Today the Trump campaign is hosting a “Latinos for Trump Talk” in Florida to spin this administration’s failed policies to the Latino community. Although we know there have been more than five failures, we thought we’d list out a few times Donald Trump has hurt the Latino community in Florida in advance of his team’s call into the Sunshine State.
“Trump and his administration have continually failed the Latino community, breaking promises left and right. Now, in an effort to spin their failed record, they are coming to Florida to pay lip service to our communities,” said Luisana Perez Fernandez, Deputy Communications Director for the Florida Democratic Party. “We won’t let them continue to disrespect us, and this November, we will say goodbye to them and their hypocrisy.”
1. Trump’s failed coronavirus response disproportionately hurts Florida’s Latino community
- New York Times: “Coronavirus has surged in Latino communities”
“The analysis affirms broad national tallies by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which show Latinos making up 34 percent of cases nationwide, a much higher proportion than the group’s 18 percent share of the population.” [New York Times, 6/28/20]
- Palm Beach Post: “Florida coronavirus rates twice as high in black, Hispanic areas, internal state data shows”
“About 25 percent of Hispanics and 20 percent of blacks tested positive for the virus, compared to about 11 percent of whites, The Post found in analyzing nearly 200,000 test results in which patients self-reported their race or ethnicity.” [Palm Beach Post, 6/5/20]
2. Trump’s tax scam left out Latino working families
- New York Times: “Latino Americans received only about 7% of the benefits from Trump’s tax law.”
“Latinos got about 7 percent, although their share of all income is 8 percent. In total, the analysis estimates, whites will get $218 billion in tax cuts this year as a result of the law. Black and Latino Americans will get about $32 billion combined.” [New York Times, 10/11/18]
- Hispanics make up 18.1% of the U.S. population.
“The Hispanic population of the United States as of July 1, 2017, making people of Hispanic origin the nation’s largest ethnic or racial minority. Hispanics constituted 18.1 percent of the nation’s total population.” [Census.gov, 9/13/18]
- Most Hispanic Americans stand to face a tax increase under Trump’s tax law by 2027, with only 30% of Hispanic Americans earning more than $75,000.
“The wealthy will retain slightly lower rates after 2025 mostly because of benefits from the permanent corporate tax cuts, which will increase some kinds of income such as dividends. Some of the biggest tax cuts in 2025 are for those earning more than $75,000, with rate reductions between 0.6 percent and 1.5 percent of income, according to JCT. About 44 percent of white Americans earn this amount compared with 24 percent of blacks and 30 percent of Hispanics, according to the Center’s analysis.” [Center For Public Integrity, 8/21/18]
3. Latinos experienced the largest gain in health insurance coverage thanks to the Affordable Care Act. Trump is threatening those gains in his push to repeal the ACA.
- Kaiser Family Foundation: Hispanics experienced the largest gain in coverage since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act’s coverage expansions in 2014.
“Since implementation of the major ACA health coverage expansions in 2014, people of color have experienced large coverage gains that helped narrow the longstanding racial and ethnic disparities in coverage. These gains reflected increases in both Medicaid and private coverage. Hispanics experienced the largest coverage gain.” [Kaiser Family Foundation, 2/13/19]
- Latino children’s health insurance coverage rates improved to a historic high of 92.5 percent in the second year after the ACA’s coverage provisions took effect.
“Latino children’s coverage rates improved to a historic high of 92.5 percent in the second year after the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) coverage provisions took effect. The number of uninsured Latino children declined by approximately 676,000, from 2 million in 2013 to 1.4 million in 2015. In this same time period, the uninsurance rate for Latino children dropped from 11.5 percent to 7.5 percent.” [Center for Children and Families, Georgetown University Health Policy Institute, 12/16] 4. Trump blocked disaster relief funds for Puerto Rico, abandoning the island when they most needed support
- Orlando Sentinel: “Puerto Ricans in Orlando slam Trump for calling Hurricane Maria response ‘successful’”
“Trump, speaking about preparations for Hurricane Florence as it barrels down on North Carolina, said his administration’s response to the September 2017 storm, which the Puerto Rico government said last month was responsible for 2,975 deaths and resulted in thousands of evacuees to Central Florida, was ‘one of the best jobs that’s ever been done.’” [Orlando Sentinel, 9/11/18]
- New York Times: “Elaine Duke on Leading Homeland Security Under President Trump”
“She said she was especially taken aback, during the response to Hurricane Maria’s devastation of Puerto Rico, when she heard Mr. Trump raise the possibility of ‘divesting’ or ‘selling’ the island as it struggled to recover.”[New York Times, 7/10/20]
- Miami Herald: “After PR quake, Trump declares state of emergency. Now, release fund for Hurricane Maria recovery | Editorial”
“In December, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said it was withholding an additional $8 billion in unmet-needs disaster relief from Puerto Rico. But in total, HUD is delaying the release of two tranches of aid, roughly $18 billion that Congress appropriated for the U.S. territory.” [Miami Herald, 1/08/20] 5. Trump has undermined efforts to restore democracy in Venezuela, and refused to grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Venezuelans in the United States
- Axios: Exclusive: “Trump cold on Venezuela’s Juan Guaidó, would consider meeting Maduro”
“In an Oval Office interview with Axios on Friday, President Trump suggested he’s had second thoughts about his decision to recognize Juan Guaidó as the legitimate leader of Venezuela and said he is open to meeting with dictator Nicolás Maduro.” [Axios, 6/21/20]
- Miami Herald: “Trump refuses to grant TPS to Venezuelans in U.S., senators say.”
