Cuban-Americans and the insanity of voting Republican.

[Cyrano]

It's way past time to talk about a basic truth. A generation or two of Cuban Americans, as opposed to almost all other Hispanic voters, have consistently voted for any and all Republican candidates for office.

And the reason for this can be expressed in two words. Castro & communism.

The Kennedy administration screwed up the Bay of Pigs invasion and the Republicans have, ever since, owned the votes of a couple of generations of Cuban Americans. A wet foot/dry foot policy was put in place. If a Cuban refugee sets foot on dry U.S. territory, they were/are granted asylum. If not, they are sent back, or somewhere other than Cuba. (No other would-be immigrant from anyplace else in the world is given this privilege.)

It's part of the reason we are now suffering under the imbecile in the White House. Most Cubans in Florida have been voting Republican for decades and voted for Bush -- twice. (This in no way ignores or excuses the "hanging chad ballots," the voter caging, Ralph Nader, or the Supreme Court's appointment of a president.)

Nonetheless, the Florida Cuban American vote helped elect Bush (and many other Republicans before him). And there is only one reason for this. One or two generations of Cuban Americans hate Castro more than they love America.

Younger generations of Cuban Americans "get it." They know that the Republican Party is more about hatred than inclusion. And I hope they can convince their elders of this reality, because the 2008 election in Florida might just turn on this single issue.

Will Florida once again be the deciding factor in the 2008 presidential election? I don't know. But I beg any Cuban American who is disgusted with Republican corruption and hypocrisy to vote for the Democratic presidential nominee. And don't do it for me. Do it for you.

[rwheeler31]

1. Good job

Can you get them to read, the paper?

[Cyrano]

2. Please don't use the term "them." Cuban Americans are among

some of the most well educated, hard-working people in the country. I was speaking of politics and your statement sounds, at the very least, like a misplaced, biased view of people who have been driven from their homes and have suffered greatly. (Aside from which, using the term "them," regarding any group of human beings in this country, often indicates a condescending viewpoint.)

Perhaps I'm reading you wrong, and if so, I apologize.

[lligrd]

4. I Have A Hard Time Feeling Sorry For "Them"

And by them, I mean the Cubans who came over here to escape Castro (and I am sure not all of them were innocent of the things Castro accused them of) were taken in by us but have no desire to be here. "They" simply want us to fight for them so they can return to Cuba and get "their" riches back. Kind of like the Iraqis who immigrated here and lied to us to get us to attack Iraq and give them the power. Most immigrant communities arehappy to become Americans and support our government but the Cuban community, especially in Florida, has for the most part not been one of them.

[Cyrano]

5. Wake up. The current generation of Cubans are more concerned with

how Bush has screwed us than they are with how Castro screwed their parents or grandparents.

Stop living in the past. Many, many Cuban-Americans have.

Some of my relatives of another generation came from Hitler's Europe and will never drive a Volkswagen. Their children and grandchildren don't have that bias.

A couple of generations of Cuban Americans helped Republicans into the White House and congress. In my opinion, those days are over. I believe that the current generation of Cuban Americans have turned their backs on Republican hypocrisy, divisiveness, hatred and fascism, as have most other people in this country.

[lligrd]

8. Wake Up??

It seems to me that the ones that are just awakening to the hypocrisy of this administration are the slow ones not I. I am sure you are right about the younger generation but there are enough of those that still hold on to the dream that we will get them back what they lost to harm us. I am sorry, but it really irks me to think that they want our kids to fight for their property rights. I will also add that the Cubans that I know on the west coast do not seem to harbor this fantasy.

[Cyrano]

9. "...they want our kids to fight for their property rights."

The "they's" you're referring to, also happen to be, for the most part, American citizens.

Many Americans still harbor a "fantasy" of regaining what was taken from their parents, grandparents, or great grandparents, by some "thems" somewhere in the world.

It's my belief that the current and upcoming generation of American-born Cubans are the same as all the rest of us in this regard.

But at the moment, I'm not up to "awakening to the hypocrisy." I'm tired and I am
going to bed. And please don't take my comments as other than what they are -- disagreements, not attacks. Your world views are personal opinions, as are mine.

[lligrd]

10. I Beg To Disagree

I don't think that most immigrants come here hoping that we will go to their former country and hand power over to them. Most come over because they want to be Americans and not because they want us to go fight for them.

[WinkyDink]

11. Make up your mind. You refer to "them" as a bloc; thus, responders do.

In any event, the rich fled the Revolution. THAT is why Florida's Cuban population votes Republican. There's no "insanity" about it.

[Cha]

3. When you vote for a republicon..

the bottom line is ..you vote for Greed, Obsfucation, and Prevarication...and they kill you, too without a backward or forward glance.

Good summary, Cyrano!

[peacetalksforall]

6. I agree - hard working, business minded, family oriented, creative ...

respect for the elders, love for the children and adoring parents, zest for life. But, extremely misguided politically.

I take issue here: The Kennedy administration took the blame, but it was the CIA that screwed up. The CIA advised Kennedy and the CIA was advised by Cuban-Americans (just as this admin was advised by Chalabi and others or - they went looking for a Chalabi to get it set up). The CIA worked with Cubans and they all screwed it up. Because Kennedy wouldn't say yes to the CIA a second time - the Cuban-Americans started hating. Ironically, Dems have given as many privileges to the most privileged immigrant group that has ever come to the U.S. in the form of laws, unbelievable funding, money gifts, tax breaks, favoritism in every form (which contributed to laundering and pocketing money which the Dems also participated in, but with no votes as rewards).

There are some similarities between Cuba and Iraq with a very major exception - Cheney came to office with the PNAC plan on behalf of corporations. Kennedy came to office and the CIA gave him the plan already in the works. Kennedy wasn't the one to mess up our relations with Cuba to begin with. It was already messed up and pushing Castro to the USSR to feed the people because of everything being cut off. It started out as a Revolution, it didn't start out to join up with the USSR, but the Cuban-Americans and Americans . Republican Eisenhower let that happen on more bad advice.

Both the Cuban-Americans and Chalabi said that the U.S. would be treated with cheers and rise up.

I'm glad to hear the younger ones are waking up and are less rigid and stuck. But< I don't have much hope for those who are always together in Little Havana and other places who feed themselves and other on the hate of Castro and Democrats year after year. Make that decade after dacade.

[Cyrano]

7. Can we hear from some DU Cuban-Americans?

Everything I've posted here has been based on what I've read and heard locally. There must be people here on DU from the Cuban-American community who can add to this discussion.

Come on, guys and gals. Kick in and let's hear some first-hand opinions/advice/dissension/agreement/or whatever. Speak up and let us agree or disagree, but at least, let us hear your version of the current "reality."

[B Calm]

12. Republicans don't embrace anybody that doesn't take

the time to learn English. Miami's Cuban population on a majority speak Spanish. It always have baffled me why their voting bloc is right-wing. The first wave of Cubans were of the Batista regime that Castro overthrew. Many of these elders are now dieing off. Will the next generation that were born in America continue to support the Republican party or will they follow the rest of Hispanics who traditionally vote Democratic?