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The Reporters: US mid-terms

All entries by this reporter: Lourdes Heredia

Parties' parties


D-Day is getting close and I can feel the ghosts of 2004 swirling around me.

On the night of those elections - 2 November 2004 - I was at headquarters. Some of my friends asked me how I decided which party's party to go to.

body_ap203.jpgI told them it was a gut feeling, but I was lying. (Sorry!) After two years I can admit that I made the decision after attending the parties' conventions.

The electoral machinery of the Republicans impressed me. I conducted 60 hours of interviews at their convention, and when I reviewed my tape, I heard the same message from every interviewee.

It did not matter what position they held, nor did my questions matter. Like a tape recorder, they gave me the same answer over and over again.

The , on the other hand, were more willing to debate. Each one had their point of view and they were much more open to the press.

A silly example, but one which shows the difference: I was invited to go to any party at the Democratic convention, but with the Republicans I had problems getting access even to the 鈥淗ispanic party鈥 - the Republicans were apparently much more concerned about what might be said in unguarded conversations.

Comparing the way the two parties went about dealing with the press - getting out their message - I sensed Republican headquarters was going to be the place to be on election night.

(I am not trying to say what is good or what is bad, I am just pointing out a difference of tactics.)

That night (it was actually early morning) I ended up walking around the White House. I knew I was going to go back to London and was thinking of the new life ahead of me.

The police kept a very close eye on me, so I ended up sitting in just in front of the White House. Some guy came and sat next to me. After a while he said: 鈥淒on鈥檛 worry, not much will change鈥.

With this Election Day so close that鈥檚 exactly how I feel. Will there be a really big change if the Democrats win control of Congress?

This time I find myself wondering: 鈥淲hat's next?鈥 And I feel lucky that I don鈥檛 have to choose a 鈥減arty鈥 to go to.

Changing times


How things have changed since 2004! Iraq was used to win the elections that year. Has it become a liability today?

nineparts203.jpgI feel the new mood everywhere. Last weekend, for example, I saw Heather Raffo's amazing, exquisite one-woman play .

It is the story of different women in Iraq during the first Gulf War, during Saddam's regime and of course, during the actual conflict. It shows the human suffering caused by the war and it has some criticism of the .

I was sitting next to a Mr and Mrs Smith - season ticket holders who said they knew nothing about the play.

When the play ended, half of the audience or more stood up to give a long ovation to the actress. Mr and Mrs Smith stayed in their seats.

Mrs Smith praised the actress's "incredible energy", but added that she did not like the criticism of her president. Her husband found it a little "over the top" to compare the suffering of the women during the Saddam Hussein regime with the suffering of women during this war.

But, even if they didn't like the "message", Mr and Mrs Smith did not walk out on the performance.

Does that mean that they changed their mind? Will the play affect their vote?

I don't know, but what I do know is that the Smiths, like other Americans I know, are discussing Iraq much more now than before. Two years ago, debating the war was considered unpatriotic.

Today, they are at least willing to ask questions about the situation in Iraq.

Don't fence me in


Immigration stirs so many emotions that it is hard to have a constructive debate about it - just ask , who had a special programme last night on CNN.

nogales_getty203b.jpgIt is so controversial that it divides the members of the same party, so it should be no surprise that Congress was unable to come up with a compromise after studying immigration reform for five years.

Hours before Congress closed up shop so lawmakers could focus on getting re-elected, they approved the "", a law which President George W Bush signed today.

Some say that he waited to sign it until just days before the elections - an effort to change the focus from Iraq to security, in order to benefit the Republicans. But I am not sure that changing the debate to immigration will benefit anyone in these elections.

As I wrote in a previous post, this "secure fence act" has been called an "eggshell" law by some experts because they consider it hollow. It does not include enough funds to construct the fence, which will cover only one-third of the Mexican border - and none of the Canadian border.

Some readers said that was irrelevant.

"Why should it include a fence along the Canadian border? Illegal immigration from Canada is simply not a problem," JNG wrote.

Cruzer, another reader, also said there was no need for a fence in the north: "My dear, we don't have 12 million Canadians working in the kitchen."

