Solidarity Strategies

Voxxi Highlights Chuck Rocha and Latino Leadership

chris — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 13:52:20 +0000

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com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Chuck-Rocha-headshot-200×300.jpg” alt=”" width=”200″ height=”300″ />Chuck Rocha has been in big demand lately with cable news organizations from MSNBC to Fox News inviting him to talk about political issues important to the Latino community.

Rocha, the founder of a Washington consulting firm – Solidarity Strategies — and the former national political director of the United Steel Workers of America, has been particularly happy to oblige in recent weeks with the headlines focusing on progress in key areas of interest to Hispanics.

Rocha, who also serves as executive director of the American Worker Latino Project, says he is happy to be out front these days with some of the good news for the Latino community, starting with President Barack Obama’s order halt the deportation of illegal immigrants up to 30 years old who came to the United States before age 16. The executive order covers young people who have lived here for at least five years, and are in school, are high school graduates or are military veterans in good standing. The order does not protect immigrants with criminal records.

The second piece of good news was last Monday’s ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court voiding three of the four key provisions in Arizona’s controversial SB 1070 immigration law.

Rocha, who started his career as a union worker in an East Texas tire factory, says Monday’s ruling from the Supreme Court, “Was overall good, but it came one decision of being great.” He says the justices’ failure to overrule the law’s “papers please” provision is disappointing because it leaves the door open to profiling by police authorities. The provision requires officers to seek documentation of citizenship or legal residency if they suspect someone they have stopped might be an illegal immigrant.

On the brighter side, Rocha says, the “papers please” provision is probably vulnerable to future litigation once officers begin to enforce it, particularly if an American citizen or legal resident is detained for a lack of documentation.

See full coverage of Supreme Court ruling: Special Report on the Arizona Immigration Law

Rocha says he believes the president’s decision to act unilaterally on the key provisions of the DREAM Act and the court’s split ruling should motivate lawmakers to get back to work on comprehensive immigration policy reforms. “I think it reinforces that Congress needs to act on this instead of allowing a state patchwork of laws. That would just lead to more confusion and more litigation.”

Many supporters of Arizona’s immigration laws responded defiantly to the court’s decision, but Rocha said he does not anticipate that many states will act defiantly. “I think that you may have a few rogue AG’s in a few rogue states,” who will try to work around the court ruling. That may happen, he said, but lower federal courts will stand by the justices’ ruling before any cases wind their way back to the high court.

Although his firm’s polling of potential Latino voters shows that jobs and education concerns rank higher than health and immigration, Rocha says the news should put Latino voters even more squarely in President Obama’s corner.

“With the developments in the past two weeks, Latinos are seeing very clearly who stands with them and who stands against them,” says Rocha whose Solidarity Strategies is working with the American Worker Latino Project on political strategies for targeted areas where the Hispanic vote can impact the election results.

“We’re the only partisan vehicle out there doing Spanish and English advertising talking about the differences between the parties on these core issues. We’re encouraging Hispanics to get out and vote because their economic security is at stake.”

Noting that GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney tries to sell himself to Hispanic audiences by telling them he is focused on jobs and economic recovery, Rocha says, “I think that Latino voters like myself listen to him and hear him say that we need to open our economy to trade agreements with Latin American countries. When I was 19, I was fortunate to get a job at the Kelley-Springfield plant in Tyler. Thanks to trade agreements those jobs are now in China.”

Rocha worked at the tire plant for eight years before he went, in his words, “Straight from the factory floor to working for an international union” at the United Steel Workers in 1998. The union sent Rocha to the Harvard University Trade Union executive training program.

He stayed at the union until launching his consulting firm 2 ½ years ago. He describes Solidarity Strategies as the only Latino-owned progressive consulting firm in Washington, D.C. The company creates mail, phone, mobilization and fund-raising programs for unions and non-profit clients ranging from the Communications Workers of America to the Sierra Club and Planned Parenthood.

Chuck Rocha on The ED Show – Mitt Romney & Immigration

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Transcript

Welcome back. six days after president obama aannounced a major policy change affecting the lives of nearly 800,000 young people, mitt romney has no answers when it comes to immigration. today romney spoke to a convention of latino- elected officials in florida offering few specifics on how he would deal with more than 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the united states if elected president. as to whether he would overturn president obama’s executive action, romney again sidestepped the issue altogether.

>> some people have asked if i will let stand the president’s executive order. the answer is that i will put in place my own long-term solution that will replay and supersede the president’s temporary measure.

