Daily NewsTaco

Friday October 5, 2012

 Where Latinos Vote in One Helpful Map (ABC News): I LOVE this! Maybe because I’m a visual learner, maybe because I need pictures to help me understand a story… The thing is that graphics help to set a mental space for all the data thrown at us and this map is excellent at doing that. Also, it’s great at painting a picture of hidden stories: Montana has the highest percentage of eligible Latino voters  within it’s Latino population; and the untold story across the nation – the potential of the Latino vote as yet un-registered (age, citizenship) – is huge.

Why Hispanic voter turnout isn’t higher, in two charts (Washington Post): Wonky, but important. Again, I love graphs. This is info we’ve heard before, but done in a visual way. So yes, there are a whole bunch of Latinos, but 55% aren’t eligible to vote, and of those who are only about 47% go to the polls. And yet, that 47% of the 45% is impacting national politics. The piece ends with a bold prediction by Julian Castro about Texas.

Romney’s Latino numbers up in the battlegrounds (Washington Post) The latest in the horse race tracking polls. This one, by ImpreMedia/Latino Decisions, is the typical good news/bad news scenario. Obama’s lead is is down 66 to 33 in battleground states. But, that number includes Florida, where Romney has done historically well among Cuban-Americans.

Latinos eat up Obama’s view on role of government (Washington Post): Wow. So at first the headline made me cringe. Something about “Latinos eat up…” didn’t sit well with me. But then the reporter, Aaron Blake, makes a link between poll results and easy assumptions: If in  2010 a CNN/Opinion research poll showed that Latinos thought government was too big, and today they don’t, it must be because Latinos are believing President Obama’s stump pitch. Shall I list the assumptions? That the polls are accurate; that Latinos are gullible; that the reporter knows what he’s talking about…

Birth Rates Declined Among Latinos, the Economy is to Blame (Fox News Latino): I like this story because of it’s political implications, given all the stuff we’ve been talking about today. It’s actually a mixed bag of news, in the “canary in a coal mine” sort of way. Birthrates for Latinas fell 6%. Overall birthrates fall in tough economic times, but that steady fall is receding (a sign of an end to the tough times?); Birthrates among Latino teens is falling, and that’s a good thing, but it also means that the expanding Latino populace and political muscle is slowing as well. Lot’s to unpack in this story.

Poll: 60% Of Latinos Support Gay Marriage, But One In Ten Don’t Want A Gay Kid (Queerty): I thought this was interesting. Latinos in general are way ahead of the curve when it comes to gay rights and the support of same sex marriage. An NBC Latino/IBOPE Zogbe poll back that up: 60% of Latinos support same-sex marriage. But buried in that same poll was this: “Asked what their biggest disappointment would be when it comes to their children, one in ten said having a gay child.” …just sayin’.

Junot Diaz, Natalia Almada Win Genius Grants from MacArthur Foundation (Fox News Latino): This is the kind of story I pick out for it’s badge value. Yes there have been MacArthur Geniuses in the past, but these are the latest. Keep them on the tip of your tongue, rattle them off when talking about the contributions of Latinos to the American story.

Romney Pivots on Immigration: This is my own headline because there is a slew of stories today on how, 5 weeks before the election, Mitt Romney has changed his stance on important immigration points:

• Romney eases immigration stance as Obama urges Latino turnout (Los Angeles Times)
• Romney Tries to Soften Immigration Stance, But Is Losing Latinos (U.S. News & World Report)
• Romney will keep Obama’s immigration policy (CBS News)
• Romney won’t revoke visas for young illegal immigrants (USA Today)