I love the growing list of betrayals of their base
which led to the Democratic defeat. My favorite is
the War on Crime and the denial of the vote to so
many black men in Florida. But this tale runs a
close second.
Carrol
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: on the American election - a query and a comment
Date: Mon, 27 Nov 2000 17:05:51 -0500
From: jonathan flanders <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To: "[EMAIL PROTECTED]" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> I think we need to fight on THIS level also, and not REDUCE
the issue to one of the undemocratic nature of the electoral college. <<
I agree. Didn't mean to bend the stick that far.
See below.
Jon Flanders
Gored in Miami
The Elián brigade rises again and strong-arms the Miami-Dade canvassing
board to halt the hand count that could put Al Gore in the White House.
By Myra MacPherson
Nov. 24, 2000 | Unfolding like a Greek tragedy, Al Gore's 11th-hour --
or
rather, 13th-hour -- bid for the White House is not without a horrible
irony for the vice president.
The Gore team this week deplored the Miami mob that shouted, screamed
and
nearly shoved through the door of a government building -- thus
succeeding
by intimidation in halting the Miami-Dade County canvassing board's
recount
of crucial votes. Losing that recount in a county where a majority of
the
votes were expected to be favorable to Gore may well cost him the
presidency.
But guess who was among that crowd drummed up by the Republicans? The
same
Cuban-Americans whom Gore had tried so hard to woo by pandering to them
over the fate of a little Cuban boy who washed up on Florida shores a
year
ago this week.
Remember back that far? Rather than risk Cuban-American animus or votes
--
a largely Republican vote to begin with -- Gore refused to support his
own
administration's position on the case. He would not say that the United
States had the legal and moral authority to return Elián González to his
father and, thus, Cuba, arguing instead that a state family court should
make the decision.
His statements backfired -- not only did they not attract the
anti-Castro
Cuban-American community to his banner, they alienated and enraged many
members of Gore's hardcore Democratic base of non-Hispanics in bitterly
divided South Florida. Some defected to Nader. Others sat out the
campaign
or voted halfheartedly rather than working to help elect him.
Was Gore haunted by that waffling past this week when -- faster than you
could say Elián -- Miami's Cuban-Americans answered the call from the
right
once more, this time dealing the vice president's candidacy what could
be a
mortal blow? They answered the call from the Republican Party, from the
staunchly Republican Spanish station Radio Mambi, from U.S. Reps. Ileana
Ros-Lehtenin and Lincoln Diaz Balart -- the one who gave Elián a puppy,
remember? They were asked to do what they do best -- protest, shout,
raise
a ruckus. Perhaps there were some leftover Elián signs they could have
dusted off and used in the name of freedom.
Though the counting officials caved, the Democrats didn't abandon their
fight. Former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo went on CNN to say that even
though
the Republicans can "bring in more thugs ... frighten them into
submission
the way they did in Miami-Dade," the Democrats would not give up the
recount battle. And they have indicated their intention to contest the
final vote tally from the county after the statewide election is
certified.
This sort of mob rule when it comes to anything related to Cuba is not
mystifying to Miamians. They witnessed it well before Elián, when
Cuban-American protesters marched, shouted obscenities and threw rocks
at
concert-goers who were simply trying to attend a performance by
musicians
visiting from Cuba. They have seen it when a museum exhibiting art from
Cuba was threatened by a bomb and one painting was purchased by a
Cuban-American for the sole privilege of burning it. They have seen it
whenever an attempt has been made to stop the embargo and normalize
relations with Cuba.
But to those unfamiliar with the local scene, the situation is hard to
understand. "It's unusual to see Republicans out there screaming and
shouting," burbled one mystified bloviator on TV.
This is not genteel Republicanism but the knock-down kind, borne of a
suspicion and hatred of the Democratic Party since the days of JFK and
the
Bay of Pigs fiasco. Although moderate and even Democratic voices have
been
heard in the Cuban-American community of late, the majority of the
exiles
and their families remain, since the days of their cold warrior hero
Ronald
Reagan, rabidly Republican.
And there are always enough to take to the streets and form an
impressive
crowd. The television pundit didn't get it. But then neither did Gore.
Until it was too late.
salon.com
