Afternoon Buzz
Wednesday May 9, 2012
Howard Dean: Republicans ‘Don’t Like Latinos,’ Serve Only Their ‘Corporate Masters’ (Huffington Post): Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean (D) lit into the GOP Tuesday night, attacking what he described as the party’s willingness to abandon Latino voters and instead express concern only for corporate interests.
RNC: We’ve only just begun to fight for Latino voters (NBC Politics): With polling showing Mitt Romney getting crushed by President Obama among Latino voters, the presumptive GOP nominee admitted to donors last month that the data “spells doom for us” if the party cannot find ways to reach out to the crucial voting block.
A Latino voice speaks up in Little Rock School District (Arkansas Times): A new issue has arisen on account of the growing Latino population, particularly in Southwest Little Rock. That community is interested in maximizing its influence and has objected to a map favored by a couple of incumbents. An e-mail on the subject from Terry Trevino-Richard, who’s active in the League of United Latin American Citizens, has gone to board members about the concerns.
Hispanic voters: The sleeping giant slumbers on (The American): Hispanics have been the “sleeping giant” of American politics for decades. Each election season, we see more and more articles about how important this group of Americans is, and how their impact will be outsized and ever-growing. Yet for some reason, the “giant” never quite seems to wake up.
Border Patrol boom, like illegal immigration, is slowing (USA Today): The new strategy comes as the number of illegal-immigrant apprehensions by the Border Patrol on the southern border has fallen sharply from a peak of 1.6 million in 2000 to 340,253 last year, the lowest level since 1971.
Illegal-immigrant scrutiny tightens in Mass. (Boston Globe): Federal immigration officials will activate the controversial Secure Communities program statewide in Massachusetts on May 15, despite strong opposition from Governor Deval Patrick and advocacy groups, according to local law enforcement officials who were notified of the launch today. The launch, a week from today, follows several high-profile motor-vehicle accidents involving illegal immigrants that intensified calls to expand the fingerprint-matching program statewide.
Sofia Vergara Joins ‘Machete Kills’ And Nine Other Latino Badasses In Pulp Fiction Movies (Huffington Post): What would “Sin City” have been without hot Latino stars like Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Alexis Bledel and Benicio Del Toro? Would “Machete” have been as badasswithout Danny Trejo? And what about the Coen Brothers’ “No Country for Old Men.”
Telenovelas Are The New Coveted Marketing Niche (Huffington Post): Last week Telemundo premiered the first episode of their web-based telenovela “Mia Mundo”. The three-minute long episode features characters driving Chevy and Chevrolet cars while using Verizon Wireless products. The requisite for product placement is quite obvious.
