings of indigenous people in Brazil grew by a whopping 63% last year accosting to a human rights group linked to the Catholic Church.

* Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney "apologized" over the weekend for accusing John McCain of supporting “amnesty” for all illegal immigrants.

* The 15-nation Caribbean Community (CC) may pledge to cut taxes on food imports according to one CC official.

* “Maletagate” update: Two of the defendants accused of acting as “illegal agents of Venezuela” pled not guilty in a U.S. court.

Sources- Bloomberg, Houston Chronicle, MSNBC, Monsters & Critics

Image- Sydney Morning Herald (“Members of Brazil's Assurini do Tocantins tribe, wearing their traditional "Cokar" headgear”)

Wait a Minute Mitt Romney has Mexican Roots?

When Tom Tancredo dropped out of the presidential race, he threw his support behind Mitt Romney. An article posted on AlterNet reveals Mitt's Mexican connection.

Mitt Romney's father George was born in Chihuahua, Mexico in 1907, the son of Gaskell Romney and Anna Amelia Pratt. Three generations of Romneys lived in Mexico because Miles Park Romney, a polygamist, moved the family there in 1884 as it became increasingly clear that the U.S. government would not tolerate polygamy in the Utah Territory. The 1882 Edmunds Act stripped polygamists of the basic rights of U.S. citizenship, denying them the right to vote, serve on juries or hold office. Not dissimilar to current immigration raids, U.S. federal agents hunted and arrested polygamists. Polygamists were forced to leave the country or risk jail.

Mitt's grandparent's crossed back into the U.S. during the Mexican Revolution. But that hasn't made this candidate any softer on the immigration issue.


Source : AlterNet
Image Source : NY Press

Video of the Day: Rudy vs. Romney

Wednesday evening’s CNN/YouTube Republican debate featured a contentious quarrel over immigration between presidential hopefuls Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney. Conservative blogger Andrew Sullivan observed the exchange as “great theater” and bemoaned “the anti-illegal immigrant anger - the tone of it more than anything else.”

(Video link):

Sources- Associated Press, The Daily Dish, YouTube

News briefs - Immigration

There have been many news stories centering on immigration this past week. Here are some of them:

• Mexican President Felipe Calderon has called on U.S. presidential hopefuls to refrain from using Mexicans as “symbolic hostages” for their campaigns.
• Speaking of the presidential candidates, recent anti-immigrant ads have come out from Mitt Romney, Tom Tancredo, and Tommy Thompson.
• An 8-year-old girl who was kept for 4 days in a Texas detention center was reunited with her mother after both were deported separately to Honduras.
• The father of a U.S.-born son who died as a soldier in Iraq received a 1-year reprieve to stay in the U.S. while his immigration status is decided on.
• Wednesday: U.S. immigration officials announced an expansion of a “biometrics-at-sea” program. Thursday: One Cuban migrant died while trying to reach the Floridian shore.
• New York governor Eliot Spitzer dropped plans to provide driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. Meanwhile, San Francisco passed a law permitting illegal immigrants to apply for special ID cards.
• Lastly, in a non-Americas story, an English immigrant was denied entry into New Zealand since he was too fat.

Image- BBC News

Sources- MSNBC, factcheck.org, The Daily Dish, MSNBC – First Read, newsday.com, AHN, Dallas Morning News, Houston Chronicle, Guardian UK, Associated Press, Gothamist, VivirLatino, New Zealand Herald

Road to the “Casa Blanca” – Tidbits on the U.S. presidential candidates

* In an editorial piece in the Miami Herald, Barack Obama advocated modifying the U.S. embargo towards Cuba by easing restrictions on travel and remittances. "The primary means we have of encouraging positive change in Cuba today is to help the Cuban people become less dependent on the Castro regime in fundamental ways," wrote Obama while also criticizing the Bush administration’s “posturing” towards the island.

* Mitt Romney strengthened his anti-immigration stance in a new radio ad that will air in Iowa and New Hampshire. In the ad (which can be accessed here), Romney takes aim at Rudy Giuliani by calling New York City one of several “sanctuary cities... that encourage illegal immigration and undermine secure borders.”

* Speaking of anti-immigration rhetoric, Tom Tancredo encouraged the families of three teens killed on August 4^th to sue the government of Newark, New Jersey. Much like Romney’s ad, Tancredo blamed Newark as a “sanctuary city” for illegal immigrants after at least one of the suspects in the slayings was without papers.

* So far only one of the Republican candidates has confirmed his presence to a Spanish-language debate next month: Senator John McCain. As we mentioned in June, the televised debate will air on Univision on September 16th for Republicans and one week before that for Democratic candidates.

* An aid for Bill Richardson quit last week after it was revealed that she used to work for a Nevada brothel. "We did not know about all of this," admitted a spokesman for the Latino governor of New Mexico.

Sources- AHN, USA TODAY – On Politics, CNN, Asbury Park Press, NJ.com, USA TODAY, The Latin Americanist, Modesto Bee

Image- Destination360

Giuliani vows to “end illegal immigration”

During a campaign appearance yesterday in Iowa, presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani promised to “end illegal immigration.” The former New York City mayor made the statement as he unveiled his plan to control illegal immigration that would include expanding on Congress’ plans to build a barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border and creating a national database of all noncitizens.

