Texas Senator Ted Cruz is going right after a voting bloc that many believe his Republican colleague in the Senate and presidential opponent, Marco Rubio, has the advantage with.
Rubio is fluent in Spanish, Cruz is not, so one would assume that Rubio has the upper hand when it comes to messaging the growing Hispanic population in the United States, right?
Cruz recently addressed a group of “Latino business leaders, advocates and national media” at a meeting put together by the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, touching on the one issue that really matters to Hispanics: the economy.
When it came down to talking about immigration, Cruz got it right by stating that Hispanics were a proud group of people, who take pride in “earning their keep,” and for the most part, did not look for an handout.
I think someone has purchased my book BROWN PEOPLE because these points, as well as many others that Cruz makes just so happen to be in the book. The book is a “brown print” on how to win the Hispanic vote.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Hispanic panhandler,” he said. “I think it’s because in our community it’s shameful… If you want someone working to the bone, you will have Hispanics lining up.” Ted Cruz said.
Could Cruz steal away this highly coveted Hispanic vote in 2016?
Senator Marco Rubio has the luxury of being able to jump onto any Spanish-language television program and espouse his views and opinions in Spanish, as well as deliver a justifiable bilingual smack down to President Obama, Hillary Clinton, and despots like Venezuela’s Nicholas Maduro and the Castro brothers.
Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who having lived in Mexico for a couple of years, where he taught English when he was younger, also speaks Spanish and is expected to announce his presidential bid at any moment.
Bush can hold his own when speaking Spanish, but it is fair to say that Rubio has the clear advantage. Rubio brings the arroz con pollo to the GOP presidential race.
While many of Rubio’s 2016 presidential campaign supporters believe that not speaking Spanish very well will hurt Cruz in a head-to-head against Rubio or Bush, Cruz’s lack of Spanish lingo may not play much of a role in the 2016 Republican presidential primary race.
Most Hispanics who vote will be engaged in the general election, so Cruz could be in the clear. Remember, Jeb Bush’s older hermano, President George W. Bush, spoke very poor Spanish, and he was still able to garner a large portion of the Hispanic voting bloc across the 2004 general election.
Mas Tequila!
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