I have written posts on this humble public servant many times before. You can read more about Hilda Solis here, here, and here. After a relatively smooth confirmation hearing, Solis got hung up on some minor tax issues involving her husband’s small business. She crossed the final hurdle today and will be sworn in by Vice President Biden.

Congresswoman Vazquez, current chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, offered this statement today in a press release about the Solis confirmation:

“As a Member of Congress, Hilda Solis has been an advocate in labor and environmental issues, and a trailblazer in healthcare and women’s issues.  Her confirmation as our nation’s 25th Secretary of Labor is a moment of pride for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and Latinos across the country,” said Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, Chair of the CHC.  “The influence of the Latino community continues to grow, and today, Hilda Solis helps pave the way for generations of Latinos to come.”

Congrats Secretary of Labor Solis! You persevered and endured. We look forward to your service and continued commitment to your community and all working Americans.

• In other news, Hilda Solis has cleared the committee vote in her nomination for Secretary of Labor. Senators Roberts (R-Kansas) and Coburn (R-Oklahoma) voted no in committee. Now the nomination will go to the full Senate for a vote (hopefully today or tomorrow). The folks at the Coconut Caucus have a funny blog post about a conference call organized yesterday morning by the Latino leadership organizations who are pushing for this confirmation. I listened to most of the call, and I do wish that the Latino orgs had better coordinated with other pro-Solis interest groups. Emily’s List created a petition for people to sign to support Solis last week, and the unions are supportive of this nomination as well. It bodes better for Latino organizations to stand in a coalition in pushing for this nomination in my view. I do know that there are Asian and African-American group members who have expressed support for Solis as well. Hopefully, next time there is more coordination since we have known about the hold up on this confirmation for a little while now.
• Here’s a good summary post about the latest and greatest from Mayor Villaraigosa. Just yesterday, he responded to some questions from the LA Times about his plans. You might want to check it out. Yesterday, he was also in DC lobbying for stimulus funds.

• Panel to Vote on Solis Nomination (Today!): I did like this article in the San Francisco Chronicle discussing how Solis’s support for the enforcement of workplace standards could lessen the likelihood of employers using undocumented workers. However, USA Today is reporting some old tax liens on her husband’s business. I think that she will be confirmed because these tax issues are relatively minor compared to those of Tom Daschle, and Ms. Solis is not a partner in her husband’s business.
• Think Latinos are ambivalent about immigration? A commentary refuting this piece from a few days earlier about where immigration reform ranks on the policy agenda for Latinos.

Calls for immigration reform under Obama - Looks like the Congressional Hispanic Caucus has already sent a letter to President Obama to request a meeting to discuss the issue. Will the CHC follow a strategic approach as outlined by Seneca in the previous post?

Salazar cites ethical lapses at Interior Dept. - “This department has suffered because of ethical lapses and criminal activity at the highest level.” Sounds like Secretary Salazar has his work cut out for him.

Private, political histories loom over House race - With CA State Senator Gloria Romero having said that she’s not interested in Hilda Solis’s former congressional seat, we are left with Judy Chu and Gil Cedillo. Chu already has key labor endorsements, but many were hoping that a Latino would replace Congresswoman Solis. Note the bad blood between Gil Cedillo and LA Mayor Villaraigosa.

What would you, as a reader of LatinoPoliticsBlog, like to see us cover in the coming days? Drop links and give us some ideas in the comments!

For Latinos, Comprehensive Immigration Reform has been bandied around as the primordial theme in the Latino agenda as noted in the Latino State of the Union yesterday, which is expected to be positively addressed by President Obama. The fact remains that during the rugged campaign, immigration was patently avoided by both candidates. Hence, there is no electoral mandate to obtain comprehensive immigration reform legislation. However, among some Latino advocacy circles like the National Council of La Raza, the LULAC and MALDEF, immigration reform is being pronounced as a top priority and signaling the Obama team that they must resolve or seek legislation to alleviate the undocumented peoples’ plight . It should be pointed out that the two other significant and somewhat empowered groups of Latinos: the Puerto Ricans and the Cuban-Americans do not have an immigration issue as such. Both groups view immigration not an immediate concern: the Puerto Ricans are born U.S. citizens and the Cubans are paroled into the U.S. once they touch dry land. Hence, both have no employment issue for their newly arrived migrants or exiles. Mexican nationals in the US, along with numerous Central Americans, are the most anxious to see some movement on the immigration reform front. Mexican-Americans also are sensitive to the issue, but no overwhelming consensus on immigration exists among these Mexican Americans. They, along with other Latinos, often fret over the immigration debate becoming an anti-immigrant and ultimately anti-Latino. The California Latinos saw this happen in 1994 with the propositions to limit or deny services to the undocumented. Thus, it can be readily concluded that the Latino community as a whole may hold different views and priorities in the Latino agenda.

