BLOG POST #40

RESULTS of 2012 ELECTION AMONG CUBAN-AMERICANS

BENDIXEN AMANDA POLL

It used to be that Cuban-Americans voted almost exclusively for Republicans. It was a vote always counted on by the Party, but the results of recent polls conducted by Bendixen Amanda regarding the Cuban-American vote are telling quite a different story. And they are raising a multitude of questions which have the GOP doing a lot of “splaining” these days.. more like spinning! What’s new, GOP?

Local pollsters appeared on Spanish television on Tuesday (I have been tuning in lately just out of curiosity) to explain why Romney lost the Hispanic vote to Obama. Their answer (in part)? They insist that the core Hispanic support consisting of Cuban-Americans in communities such as Westchester and Hialeah is still over 50% Republican. Ay que bueno, right? Not.

The problem with that answer is that the 58% figure is down almost 30 percentage points from 1988 when the Republican party had just finished a second term by Ronald Reagan. Who can get past those numbers without asking, Why? Please allow me to briefly answer the question so as not to waste any of your time with denial of or rationalization of the stats. It is NOT because of the change in Hispanic demographics.

It’s your party message, and your candidates, GOP. Duh!

Since George H.W. Bush ran his campaign on “personality” instead of a true conservative message in 1988, we have not seen one true Republican candidate. That has nothing to do with immigration trends. If it did, you would think Hispanics who left countries because of big government dictatorships would continue voting overwhelmingly Republican. So why is it that the GOP geniuses at the helm of our party insist on pushing a losing agenda, election year after election year? (Let me whisper in plain English for them to understand.)
 

Psst, GOP, you are clueless!

No matter how much you try to figure things out, you always come up with anything BUT the right answers to the reasons why you fail. Let me advise you that trying to beat the Democrats at a game they know how to play better is a sure way to lose. Voters know this and they are not buying what you are trying to sell. There’s a simple saying that I learned in high school and it goes like this:

You may not always be "the best" by being yourself, but you will always be "second best" by trying to be somebody else.

Now to Miami. We have had a long struggle with communism and a history with not just the Bushes, but many other Republican presidential candidates as well who come here to say what many of us traditionally like to hear. How many times have we heard them say that Fidel’s days are numbered? I can't keep count. Dropping an expression or two, eating our yummy empanadas, sipping cuban cafecito in front of the cameras, or getting the must-have photo-op at Versailles Restaurant are all fine, but who are you kidding? Yourselves? The folks here are not impressed with any of it. It’s all talk. And all “cho” (pronunciation of show).

By the way, Fidel is still alive and stirring mischief!

Let me ask you this. How do empty or unrealistic promises help our party? Most people, the kind whose vote you should respect, prefer truth-telling, no-nonsense, energizing and charismatic leaders with a message of hope and fresh new ideas. They are turned off just like me.. and fed up with the same old boring candidates, and a dim-witted party that can’t do anything right. (Can we send Mr. Charisma, Karl Rove, packing, please?) Let 2012 be the final lesson. It’s time to get a clue, step aside, and let common sense prevail. If the numbers you always like to follow so closely don’t speak louder than words, nothing will.

GOP: IT IS NOT YOUR JOB TO TAKE CARE OF LATINOS.

Has it ever occured to you, GOP, that maybe, just maybe, most Latinos, no matter the background, would welcome a clear articulation of conservative principles including small government, personal responsibility, a secure border and a thriving American economy instead of feeling like they are being talked down to? 

I know my family is proud to have a work ethic. They enjoy solving problems on their own. They thrive financially, but every day their efforts are being punished by a party that chooses to focus its attention and places importance on those who come for the goodies the government provides. You can’t beat the Dems in that department. Do you also want to be like Santa Claus? Because only Santa is best at being Santa. You can never compete with that.

It is appropriate to provide a welcoming aid package like we did when we first came to the States, but not appropriate to create programs that enable or attract the type of immigration we do not want. Word gets around fast, and people come to TAKE not GIVE back to this country. Not all groups are the same, I understand, but we must agree on this: that those who come here to shake down the government for all it’s worth are not the type of voters you should be desperately seeking to attract.

Again, why compete with Democrats when we should BE BETTER ourselves! It does not make sense for the Republican party who is supposed to stand for self-reliance and a strong work ethic, to be dangling a carrot like amnesty. It is a mixed message that the average person who is not heavily involved politics has the common sense to see. When the lines are blurred, people get confused because they don’t see the difference, and they turn away. It’s understandable.

Before I finish my rant, I would like to ask just one question concerning that pesky little issue, amnesty. If a person is illegal, doesn’t that mean they are not allowed to vote? Why would you go out of your way to reach out to illegals who can’t vote anyway? Isn’t that a cruel and empty promise as well, like saying that Fidel is going to go soon? Of all the Reagan accomplishments you could have chosen, you choose to adopt the only one that didn’t work. It is simply stunning.

Finally, the “Latinos” who you think are stupid enough to buy your message, are actually smart enough to know how stupid you are.

And they (we) see right through you! You think we can’t tell good candidates from bad, or a winning message from a bad one? Make no mistake, we know a winner when we see one. We did not see one this time around and we certainly do not want any more like him in 2016. (Hearing me, Jeb B?) Stop treating your party voters like Democratic children. You should not be rewarded for failing us twice since 2008, either. Clint Eastwood’s words said it best.. If someone doesn’t do their job, you have to let them go. But I cannot end this article without mentioning what you actually accomplished this year. Something to boast about indeed!

 

You, GOP, lost 7% of the Anti-Communist Cuban-American Republicans vote to Obama. (7 down from 08!) Good Job!

~ Here are results from a Bendixen Amanda poll following the election on November 6th, 2012. ~

 

Cuban-American Vote THIS ELECTION:

 

 

Overall                 ROMNEY 52%   OBAMA 48%
Absentee B         ROMNEY 74%   OBAMA 26%
Early voting         ROMNEY 54%   OBAMA 44%
Day of election    OBAMA   53%   ROMNEY 47%

CUBAN PRESIDENTIAL VOTING OVER THE YEARS:
 
2012 -           REPUBLICAN  58%   DEMOCRAT 42%
2008 -           REPUBLICAN  65%   DEMOCRAT  35%
2004 -           REPUBLICAN  71%   DEMOCRAT  29%
2000 -           REPUBLICAN  75%   DEMOCRAT  25% 
1988 -           REPUBLICAN  85%   DEMOCRAT  15%

For more information: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/11/08/3087889/poll-obama-got-big-share-of-cuban.html