“The government of President Donald Trump is refusing to grant Venezuelans Temporary Protected Status, despite claiming that the South American country is ruled by a dangerous dictatorial regime, Sens. Dick Durbin and Bob Menendez said Tuesday.” [Miami Herald, 7/16/19]
- Tampa Bay Times: “Democrats tried to pass TPS for Venezuelans. Senate Republicans blocked it.”
“The major hurdle for passing TPS legislation: conservative Republicans in Congress along with a group of White House officials. They are wary of extending TPS to Venezuela while trying to end the program in countries like Haiti, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua.” [Tampa Bay Times, 7/31/19]
- Miami New Times: “Despite Messages of Solidarity, the U.S. Still Deports Venezuelans.”
“The Trump administration has proven inconsistent in its attitudes towards Maduro and the people who were forced to flee the dictatorship in Venezuela,” says Jose Colina, president of the Miami organization Veppex”… “If they can deport a Venezuelan, they will. And if they can’t, they leave them in jails for months.” [Miami New Times, 9/24/19]
Florida Democratic Party Chair on Today’s Supreme Court Ruling
Today, the Supreme Court of the United States maintained the Eleventh Circuit’s stay, allowing the state to continue blocking returning citizens from the ballot box because they cannot afford to pay fines and fees. In response, Florida Democratic Party Chair Terrie Rizzo released the following statement:
“Florida Republicans have a shamefully transparent electoral strategy: voter suppression. Floridians overwhelmingly voted to allow returning citizens to vote nearly two years ago, but Governor DeSantis is determined to limit participation in our democracy and punish the poor by fighting for this modern day poll tax.”
Opinion: Supporting Dreamers means supporting Joe Biden
Last week, the Sun Sentinel published an op-ed penned by Mariana Castro, the Florida Democratic Party’s Deputy Digital Director, who came to this country as a child from Peru, about her experience as a DACA recipient, the recent DACA Supreme Court decision, and Joe Biden’s plans for comprehensive immigration reforms. Mariana detailed her experience before she received DACA, and also highlighted what having DACA meant to her, and the need to elect Joe Biden in order to “[build] a future America that all of us can participate and thrive in.”
“For my fellow Floridians, I see in Vice President Biden’s plan a vision that will address some of the most important issues we’re facing. Immigrants are embedded in the fabric of this country. Joe Biden doesn’t just recognize that, but cherishes it,” said Mariana Castro in the opinion piece. “Electing Joe Biden for President of the United States is the right thing to do and will restore dignity, hope and empowerment to our immigrant community.”
7/13/20, Sun Sentinel, Supporting Dreamers means supporting Joe Biden | Opinion – South Florida Sun Sentinel – South Florida
Key Points:
- “When my mother first told me about the United States, she painted a picture of opportunity. She told me, “mija, las cosas van a cambiar” — things will change for the better. That day, almost 15 years ago, I kissed my father goodbye at the airport without knowing it may be the last time I ever saw him.”
- “My mother and I arrived in Florida from Peru in 2005 and I quickly understood our situation. While we were escaping crime and poverty in Peru, we weren’t truly “safe” in America either. Growing up undocumented meant walking around with a target on my back, hoping that no one would notice I lacked a piece of paper. It meant living in secret out of fear of deportation, but also fear of never reaching my full potential. In 10th grade, I realized that regardless of my excellent grades, extracurricular activities and community service hours, it would be nearly impossible to attend a full-time university without status. I felt defeated.”
- “But in 2012, things changed like my mami had promised. After years of advocacy from the undocumented community, the Obama-Biden administration rolled out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, also known as DACA, which protected kids like me who, without legal status, came to the United States looking for a safe haven. DACA gave me the chance to realize my full potential without fear of reprisal or deportation.”
- “When Donald Trump ran for president in 2016, he vowed to undo the Obama-Biden administration’s progress, deport people like me and my mom, and unleash fear into our immigrant community. He used immigrants as a scapegoat and fuel for xenophobic politics. As president, Trump has fulfilled those promises. He has rescinded DACA, caged migrant children at the border, executed a travel ban on Muslims, and most recently, deported 120 Cubans back to the authoritarian government they once escaped.”
- “Last month’s Supreme Court decision was both monumental and life-changing for me and so many of my fellow DACA recipients. The court rejected Trump’s “capricious and arbitrary” attacks on DACA. For so many, this was the “right” decision, but for me it was personal. To say a weight has been lifted is an understatement; I feel a renewed sense of confidence, dignity and motivation to elect a new president in November.”
- “Our communities cannot withstand four more years of Trump. We need a leader who sees our immigrant community for what it is: resilient and a part of the American fabric. It’s imperative that we elect Joe Biden, who on day one, will send a bill to Congress outlining a clear roadmap to citizenship, while using his executive power to restore protection to undocumented youth.”
- “As president, Biden will not just restore the progress Trump has cruelly undone, but also take action to ensure we have an immigration system inspired by respect, dignity and safety. For my fellow Floridians, I see in Vice President Biden’s plan a vision that will address some of the most important issues we’re facing. He’s promised to explore all legal protections to stop inhumane separation, protect TPS and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) holders from being returned to unsafe countries, and he will also ensure undocumented youth are eligible for federal student aid and debt-free community college, so that we are building a future America that all of us can participate and thrive in.”
- “Immigrants are embedded in the fabric of this country. Joe Biden doesn’t just recognize that, but cherishes it. Electing Joe Biden for President of the United States is the right thing to do and will restore dignity, hope and empowerment to our immigrant community.”