Most voting Latinos appear to be more interested in Obama tackling the current economic crisis, as evidenced by the most recent Pew Hispanic Center survey. It is considered the most menacing crisis since the Great Depression. Jobs, housing, education and health services are all being affected significantly by the crisis. The immigration reform goal is also on the radar, but according to several surveys, it is not the primary issue that is viewed as indispensable for immediate consideration. There is in fact a reasonable national consensus among all sectors of American society that immigration reform must be addressed and resolved. No one who is rational in thinking about or discussing the issue can seek to ignore or obstruct reform, but it is most difficult to see it as a top national priority in the first year of the new Administration. Obama, who during the transition period after the election, has amply demonstrated his pragmatic and middle of the road approach to national problem solving will not commit the same error the Clintons did in attempting early on to pass health reform. Health care, like immigration, is indeed a fundamental goal for this administration. But both involve and require enormous political capital, which will have to be safe guarded to ensure that it is available for addressing the burgeoning budget, massive economic infrastructure programs, jobs creation, and bailing out the automotive and banking sectors. Immigration, as vividly demonstrated almost three years ago in the last round of attempts to get legislation passed, evoked a glandular reaction from the ‘racist nativists’ and an enormous discomfort in many other areas of the economy. Now with the dire economic conditions of the country it suggests that any reform effort to address effectively the almost 12 million undocumented residents in the U.S will provoke a boisterous, sectarian, anti-immigrant backlash in the country. Regularizing (granting permission to work and reside in the US) these hopeful would-be-immigrants will be tantamount to some perceptions of amnesty. Admittedly, to introduce or officially recognize several million new workers under the circumstances would be politically harrowing. This involves officially welcoming several million new workers into an economy which at best is ailing. Therefore, one would require extraordinary political bravery or recklessness if it means jeopardizing other priorities on the Obama agenda.

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the Latino Advocacy groups like LULAC, MALDEF and NCLR must quickly strategize and meet with the Congressional and administrative leadership to determine the timelines, evaluate the political costs, the horse-trading involved, and be certain that before launching an all out national political effort there is a preliminary nose-count to ascertain the viability of legislative approval of any reform proposal. The Obama Administration will correctly address the economic priority, simultaneously the burning foreign policy issues like extricating ourselves from Iraq and continuing the efforts in Afghanistan will require enormous blood, sweat, tears and toil. In sum, Obama and his team will be most circumspect on when and how to introduce the immigration reform proposals. It will behoove the Latino leadership to assess and gauge the immigration reform efforts. Other items in the Latino agenda like housing, education, health, job opportunity and basic human needs will be included in the overall treatment of the economy. Latin America, as a foreign policy issue and a Latino priority, does not appear to be evident. Opportunities for Latinos in federal employment (civilan or military) also are not readily perceived. It remains to be seen who among the Latinos in Congress who will bear the torch on these issues. Luis Gutierrez, a Puerto Rican legislator from Illinois, has been the standard bearer on immigration. Senator Bob Menendez (a Cuban-American Democrat) has invariably sought to ensure that the State Department recruits and promotes Latinos.