>> while the president’s plan applies to a broad spectrum of young people brought to the united states as children, romney’s proposal offers a path to legal status only to those that serve nts military. green cards are gin to those that earn advanced degrees in the united states. the one thing romney did offer the hispanic audience, was a different tone. he told a republican audience this at a debate back in january.

>> well, the answer is self-deportation, which is people decide they can do better by going home because they can’t find work here.

>> today, romney changed his tune again.

>> i’m going to address the problem of illegal immigration in a civil and resolute manner. we may not always agree, but when i make a promise to you, i will keep it.

>> let’s turn to chuck rosha. chuck, good to see you again and have you with us tonight. what does romney’s position on immigration say about his ability to lead? i have to say after watching the speech today, there’s no more definition today than yesterday. no more definition.

>> his biggest truth is when he said we don’t agree in a room full of elected latino leaders and talked about electric fences and self-deportation and actually had the gall to say he would rescind the order that president obama set. president obama had to do that because the congress wouldn’t act. there were over 800,000 children who have pledged aledgeanaledge i can’t answer to one flag in a life. the man who wants to president who is say millionaire gets before latino leaders and says, why don’t you get me and understand where i’m coming from? you can bleem me. when you talk about electric fences and self-deportation, there’s no wonder you’re 35 points behind with the latino vote.

>> it sounds like you believe he didn’t do anything to improve his standing with hispanics today. he had a golden opportunity to do it. it seems to me that romney really agrees with the president, but president obama is so toxic to the right wing and any republican right now he can’t bring himself to saying it. what do you think?

>> you could tell by his tone today he wanted to be the nice guy and go, i know what it’s like and there’s something holding me back. maybe it’s the tea party and conservative right. if i say the wrong thing i cut off my funding and all hopes of being president. what president barack obama did was very smart. it wasn’t political because these 800,000 people can’t cast the first vote for him. what it did was mobilize and energize people like me who is latino who is registered to vote, who was born here. that’s the root thing to do. as americans we came here, and people came here with an idea, to kind of honor or values. we were supposed to be equal, all equal under the law. it puts him in a bad place.

>> here’s what one former mccain advi adviser told z “the new york time times”, if they have the wrong tone or rhetoric on immigration, hispanics won’t listen to any proposals on anything else. does his performance today should the door all the way to november for him with the latino vote.

>> i run the latino project, and the top three issues with latino voters are jobs, education and immigration. today in his speech his job proposal is more trade agreements. when i hear that, more trade agreements, that says my job is leaving, and on education, he said we need a choice when it comes to education. when i hear that that means schools for profit, privatizing schools and no public education. he said all the wrong things today, and i think he has a long ways to go.

>> president obama is going to speak to this very same group of latino leaders tomorrow. how’s he going to be received? what does he need to say, if anything, at this point?

>> i think that he hasn’t fixed the problem totally but made aa step in the right direction. he made these people under, from all different types of latinos from cuba or a texas mexican like i am. i’m trying to get you something so you won’t be deported. all have collective action to be heard. at least he stood up and said your voice is heard. if the congress won’t act, by god, i will ask.

>> chuck rocha one of the best latino voices in the country.

>> thank you, ed.

