Thread: S.D.U.T. EDITORIAL: The two Whitmans

U-T EDITORIAL: The two Whitmans

Sharp change in immigration tone won't fool Latinos

Sunday, July 4, 2010 at 7:42 p.m.

Republican gubernatorial nominee Meg Whitman is trying her best to serenade Hispanic voters in time for the general election. However, that won’t be easy given the amount of noise generated in the GOP primary as Whitman and her opponent, Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner, took turns trying to portray one another as soft on illegal immigration.

That’s because in California, 16 years after Proposition 187, the immigration issue still doubles as a chew toy for Republican politicians and a litmus test for Republican voters.

In fact, the immigration ruckus makes so much noise that it tends to awaken the giant. In California, where 20 percent of the electorate is Latino, Whitman knows that she can’t possibly hope to be elected governor without winning over a good-sized swath of those voters. That will be especially hard to do against a candidate like Jerry Brown.

The Democratic gubernatorial nominee has done very well with Hispanic voters in various elections for more than 30 years. And, adding to the pressure, Whitman has to work fast. In the age of the Internet, social media and the 24-hour news cycle, campaigns unfold more quickly than they used to. Voters make up their minds earlier, and once they do, it’s hard to get them to take another look at a candidate.

Whitman wants Hispanics to give her another look. She is spending a bundle on Spanish-language ads trying to persuade those voters that she’s a kinder, gentler Republican. She talks about the importance of inclusion, and vows to create jobs and improve schools. Also in the ads, Whitman plays up the fact that she opposes Arizona’s tough new immigration law and that in 1994 she opposed Proposition 187.

How time flies. Just a few weeks ago, while still locked in the Republican primary, Whitman treated those things as negatives worth downplaying. Then, she talked about how she was “100 percent opposed to granting amnesty to immigrants who entered the country illegallyâ€

"Then, she talked about how she was “100 percent opposed to granting amnesty to immigrants who entered the country illegally"


BUT NOT TO
A path to citizenship, pay taxes , learn English , blah blah

Just a POS neocon

She ruined ebay , Of course she can't screw up Calif much worse than it already is.

If Brown is elected , and that seems likely , One Bill Gil will have a field day because brown will sign anything , including the surrender papers to Mexico city

If Brown is elected , and that seems likely , One Bill Gil will have a field day because brown will sign anything , including the surrender papers to Mexico city

Adios to One Bill Gil. He is termed out.