Will someone like Silvestre Reyes, Loretta Sanchez or Solomon Ortiz, all senior members of the House Armed Services Committee, seek to lead the efforts to have more Latino general officers selected and promoted? Does Nydia Velazquez, as Chairwoman of the Small Business Committee, become an all encompassing and forceful factor in driving or leading Latino efforts to guide Latino small businessmen to more attractive government help in grants and loans? Also will Nydia Velazquez, as head of the Hispanic Caucus, organize and strategize the Hispanic/Latino Agenda with other Congresspersons to ensure that the Administration does not forsake its Latino constituency? Perhaps more interesting does Congressman Jose Serrano from his perch as Chair of the Subcommittee on Financial Services of the Appropriations Committee lookout for the Latino agenda in terms of lending or mortgages? Does Loretta Sanchez, as second ranking majority member of the Homeland Security Committee, oversee and moderate the heavy-handed behavior of DHS/ICE’s persecution of illegal foreign workers in job-sites? Will Joe Baca, as chair of the Agriculture Committee’s Sub-committee on Oversight and Nutrition, use his position to advance the Latino agenda’s possible concern with adequate nutrition? Do Hinojosa, Grijalva and Linda Sanchez all members of the Committee on Education and Labor dwell on the pending Latino concerns on education and perhaps take the lead on the Dream Act? And will they regularly meet with new Labor Secretary Hilda Solis to advance Latino labor issues? Perhaps Representative Nydia Velazquez can set up periodic (monthly) meetings with both Labor Secretary Solis and Interior Secretary Salazar to review the bidding on the Latino Agenda and help identify up-and-coming young Latinos among the political and career ranks of the federal bureaucracy. Does the Congressional Hispanic Caucus schedule quarterly meetings with the Latin American diplomatic corps to learn about the region’s problems, needs and desires? Does the Caucus get an initial meeting with Secretary of State Clinton and DoD Secretary Bob Gates to raise issues of policy concern not just in Latin America? Personnel issues should be on the agenda in these meetings. Formulating talking points ahead of time by the appropriate staffers for these meetings would demonstrate seriousness of purpose. Perhaps in the spirit of bi-partisanship, the Caucus should invite and meet with the Republican Latino members like Illeana Ros-Lehtinen, the ranking minority member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Lincoln Diaz-Balart, the ranking minority member on Rules Committee. Moving the over-all Latino Agenda will be challenging but focus, unity of purpose and excellent organization are imperative to success. The focus of this and several other blogs is to keep tabs and make our elected representatives more accountable.

The buzz in the Mexican press is that Frederico Peña will be named US Ambassador to Mexico. Peña, another Texas-born achiever, was formerly mayor of Denver and occupied two cabinet positions in the Clinton Administration: Energy and Transportation. Perhaps that is why he has dropped from sight and receded to the background during this transition period: he already had secured his hueso. Peña certainly has the stature which pleases the Mexicans; now they appear to wonder how good is his Spanish speaking ability.

Lastly, one disconcerting note:  increasingly there are sotto voce comments about the divisiveness in the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. It is commented that one California Latino Congressman is actively seeking to torpedo his fellow Congresswoman, Hilda Solis as Secretary of Labor. In fact, it is reported that he has gone as far as seeking support among the Texas Latino delegation to help scuttle the nomination. If this is true, it will only serve to demonstrate the immaturity, unprofessionalism, pettiness and certainly the lack of unity among the Latino political leadership. This ugly and deplorable incident would only serve to convince outsiders that we Latinos are not ready for prime time. Admittedly, the California Latino (Mexican-American) delegation appears to have this chronic problem. Among the Texas, New Mexico, New York, and the Arizona Latino Congressional delegations, this type of behavior has happily not been detected. Besides California, only Florida has experienced such vindictiveness among its Latino (Cuban-American) Congressional delegation. It manifested itself with a smattering of jealousy and resentment. This was most apparent when HUD Secretary Mel Martinez, reportedly tapped by Karl Rove, ran successfully in the GOP primaries some years ago for the Senate. Both Washington DC and Florida were riven with gossip about how the Diaz-Balart Congressional brothers did not support Martinez in the primary and seriously wanted Mel defeated; much animosity was detected. If this behavior persists or reoccurs, it will weaken and badly tarnish the National Latino/Hispanic political leadership. Plainly, it would render the Latino presence at the national level as ineffective and unimportant. The challenge is for the Latino community to foster and develop some semblance of adult supervision for such behavior.

H/T to MediaCritiques.com for the Richardson cartoon

At the UN, Richardson had a rap for not really preparing for his brief and winging it. This may have been the career foreign service just grousing over his style since there was never any egregious act or omission cited as evidence of deficiency or neglect. In fact, he was well-liked and viewed as being effective by the other member countries’ diplomats. The betting is that there is probably nothing substantively gone awry in this latest development, but the optic of conflict of interest in the wake of Governor Blagojevich’s scandal is enough to have forced him to withdraw his name for nomination to be Secretary of Commerce.