Giuliani’s stance on immigration has attracted criticism, particularly from fellow candidate Mitt Romney who accused Giuliani of leading a “sanctuary city” for illegal immigrants during his time as mayor. While Romney has his own issues with flip-flopping over abortion he may be on to something with Giuliani’s immigration position:

“‘Some of the hardest-working and most productive people in this city are undocumented aliens,’ Giuliani said in 1994. ‘If you come here and you work hard and you happen to be in an undocumented status, you're one of the people who we want in this city.’

Two years later, when asked his view of a Suffolk County bill to make English the official language, he responded, ‘There's no reason to pass a bill like this, except maybe to exclude people, insult people or offend people.’”

Giuliani was opposed to a bipartisan Congressional compromise bill over immigration that has so far been defeated.

Sources- ABC News, Newsday, Guardian UK, Washington Blade, New York Daily News, The Latin Americanist

Image- El Diario/La Prensa

Weekly Debate: Immigration and the U.S. presidential hopefuls

Elections for the next U.S. president may be over a year away, but that doesn’t mean it’s too early to speculate. How do the main candidates stand on the immigration debate? Let’s take a look at what some of them said on their official websites and links to a few other sources.

Hillary Clinton

“I believe the Bush administration is failing to meet what should be the basic requirements of immigration policy: continuing our American tradition of welcoming immigrants who follow the rules and are trying to build a better life for their families, while strengthening national security in a post 9-11 world.

Our current immigration laws need to be reformed: we need a better solution to the question of illegal immigration which recognizes the conflict between the need to enforce the law, and the reality that too many employers are using undocumented workers today”.

(Source)

Additional links- “Immigration Debate is Shaped by ’08 Election” and “Sen. Clinton Slams GOP Immigration Bill”

Rudy Giuliani

Unfortunately, Giuliani’s website does not mention his stance on immigration. Hence, we will use the following brief analysis from OnTheIssues.org:

“Supports Senate guest worker plan & path to citizenship. (Nov 2006)”

(Source)

Additional links- “Giuliani Flip-Flops on Immigration” and “Giuliani campaigns in Newport Beach”

John McCain

“This Nation is calling for our borders to be secured and for an overhaul of our immigration system, and that it be done in a humane and comprehensive fashion. Vote after vote after vote taken in this body reaffirms that fact.

The new policies as provided for under [the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006] will increase border security and provide for a new, temporary worker program to enable foreign workers to work legally in this country when there are jobs that American workers won't fill. And, it will acknowledge and address in a humanitarian and compassionate way the current undocumented population.”

(Source)

Additional links- “Kennedy-McCain partnership falters” and “McCain modifies immigration position”

Barack Obama

“The Department of Homeland Security recognizes that identifying and deporting the 11 million undocumented workers currently in this country would be both logistically impossible and highly disruptive to the American economy. Instead of mass deportations, Senator Obama believes that Congress must pass comprehensive, compassionate reform that reaffirms the rule of law and brings the undocumented population out of hiding”.

(Source)

Additional links- “What Are the Candidates Saying About Immigration Reform? Senator Barack Obama” and “Obama: Immigrants need chance to become citizens”

Bill Richardson

“A nation of laws cannot allow millions of undocumented immigrants to live in the shadows and hundreds of thousands more to enter the country illegally every year. For decades politicians have passed laws on immigration with a wink and a nudge, with no intent of following through and making sure those laws were enforced.

For far too long, the immigration debate has been about electoral politics, not about policy. We need more honest leadership than that. We need to stop exploiting the immigration problem, and start solving it. We need to pass realistic laws and then enforce them rigorously”.

(Source)

Additional links- “Richardson Speaks Against Border Fence” and “GOP resists Bush’s immigration pitch”

Mitt Romney

“Immigration has been an important part of our nation's success. The current system, however, puts up a concrete wall to the best and brightest, yet those without skill or education are able to walk across the border. We must reform the current immigration laws so we can secure our borders, implement a mandatory biometrically enabled, tamper proof documentation and employment verification system, and increase legal immigration into America”.

(Source)

Additional links- “Mitt Romney on the issues” and “Giuliani, McCain neck and neck in SC”

So who do you think is the best candidate on the topic of immigration? Vote in our poll below and/or feel free to leave a comment. (Note: the poll closes on May 5^th).

Rudy Giuliani defends ties with Venezuela’s Citgo

Rudy Giuliani- the former mayor of New York City and front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination- defended his law firm’s ties to Venezuelan-owned petroleum firm Citgo. “What (Citgo is) doing is lawful and honorable and helping to protect jobs for more than 100,000 Americans,” said Giuliani yesterday which refuted a campaign statement made last week regarding how Giuliani’s law firm will earn as much as $250,000 lobbying for Citgo.

On a related note, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney committed several embarrassing faux pas during a speech in Miami.

Links- Guardian UK, Wonkette, Reuters

Image- CNN (Rudy Giuliani and Hugo Chavez side-by-side)