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Another article in today's Miami Herald expresses the continued desire for Republicans to scare and divide the South Florida community.
On Thursday, those stances prompted the Independent Venezuelan American Citizens and 18 graduates of Garcia's old high school in Miami — several with Republican ties — to call on him to ''renounce'' Rangel's support. Outraged Cuban Americans have also been blasting the two men's connection on Spanish-language radio and blogs.
''We want to alert Joe that he's making a mistake,'' said Ernesto Ackerman, president of the non-partisan Venezuelan group. “If you're in a community with a majority of Latin Americans, you have to think about who your allies are going to be.''
Garcia, who is Cuban-American, says he has ''profound disagreements'' with Rangel on foreign policy, but notes that Rangel, who chairs the influential House Ways and Means Committee, could be a key ally in securing federal dollars for the district.
''My job in Congress will be to represent Florida's 25th congressional district — the most poorly federally funded district in Florida — on revitalizing our economy, bringing better jobs to our community, improving education for our children and providing tax relief for middle-class families,'' Garcia said in a statement. 'My history of fighting on behalf of human rights in Cuba and Latin America exceeds my opponent's limited `one-note' accomplishments.''
We need to stand up with Joe and say enough is enough of these tactics.
In South Florida, Mario Diaz-Balart has decided to use fear-mongering and redbaiting tactics against Joe Garcia to scare up votes. Tell Diaz-Balart and the Republicans to stop.
In 2004, the RNCC sent out fliers calling John Kerry a friend of Castro and a communist. Now they're back at the attacks again, this time aimed at Joe Garcia who's taking on Bush rubberstamp Mario Diaz-Balart in the 25th district for Congress. First the Diaz-Balarts called him a Castro-sympathizer, then they called him a communist on talk radio shows, now they're calling Charlie Rangel and Joe Garcia “left-wing extremists” in the Miami Herald. Diaz-Balart said Rep. Charlie Rangel, Chair of the important Ways and Means Committee who decides if money should go to the district is “appeasing our nation's enemies. Left-wing birds of a feather, tax and spend together.” With these statements, Diaz-Balart has jeapordized the entire district's ability to receive important money from Washington, all so he could get a few votes. This is the kind of partisanship that prevents progress, that we need to end in Washington.
We need to help fight back for Joe and tell the Republicans that enough is enough. We won't let them scare up votes this time and distract the real attention away from Diaz-Balart's poor performance for the district, including his votes for more war in Iraq, calling the SCHIP children's health care program an “attack on the Cuban American community”, and his failure to protect the Everglades or revitalize the economy.
We know who will really bring freedom to Cuba. Joe was a leader of the Exodus Project and has spent his entire life on work reuniting Cuban families and fighting for Democracy. He opposed the Bush/Diaz-Balart restrictions on family remittances and he wants to allow Cuban families to have the power to bring about real change by making sure funds meant to help them establish Democracy in Cuba actually reach them instead of partisan interest groups in Washington.
Please sign the petition, pass it on, and take a stand. This time we will be united for change.