The fact remains that Bill Richardson has been one of seven Hispanics to have ever been named to the Cabinet in history. He was both UN Ambassador and Energy Secretary under Clinton, yet this does not minimize the deep regret felt among many Latino circles. Richardson has been the numero uno among national Latino political leaders in recent years. His anticipated presence in Washington was widely regarded as him becoming the official Alpha-dog in the Latino community. This now has been snuffed out and reminds one of Henry Cisneros’ political demise, which in his case was riven with high-drama personal scandal. Cisneros too greatly disappointed the Latino community. The new Latino cabinet members Ken Salazar and Hilda Solis come with regional or local stature, not the national one that Richardson represents. Therefore, it remains to be seen if either or both will acquire national presence and more importantly have the ‘power of convocation’ (poder de convocatoria as we say in Spanish).

With no Mexican American in the Senate now that Salazar is going to Interior and the only Latino Governor (Richardson) seriously wounded, the need for more activist Latino leadership would be most welcome. GOP Senator Mel Martinez announced that he is not running for re-election, and this has rendered him less than effective. This leaves Bob Menendez of New Jersey as the principal Latino torch bearer in the Senate, a role he can handle extremely well. In the House, Nydia Velazquez of New York will be the new  Congressional Hispanic Caucus honcho. However, she lacks national presence but is viewed as a ‘live firecracker’ in political circles and potentially an ‘unguided missile.’ Let us see how seriously she is taken. Silvestre Reyes will again be the only Latino in Congress chairing a full committee, a most influential one at that: the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

In terms of the Latino agenda, specifically the possibility (remote) of Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) legislation, the obvious Latino lead on this has been interestingly enough not a Mexican American, but the Puerto Rican Congressman from Chicago, Luis Gutierrez. Congressman Gutierrez has been the most vocal advocate in the House on this issue. The interesting fact with Gutierrez is that immigration is not a driving issue among Puerto Ricans, as a whole, since they are born US citizens. Lastly and again, the latest Latino star, Bill Richardson, a truly affable human being, with a brilliant and astute political nose, and the self-confidence and demeanor of a world statesman, has had to remove himself from further national public office. As the Latino community prepares to welcome the Obama Administration, it will sorely feel the absence of Governor Richardson. One can already sense the hurt among the Latino community’s enthusiastic young aspiring leadership. It now remains to be seen where and how many and who of the young Latino Obamistas will get second and third tier or even fourth tier (assistant secretary level) appointments. This will help institutionalize the Latino presence in the federal bureaucracy as well as recast its prior focus, yet the absence of the Gran Jefe Bill Richardson as a guide and mentor will definitely be felt, a political tragedy for the Latino community.

Photo Credit: AP, Bill Richardson meeting with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez

The NY Times had a decent opinion piece from a few days ago about the labor agenda in the next administration. Essentially, Hilda Solis will have a unique opportunity to make good on some of President-Elect Obama’s promises to working families. The Employee Free Choice Act is one piece of legislation that Solis has been supportive of, which would allow workers to more easily unionize.  

This particular part of the editorial struck me:

“The argument against unions — that they unduly burden employers with unreasonable demands — is one that corporate America makes in good times and bad, so the recession by itself is not an excuse to avoid pushing the bill next year. The real issue is whether enhanced unionizing would worsen the recession, and there is no evidence that it would.

There is a strong argument that the slack labor market of a recession actually makes unions all the more important. Without a united front, workers will have even less bargaining power in the recession than they had during the growth years of this decade, when they largely failed to get raises even as productivity and profits soared. If pay continues to lag, it will only prolong the downturn by inhibiting spending.”

Blogger Ezra Klein also referenced this part of the article, and further expounded the following:

“I’d only add that the last great leap forward for unions was during World War II, and the last great expansion of the American middle class followed in its aftermath. In contrast, the most recent expansions — which have largely occurred in the absence of unions — have benefited America’s rich.”

Increased worker productivity since the Reagan years has not corresponded with increased worker’s wages, while CEO and executive pay has gone through the roof. Unionization also balances corporate power. Solis, coming from a union family, which enabled her to earn a college education understands this.

I should also note that Senator Kennedy, who has honored Rep. Solis with a Profile in Courage Award in 2000, has already schedule the confirmation hearing for the Secretary of Labor nominee. Senator Kennedy also released the following statement regarding Hilda Solis today:

“She’s a tireless champion for working families. She understands the struggles that millions of Americans are facing, and she’ll be an invaluable asset to President Obama in protecting workers’ rights and restoring economic opportunity. I look forward very much to working with her on these critical issues in her new position.”