Well, then, don't you think they should call this law the "Anti-Illegal Immigration Act" rather than the "Secure Fence Act"?

Whatever side you take in the debate, something does have to be done about immigration.

It has to be done for the people who feel their country - and its expensive social services - are being overwhelmed by illegal immigrants.

It has to be done for the people who live in the shadows, who are human beings and not "illegal aliens" as if they were from another planet.

It is such a complex, deep, emotional problem, that I just wish politicians would not use it in their campaigns. Why don't they use the energy they are spending now on the campaign to come up with reforms in immigration?

Latino surprise


Making assumptions can be dangerous. Recently I made a big one and it was a Hispanic student, Lorena, who told me how wrong I was.

I asked her how the heated would affect her vote - and got an earful in response.

"I am fed up with stereotypes. I do not care a bit about immigration issues. I am a US citizen and I am very proud to be here.

usmigrants203ap.JPG"I don't care too much about one law or the other. That wouldn't change my life or my family鈥檚 opportunities. I am a second-generation [American] and frankly, I might feel sympathy for the [new immigrants] who are struggling, but鈥 not really," she said.

Like many other voters, Lorena is more concerned about stuff that affects her everyday life. She doesn't like the anti-immigrant rhetoric and wouldn't vote for representative or a senator who says she, or her parents, do not have the right to be here.

But when she chooses her candidate it is more about "bread-and-butter" issues. Is she going to be able to get a proper education? Are her parents going to have a good health insurance when they're old? Are her kids going to be able to go to school and be safe?

According to the last research conducted by the , the Hispanic share of the total US electorate is expected to grow this year to 8.6%, compared to 8.2% in 2004 and 7.4% in 2000.

That means this year there will be between 10 and 12 million registered Hispanic voters 鈥 more than enough to make a difference in the election (and if you have any doubts, just ask .)

Many Hispanics are swing voters, so both parties have to try to attract them 鈥 but neither party should think immigration will be the issue that will swing the Latino vote their way.

Devil in the detail


President Bush said today that "you cannot kick 12 million people out of your country", at a ceremony celebrating the . He was referring to the 12 million illegal immigrants, mainly Latin Americans, who already live in the US. As he soaked up the applause, I wondered if no-one realised that Congress has the last word on immigration policy.

farmers203.jpgIt is pretty clear that legislators believe tough immigration policy will get them votes, judging by the last-minute law they approved, authorising construction of a 700-mile fence on the US-Mexico border.

By the way, the , has been called the "eggshell" law by some experts because they consider it hollow - it does not include a fence on the Canadian border or appropriate the money to build one. Nor have legislators resolved the long debate over what to do about people without papers already living here.

"We must remember that in order to secure our borders, in order that we fulfil our heritage, immigration reform has to be comprehensive in nature", said Mr Bush. After his speech, the president listened patiently, next to the Spain's , to some romantic music in Spanish.

As I listened to the singer's words, "Besame, besame mucho" (kiss me, kiss me for a long time), I could only feel that the political strategists are right to think that voters do not care too much about details.

The immigrant vote


President Bush has just signed a that includes the funding needed to build several hundred kilometres of fence along the Mexican border.

fence_afp.jpgThe Democrats insist the Republicans are using the immigration issue to win votes, but the bill to build the fence was voted through by two thirds of the Senate, including senators from the Democratic Party. One of the Latino senators told me they have to "protect" the vote of the constituency. So, who can accuse Mr Bush of playing politics now?

The problem is that both parties have long-promised to do something about illegal immigration; that not only affects the conservative base of the Republican Party, but also the Latino community living legally in the US. For them, as surveys show, immigration is the most important issue facing this country.

They might not be a majority right now, but they have lots of power in key states. In California alone there are a million US-born children of immigrants aged 18-24 who, if mobilised, could change the course of the 2006 mid-term elections. Something to think about it, isn't it?

About Lourdes Heredia


I've worked for the 大象传媒 since 1997, and, amongst other things, I was the bilingual reporter in Buenos Aires during the build-up to the Argentine economic crisis that consumed four presidents in less than a month.

I was born in Mexico, but earned a degree in communications in Japan and then later lived in Spain, where I gained a masters degree in law.

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