Marco Rubio Is The Lipstick, The GOP Is The Pig
The media is in a frenzy over the entry of Marco Rubio into the presidential race. He’s young, handsome, well-spoken in English and Spanish, he’s got an immigrant history. He is a genuine American success story. The media has been waiting for a Republican candidate whose vision of America isn’t something found on a black-and-white sitcom from the 1950’s, and at first glance, Marco Rubio seems like that candidate.
But while he may be the best chance the GOP has to drag the party into the 21st century and connect with an essential part of the electorate, it may not be much of a chance after all. Because the problem between the GOP and Latinos isn’t marketing—it’s their policies. Marco Rubio may just be another GOP attempt to put lipstick on a pig.
The share of Latinos who identify as Republican over the last 15 years has remained relatively stable. According to Pew Hispanic Research, about 25 percent of Latinos identified as Republican in 1999, while 27 percent of Latinos did in 2014. That isn’t likely to change by much in 2016. And Rubio isn’t polling well among Latinos at the moment. Latino Decisions reports that Marco Rubio has a net-negative favorability rating in each state they polled except for Texas, where his net-favorability rating is a wash. The bottom line: Where Republicans go, anti-immigrant policies will follow.
While Marco Rubio’s stance on immigration wasn’t always so hard-line, he now supports ending DACA relief for eligible undocumented immigrants. About four million undocumented immigrants are eligible for temporary relief, and DACA is strongly favored by Latinos. Messing with DACA may appeal to the GOP base, but it won’t go over well with Latinos in 2016, especially since the policy is wholly dependent on the president. If Rubio is elected, ending DACA relief is likely to be the first thing on the agenda.
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