>> the politics of failure. find out have romney is telling rick scott will you please shut up on this economy thing down there in florida. republicans are busy going after eric holder while student loan rates double in ten days. the president is calling themRich Text AreaToolbarBold (Ctrl + B)Italic (Ctrl + I)Strikethrough (Alt + Shift + D)Unordered list (Alt + Shift + U)Ordered list (Alt + Shift + O)Blockquote (Alt + Shift + Q)Align Left (Alt + Shift + L)Align Center (Alt + Shift + C)Align Right (Alt + Shift + R)Insert/edit link (Alt + Shift + A)Unlink (Alt + Shift + S)Insert More Tag (Alt + Shift + T)Toggle spellchecker (Alt + Shift + N)▼
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Transcript
Welcome back. six days after president obama aannounced a major policy change affecting the lives of nearly 800,000 young people, mitt romney has no answers when it comes to immigration. today romney spoke to a convention of latino- elected officials in florida offering few specifics on how he would deal with more than 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the united states if elected president. as to whether he would overturn president obama’s executive action, romney again sidestepped the issue altogether.
>> some people have asked if i will let stand the president’s executive order. the answer is that i will put in place my own long-term solution that will replay and supersede the president’s temporary measure.
>> while the president’s plan applies to a broad spectrum of young people brought to the united states as children, romney’s proposal offers a path to legal status only to those that serve nts military. green cards are gin to those that earn advanced degrees in the united states. the one thing romney did offer the hispanic audience, was a different tone. he told a republican audience this at a debate back in january.
>> well, the answer is self-deportation, which is people decide they can do better by going home because they can’t find work here.
>> today, romney changed his tune again.
>> i’m going to address the problem of illegal immigration in a civil and resolute manner. we may not always agree, but when i make a promise to you, i will keep it.
>> let’s turn to chuck rosha. chuck, good to see you again and have you with us tonight. what does romney’s position on immigration say about his ability to lead? i have to say after watching the speech today, there’s no more definition today than yesterday. no more definition.
>> his biggest truth is when he said we don’t agree in a room full of elected latino leaders and talked about electric fences and self-deportation and actually had the gall to say he would rescind the order that president obama set. president obama had to do that because the congress wouldn’t act. there were over 800,000 children who have pledged aledgeanaledge i can’t answer to one flag in a life. the man who wants to president who is say millionaire gets before latino leaders and says, why don’t you get me and understand where i’m coming from? you can bleem me. when you talk about electric fences and self-deportation, there’s no wonder you’re 35 points behind with the latino vote.
>> it sounds like you believe he didn’t do anything to improve his standing with hispanics today. he had a golden opportunity to do it. it seems to me that romney really agrees with the president, but president obama is so toxic to the right wing and any republican right now he can’t bring himself to saying it. what do you think?
>> you could tell by his tone today he wanted to be the nice guy and go, i know what it’s like and there’s something holding me back. maybe it’s the tea party and conservative right. if i say the wrong thing i cut off my funding and all hopes of being president. what president barack obama did was very smart. it wasn’t political because these 800,000 people can’t cast the first vote for him. what it did was mobilize and energize people like me who is latino who is registered to vote, who was born here. that’s the root thing to do. as americans we came here, and people came here with an idea, to kind of honor or values. we were supposed to be equal, all equal under the law. it puts him in a bad place.
>> here’s what one former mccain advi adviser told z “the new york time times”, if they have the wrong tone or rhetoric on immigration, hispanics won’t listen to any proposals on anything else. does his performance today should the door all the way to november for him with the latino vote.
>> i run the latino project, and the top three issues with latino voters are jobs, education and immigration. today in his speech his job proposal is more trade agreements. when i hear that, more trade agreements, that says my job is leaving, and on education, he said we need a choice when it comes to education. when i hear that that means schools for profit, privatizing schools and no public education. he said all the wrong things today, and i think he has a long ways to go.
>> president obama is going to speak to this very same group of latino leaders tomorrow. how’s he going to be received? what does he need to say, if anything, at this point?
>> i think that he hasn’t fixed the problem totally but made aa step in the right direction. he made these people under, from all different types of latinos from cuba or a texas mexican like i am. i’m trying to get you something so you won’t be deported. all have collective action to be heard. at least he stood up and said your voice is heard. if the congress won’t act, by god, i will ask.
>> chuck rocha one of the best latino voices in the country.
>> thank you, ed.
>> the politics of failure. find out have romney is telling rick scott will you please shut up on this economy thing down there in florida. republicans are busy going after eric holder while student loan rates double in ten days. the president is calling them
Path:

Chuck Rocha on The Ed Show as Obama announces immigration reform.

chris — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 00:44:10 +0000

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Transcription

>>> Nearly 800,000 young people no longer live in fear of being deported for a decision their parents made. president obama announced a major immigration policy change in the rose garden today.

>> these are young people who study in our schools, they play in our neighborhoods, they’re friends with our kids, they pledge allegiance to our flag. they are americans in their heart, in their minds, in every single way but one, on paper.

>> with legislation stalled by republicans in congress, the president said the temporary policy change will be made through enforcement by the department of homeland security.

>> it makes no sense to expel talented young people who for all intents and purposes are americans. they have been raised as americans. understand themselves to be part of this country. to expel these young people who want to staff our labs or start new businesses or defend our country, simply because of the actions of their parents or because of the inaction of politicians.

>> students rallied on both coasts in support of the new measures, including these young people in los angeles.

>> for me, it means i can finally take the right step forward, that he’s responding in the way that we’ve been wanting him to respond and that he’s listening and that we are now full of hope.

