In a Washington Post column today, Dana Milbank wonders aloud about the GOP’s anti-Latino strategy. Milbank writes:
What else but a death wish could explain the party’s treatment of the fastest-growing voting bloc in the nation? First was the wave of Arizona-style immigration laws. Then came the anti-immigrant rhetoric from the GOP presidential candidates. On Tuesday, Senate Republicans roughed up Adalberto Jose Jordan — because, well, just because they could.
Meanwhile, a Pew Research Center report analyzes new numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that show Latinos will occupy an even greater share of the workforce in 2020 than they do today. By 2020, one-fifth of the workforce will be Latino.
The point seems obvious, but apparently it’s not so obvious to the GOP. Latinos – both immigrant and native-born – are here to stay and their numbers are only going to grow. As Milbank writes:
The Hispanic population is expected to double — to 30 percent of the United States population — in the coming decades. So if Latinos continue to vote 2-to-1 for Democrats, the Republican Party will become irrelevant.
Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice, had a message for Republicans:
The evidence is clear. The political power of Latino voters continues to expand with every election, and the current GOP approach to Latinos is alienating and insulting. The GOP needs a makeover, and that includes a new position on the issue of immigration reform. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
