Last Night there was a debate co-hosted by the Texas Tribune and Univision in San Antonio, Texas between Julian Castro, Mayor of San Antonio and Dan Patrick, a candidate running against David Dewhurst for Lt. Governor in the Republican Primary. The debate itself was lively but not exactly a game changer in the ongoing debate.
You can see the Texas Tribune | Univision Debate Here:
http://www.texastribune.org/2014/04/15/castro-patrick-debate/
But it does bring to the surface the big picture issue at play which I have earlier termed in a article "The Elephant in the Room" and that is the Republican Immigration Problem.
#1 Shoot the Messenger:
Take a minute to consider the Scene last evening's "debate". On one side (the Democrat side) we have a young, good-looking, Hispanic, who smiles when he talks and connects both on his tone and his inspiring ideas. On the other side (the Republican side) we have a middle aged, extreme sounding, Anglo Republican, who uses divisive term such as 'anchor babies" and has a harsh, condescending tone. Castro talks about lifting up the Hispanic community through educational opportunities and jobs, Patrick on the other hand focuses on punishment and keeping Hispanic people out of the country.
Patrick may make a few good points, but his tone is so harsh, that who is even listening to the words he's saying. He's like bully in elementary school. No one wants to say stop to him, but his actions are really intimidating and hurtful, so we just let it go. But he's got the Hispanic community and some of the rest of us thinking "defense, defense".
You can equate it to the black sheep principle -- we all have a black sheep in our family and are personally critical of them and their actions when gossiping over the dinner table, but the minute someone outside the family is critical of our black sheep, we are ready to defend the "family" on the spot. Certain Republican Rhetoric has put the collective Hispanic Community on the defense of their "family" and we don't stand a chance of making an impact when we are in this position.
Frankly, Conservative like Patrick should be put under a gag order when it comes to delivering the Republican message on immigration. Patrick's use of terms such as "anchor babies" serve only to divide and to elevate emotions -- and that's the last thing we need. The Republican Party in Texas has strong leaders, like George P. Bush, former Secretary of State Hope Andrade, State Representative Jason Villalba, to name a just a few, who can better articulate an immigration position that is compassionate and appealing to Hispanics in Texas.
#2 Articulate the Policies:
Next, the GOP need fully embrace and aggressively articulate a reasonable approach to immigration policies. In Texas we have made some small steps to ensure that immigrants in our state have a pathway to success. The Texas Dream Act, which allows for in-state tuition rates for immigrant students and The Texas Solution in the GOP platform which encourages a guest worker program are good polices that encourage educational opportunity and continued growth in business sector. These polices were passed by Republicans and Democrats, they do not have a negative financial impact on our state, and they are working well towards meeting their goals.
The Dan Patrick camp would like to see these policies repealed based on the belief that we need to put Americans first, which means what, I don't exactly know -- but its pretty strong rhetoric and makes his supporters applaud. Patrick has stated that he believes there should be no pathway to citizenship, no amnesty, no health care, no tuition, no - no - no .... oh except YES to border security, although in his words it's a federal issue and we can't fix that 100%.
From a policy perspective, controlling immigration is one of the basic responsibilities of government and it is the one area where federal government has completely failed the mission. The outrage from the GOP should be over government's failure. Our efforts should be focused on promoting plans to fix a complicated, bureaucratic system -- NOT aimed at more punishment for hard working people who risk everything to live in America.
#3 Inspire through the Philosophy:
Study after study proves that Hispanic Americans better align with the values of the Republican Party. Hispanics generally believe in Entrepreneurship, they value life, the are weary of a strong, centralized government. Those are the core values of the Republican Party. So if that's the connection to the Hispanic voter, why do we talk about immigration in the first place? There's no doubt that it's driven in part by the media, but it's fueled by our lack of discretion and our need to fire up a certain cult of our party.
I would challenge the new leaders in our party to talk less about immigration reform which in effect has little impact on the day to day lives of ordinary Texans and focus more on discussions about jobs, education, small business growth and less government! These are issue where we can inspire and build a relationship with Hispanic community in Texas. There are areas where we'll find agreement with a community that shares our values. This is how we connect and how we become a credible partner with the Hispanic community to make Texas a better place to live, raise our families and do business.
#4 Show Leadership:
General George Patton said to "Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity." There is a new generation of leaders in the Republican Party who are so strong in their convictions that they have lost the ability to consider any ideas not their own. While I very much appreciate conviction, I also appreciate the diversity of ideas in politics, in fact it is the best part of this game. And the most important. Because here in the debate is where the best solutions are developed.
From agriculture workforce needs being experience in the Texas Panhandle, to changing demographics in the education environment in the cities and suburbs, and on to Security problems along the border, there are a very broad spectrum of issues that come into play when you discuss immigration in Texas. The GOP would be well served to develop some principles for reform first and then work in a bi-partisan manner to find solutions. Immigration should not be a "win" issue for the GOP, but rather a leadership issue. I heard Alberto Gonzales speak in Austin a few years ago and he said this, which has formed my heart on this issue "The party who can deliver on comprehensive immigration reform will have the hearts and
minds of Hispanics for generations."
A Final Thought:
In 2006 I began working in the trenches on immigration reform policies as a staff person for the Hispanic Alliance for Prosperity Institute (HAPI). I worked under the direction of a board composed of great Hispanic leaders like Jacob Monty and Massey Villareal of Houston. These patriots showed leadership and pushed this young conservative who thought she knew everything to look at the immigration issue in a more sophisticated way.
In almost 8 years working with HAPI there has been little to no progress from Conservative politicians toward showing true leadership on this issue, mostly because we have been too focused on developing the rhetoric and not results. I am fearful of the approach being taken by this new crop of GOP candidates such as Patrick, because they seem to be setting us back even further. Now is the time for reasonable Republicans who share my concerns about the harsh tone of this debate to step forward and demand leadership. If we do not, we could lose the hearts and minds of Hispanics for generations.
And with a growing Hispanic population that spells Death for the GOP in Texas.
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