OPINION: Romney’s Way Out Of The “Latino Problem”

By Victor Landa

OK, so it’s happening. For better or for worse, armchair political strategists are coming out of the  shadows to give the presidential candidates advice on how to win the election. And because the Latino vote is touted as pivotal to win the White House in November, there are more suggestions being thrown around than should be allowed – if I were a ref with a whistle in the Latino vote suggestion game, I’d have tossed some folks out already.

As an example, theweek.com posted a list of “4 ways Mitt Romney can woo Latino voters.”

To wit:

1. Embrace immigration-friendly reforms
2. Convince Latinos he’s better for their wallets
3. Throw hardline anti-immigration backers under the bus
4. Lean on surrogates like Rubio to make the sale for him

The reptilian part of my brain was looking for further instructions: place ingredients in a bowl, add three cups of water…

Sure, Mitt has a “Latino problem,” but it’s not like he doesn’t know his way out of it – he got himself into it to begin with. He knows what he did, and why he did it. It’s everyone else that seems to be confused.

His problem isn’t with Latinos, it’s with his base.

Look, conventional political wisdom says that both Obama and Romney need the Latino vote to win in November. But it’s not just the Latinos that they need; they need their base, plus the Latinos, that’s the formula. It’s basic math.

Romney took a dive into the extreme right-wing, deep end, side of the political pool in order to win his party’s nomination. In doing so he took-up some some decidedly anti-Latino stances. Now he’s got to make his way back, and it’s not going to be as easy as one, two, three, four.

But, let’s give the formula the benefit of the test.

1. Embracing Latino friendly reforms is easier said than done, given the fact that the GOP base isn’t going to like it.
2. Latinos won’t be convinced that either candidate is better for their wallet – they’re in bad economic shape and can smell an empty promise when it’s wrapped in a political spin.
3. Throwing hard-liners under the bus sounds violent, and they’re not going to go easily. He can try it, but it’ll cost him dearly among his rank and file – they won’t like it.
4. Rubio, to make a sale to Latinos outside of Florida? (refer to last part of #2).

The bottom line is that Romney doesn’t need to be told how to find his way out of his “Latino problem.” He knows how he got there, he should know how to fix it…or if he can.