>> we’ve been fighting for so long that it’s a surreal moment right now that we’re living, so it’s a policy change so hopefully they follow through with it.

>> but not everyone had a positive reaction, including one person who was in the rose garden.

>> it is the — it is the right thing to do. excuse me, sir, it’s not time for questions, sir. not while i’m speaking.

>> the conservative heckler in the audience was a writer for the right wing website “the daily caller.” he yelled out why do you favor foreigners over americans. president obama addressed him a few minutes later.

>> because we are a better nation that one that expels innocent young kids. and the answer to your question, sir, and the next time i prefer you let me finish my statements before you ask that question, is this is the right thing to do for the american people. i didn’t — i didn’t ask for an argument, i’m answering your question. it is the right thing to do for the american people and here’s why. here’s the reason. because these young people are going to make extraordinary contributions and are already making contributions to our society.

>> i’ll have more on this stunning display later in the show. first, we should note mitt romney’s reaction to the president’s latest move.

>> i think the action that the president took today makes it more difficult to reach that long-term solution because an executive order is of course just a short-term matter. it can be reversed by subsequent presidents. i’d like to see legislation that deals with this issue and i happen to agree with marco rubio as he looked at this issue.

>> interesting that romney would align himself with marco rubio who called the new policy welcome news for many of these kids. other republicans weren’t so for giving.

>> this delivery of this message today was pandering to a certain population, and i believe it was very, very political.

>> get your finger out of my face. and on fox news, karl rove was tipping the scales of hypocrisy.

>> this is nothing but a politically motivated and cynical act.

>> really, karl? so this was a politically motivated and cynical act too?

>> i believe in the idea of amnesty for those who have put down roots and who have lived here, even though sometime back they may have entered illegally.

>> the immigration reform supported by ronald reagan gave amnesty to three million undocumented immigrants. republicans like to forget about that. they also want to ignore the potential impact of immigration reform on the economy. the congressional budget office said the dream act would increase federal revenue by $1.7 billion over ten years. the deficit would be reduced by $2.2 billion. these benefits already put republicans behind the eight ball when it comes to their opposition to reform. but from the looks of the right wing messaging out there today, it doesn’t appear they are ready to win over minority voters any time soon. get your cell phones out. i want top what you think. tonight’s question, would republicans support any kind of immigration reform? text a for yes, text b for no to 622639. or go to our blog. i’ll bring you the results later in the show. i’m joined by new jersey senator robert menendez. what’s your reaction, first of all, senator, to the president’s announcement?

>> well, i applaud the president. this is exactly the action that i and a series of my colleagues in congress have been calling for. to use the administrative relief he decided to use today. i know the administration has been listening to our voices for some time and trying to lay the legal framework to be able to achieve this goal. i believe they have that legal framework. there is precedent by republican and democratic presidents who have given classes of immigrants at different times pending status in this country. 95 law professors recently sent a letter to the president exactly speaking of that precedent. and so today these young people who came to this country through no decision of their own, came here most of them very, very young. the only flag they ever pledge allegiance to is that of the united states. the only national anthem they know is the star-spangled banner. have an opportunity to further contribute to america. and to do so in a way that can both help us intellectually. i’ve met so many of these students from my own home state. many times they are the valedictorian, salutatorian, whole host of community activists, giving a lot back to their communities. others wear the uniform of the united states and serve in the armed forces and defend the country, so it’s a great day for them, even though it doesn’t give them the total dream that they wanted.

>> sure. let’s clear up some misinformation because a lot of things have been floating out there and we want to clarify them. the department of homeland security has five requirements for exemption. it protects those who came to the u.s. under the age of 16. they must live in the u.s. for at least five years. students, high school grads and discharged veterans are exempt. they must have a record clear of felonies and they must be under 30 years old. so we just want to clarify that so that people won’t make these errant comments about the situation for those people who are the children of immigrants. are these fair requirements in your mind?

>> i think they are. we are trying to reach a class of students who came to this country very young, who have a clean record, meaning they have no criminal background, who must continue to have a clean record as they move forward, and who will be law abiding and contributing citizens to our society. and i think, you know, we’ve already made major investments in them in terms of public education. now that we have the ability to use their intellect on maf of the country or their service to the defense of the country, we should.

>> no question. the president pointed out that today work on the dream act is still necessary. let’s take a listen.

>> precisely because this is temporary, congress needs to act. there’s still time for congress to pass the dream act this year, pause these kids deserve to plan their lives in more than two-year increments.