Due to their immigration status, thousands (in excess of 60,000) of high school graduates across the country have not been able to take advantage of the opportunities that make a higher education a possibility. In-state tuition rates, private scholarships, state and federal grants and loans, the ability to work in order to support themselves and pay for college are all denied to these young people, who came to our country as children and have been living here and attending school without immigration status.

The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, also called the DREAM Act, is a proposal for federal legislation that attempts to address the federal barriers to both education and work for undocumented young immigrant students. The House version (HR 1275) was introduced on March 2007 by Howard Berman (D-CA). As of 2007,  it is cosponsored by  Rep. Rubén Hinojosa (D-TX), Rep. Silvestre Reyes (D-TX), Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Rep. Solomon Ortiz (D-TX), Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY), Rep. Kathy Castor (D-FL), Rep. Charles Gonzalez (D-TX), Rep. Hilda Solis (D-CA), Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-CA), Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Rep. José Serrano (D-NY), Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA), Rep. Joe Baca (D-CA), Rep. Albio Sires (D-NJ), Rep. Luis Gutiérrez (D-IL), Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL), Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) plus 67 other Democrats and 1 more Republican. The question raised is:  Will these same sponsors, especially the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, in the House stay the course in carrying the bill to final approval?

The Senate version was introduced earlier this year by Richard Durbin (D-IL), Chuck Hagel (R-NE), and Richard Lugar (R-IN). The legislation would restore states’ rights to offer in-state tuition to immigrant students residing in their state and ultimately provide a path to citizenship for those who qualify. The students must be of sound moral character, have graduated from a school in the US or have obtained a GED, have been here continuously for at least five years and be 12-30 years old prior to the bill’s enactment. The students would obtain temporary residency for a period of six years, during which they must attend college, earn a two year degree or complete two years of a four year college career, or serve in the military for two years. The immigrant students could not receive federal higher education grants, but they would be able to apply for student loans and work study. Once the six year temporary period was over, the student who has completed one of the educational or military service requirements would be eligible to apply for permanent residency, if he/she does not meet the requirements, their temporary residence would be revoked and they would be subject to deportation. Several versions of the bill have been introduced in both houses of Congress, although the House has never brought it to the floor alone. In order to bring forth the DREAM Act for debate in the Senate, a vote was scheduled on October 24 that would require a “filibuster proof” count of 60 yes votes. That day on the floor of the Senate, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) , who previously opposes consideration of the DREAM Act, announced that she and Sen. Durbin would work to make changes that she felt were necessary to gain Republican support for the proposed legislation. It was announced that if the debate of the DREAM Act was allowed, the bill would be rewritten in favor of Sen. Hutchison’s suggestions, which included that students should be allowed to hold a temporary student visa with a renewable work permit instead of conditional permanent residency. By a very small number of votes, the Senate rejected an attempt to begin the debate on The DREAM Act proposal, which would have offered an opportunity to the thousands of young undocumented immigrant students an opportunity to pursue higher education and an option to resolve their current lack of immigration status. The DREAM Act obtained 52 votes in favor, falling eight votes short of the 60 needed. Senate rules require a super majority of 60 votes to advance most bills. President-Elect Obama  released the following statement on the Senate’s failure to move forward to consider the DREAM Act (S.2205):

“We need comprehensive immigration reform in this country – reform that promotes our national and economic security and creates a pathway to earned citizenship for the 12 million undocumented immigrants in this country. We should not punish undocumented children who were brought to this country illegally through no choice of their own by keeping them in the shadows. The DREAM Act would have given these young people the opportunity to earn a degree or serve in our military, and eventually become legalized citizens. Failing to pass the DREAM Act only compounds the immigration crisis by continuing to drive thousands of young people every year into hiding.

Today is another missed opportunity in the battle to solve the immigration crisis in this country. The immigration debate has been wrought with the politics of division and fear, and been exploited by some politicians, blocking the real reform we need. Today’s vote proves that we need to do more to transcend these divisions – especially to provide solutions to help the most vulnerable in our society. I will continue to work with Senators Durbin, Hagel, Lugar and Kennedy on this issue, and will fight to bring this legislation back for another vote as soon as possible.”

Clearly, plenty will be on the new President’s agenda this coming year. But one hopes that this important legislation is not jettisoned for budgetary reasons or biased rejection of granting immigrant youth any chance for educational improvement or the lassitude of our Latino congressional members.  

Note: You can exercise your on-line activism by voting to make The DREAM Act one of the top priorities for the next administration at Change.org. You can also get involved at DreamACTivist.org.