latinos

The Economic Policy Institute has released a chart showing the average overall tax rates in 1979, 1992 and 2007. The picture isn’t pretty.

While the tax rate for you, me and the other 99% of this country has remained pretty much the same over the years, the tax rate for the top 1% has seen a nice decrease in their tax burden and the top 400 households have seen a reduction that leaves them paying less a share than the rest of the country.

How is this fair?

To answer that question, we must throw out everything we know about math and enter the world of GOP economics. You constantly hear the GOP say that these poor rich people have to pay the most in taxes. Of course they do because they also earn the biggest chunk of the money in this country. But for things to be fair, we mustn’t look at total amounts, but rather shares. You and me haven’t thrived off the American dream, but we are paying a bigger share than those who have. The people who need the money the most and would be more out to spend any extra money, which would boost our economy, see a bigger percentage of their earnings go to taxes than the ultra-rich.

Latinos is the fastest growing part of our population, so their vote is going to continue to grow in significance. That hasn’t mattered to the Michelle Malkins, Rush Limbaughs and Tom Tancredos of the world. They continue their demonizing of the Hispanic community through illegal immigration. Well it looks like some Republicans are worried about that and wondering what they can do to secure hope for their own survival:

Barack Obama won about two-thirds of the Hispanic vote this year, up from the 53 percent that John Kerry won in 2004.

And the Republicans are very, very worried about the Hispanic vote. They see the African-American vote as largely gone, but the Hispanic vote was a possibility in future elections. If only Republicans knew how to appeal to Hispanic voters.

(h/t Cesca)

The Hispanic support is what helped George Bush win. He is very popular with the Hispanic community, mostly because of his ties to Mexico. George Bush was also not a hawk on immigration, and that pissed off the voices of hate from the Republican Party.

When the DNC decided to strip Michigan and Florida of their delegates, I knew it would open up a bunch of headaches. Now the DNC has some civil rights leaders pushing to reinstate the delegates.

Two civil rights leaders -- one a prominent Obama supporter -- have written DNC Chairman Howard Dean to press him to resolve the looming conflict over Florida's and Michigan's role at the Democratic National Convention, in a letter (.pdf) obtained by Politico.

"We are deeply concerned about the prospect of a Democratic Party convention fight over the seating of delegates elected in the Michigan and Florida primaries," wrote Mary Frances Berry and Roger Wilkins, making pointed reference to "disenfranchisement of Older Americans, Latinos, and African Americans in Florida during the 2000 election and the subsequent issues of disenfranchisement in Ohio and elsewhere in the 2004 election."

While the Republicans continue to stall on the Voting Rights Act, we are starting to see a new era of demand for equality. This time it is coming from the Latinos:

Two Latino radio hosts credited for mobilizing hundreds of thousands this year in pro-immigrant protests said on Friday they would join the drive to increase the Hispanic and immigrant vote in the 2008 U.S. presidential election.

Los Angeles disc jockeys Piolin (Tweetybird) and El Cucuy (the Bogeyman) said they will work with the National Council of La Raza and other organizations to push Latino immigrants living in the United States to become U.S. citizens and register to vote in time to cast ballots in 2008.

Immigration promises to be one of the big issues in the 2006 mid-term congressional elections and the 2008 presidential election as the future of some 12 million undocumented immigrants divides Congress and President George W. Bush's Republican Party.

An estimated 8 million Latinos are legal residents in the United States who qualify for naturalization as U.S. citizens, including 3 million in California alone, activists said.

Pushing for Latinos to be able to vote in 2008 - that is a sure way to get Republicans to take up immigration and prevent that. I wish them all the success in the world on this drive. We need more people like this who are willing to make America better and not turn it into some white supremacist theocracy.