>> certainly what the president did today was bold and imaginative and certainly goes a long way, but do you believe the dream act can ever pass through this congress?

>> in this congress, i’m not sure, michael. let me just say that the dream act would be law today if we didn’t have the republicans in the united states senate filibustering it when we had the vote over a year ago. at that time 55 senators, including a couple of republicans, joined us. that is a majority of the united states senate. but because republicans insisted on filibustering it, the procedure in which they try to stop just about everything, we would have needed 60 votes. a majority of the senate agreed at the time, so it’s republicans that have stopped this. that’s why i laugh when i see mitt romney saying lack of leadership. it’s his party that has shown a lack of leadership in this regard and whose language is so punitive as it relates to the immigrant and latino community in this country that i’m not surprised the polls read what they do.

>> all right, senator robert menendez, thank you so much for your time.

>>> now let’s turn to the executive director of the american latino project. thanks for coming on. what does today mean for young people living in fear of deportation. give us a kind of sense of what that means to them in their hearts and in their minds.

>> michael, i’m glad you asked me that question. i had a conversation with some friends of mine in northwest arkansas, in a rural part of arkansas, a young woman who came to this country at 7 years old with her family. went to high school, graduated with honors. got to go to college in arkansas. went halfway through college and then the governor there changed the rules and said because she was undocumented, she had to pay out of state tuition. so her and her family and the college, i give full credit to, helped her raise the means to graduate that college, even though she had lived in arkansas since she was 7 years old. she was ecstatic today and says this movement gives hope to all children, all these dreamers who have been doing collective actions and working hard that their voices are heard because they are a fabric of america.

>> well, weaved into the fabric of us as a nation. some said what the president did today was possibly illegal. how do you answer that?

>> you know, you’re going to hear this from the other side. because he did the right thing. and it was the right thing no matter what the color of your skin, no matter where you were born. but the actions you take as a young adult, by playing by the rules, coming to another country as a small child and doing good things, just like that sister in arkansas. they can’t stand to see the man do the right thing because it’s good for everyone and then in politics, that’s hard to run against. that’s exactly why you heard it that way.

>> well, do you think a republican president would ever overturn this policy?

>> you know, there’s a lot of things, as you have well described in your show. you don’t know what the other side will do for a political ploy. i think that there’s a very good chance a republican president could overturn this and there were people on the other side today saying just that. that just wait, when mitt romney is elected, we won’t have to worry about that, we will make things right. when in america is it right for a young person to not have their papers? when is it right for a dreamer not to dream?

>> well, one of the characters that we can certainly depend upon hearing from in these circumstances is sheriff joe arpaio. today he responded to the president’s announcement in arizona. listen to what he said.

>> we’re still going to enforce all those illegal immigration laws in this state. so if this is not a law, we won’t enforce it. it doesn’t mean i don’t fully agree with it. by the way, this is up to 30 years old, they’re not kids.

>> that is just remarkable. are you concerned that local law enforcers like joe arpaio won’t cooperate with homeland security?

>> i think you’re going to see community action. now the dreamers get to come out of the shadows. they get to come out and say we are here, you need to hear us. then your going to see people like me, who are born in america, who are u.s. citizens, who are voters. who are going to hold accountable these politicians and these sheriffs and these elected leaders who want to stand against us and make sure we do the right thing by making sure that we vote, make sure that we’re informed and make sure that there are repercussions for statements like you just heard.

>> all right, chuck, thank you so much for your time tonight.

>> thank you, michael.

>> remember to answer tonight’s question there at the bottom of the screen and share your thoughts on twitter @edshow. we want to know what you think.

Chuck Rocha gives a keynote at the closing plenary of the Netroots Nation Conference

chris — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 00:18:24 +0000

Chuck Rocha gives a keynote at the closing plenary of the Netroots Nation Conference 2012 in Providence, Rhode Island.

Netroots Nati

n Closing Plenary alongside Van Jones (Rebuild the Dream) and Benjamin Jealous (NAACP).

Chuck Rocha – Reviving the American Workforce

chris — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 23:50:37 +0000

The American Dream is the defining force that has propelled our great nation forward over these past few centuries. This Dream, howe

ver, can become a reality when built upon a stable bedrock. History has shown that when the American workforce is empowered, so too is the nation as a whole. We need to reinforce our nation’s bedrock so that we can continue to make the American Dream an attainable reality.

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