Yes, they are! No, they are not!

An article appeared today on TheHill.com entitled "Sensing Cuba shift, Democrats target trio of House Republicans in Florida."

I thought "oh, brother here we go again." The news media, in particular the Miami Herald has been trying to sell us the story of the eroding support for the Republican party among Cuban-Americans. I thought this was going to be another such piece. In reality it was a pretty fair assessment of the situation. I guess it comes for The Hill's need to truly discern for its readers what's what in politics, rather than trying to promote some wishful thinking in the hopes that comes true some day. As such the reporter was a little more cautious of painting a rosy picture for the donkey party.

The difference between real journalism and propaganda is often subtle. But here's some examples of how The Hill's reporter, Ian Swanson, keeps the report honest:

A battle between the two well-known Miami politicians [Raul Martinez and Lincoln Diaz-Balart] would also test the claim by Florida Democrats that the political climate in Miami’s Cuban-American community is changing.

The following is what you would call balance:

Miami-Dade County Democratic Party Chairman Joe Garcia and other Miami Democrats insist the hard-line approach to Cuba taken by Diaz-Balart is wearing thin, while GOP strategists say those policies remain popular.

Here's some more about the Garcia strategy to use travel restrictions as a wedge issue:

“I think a lot of people are very dissatisfied within the community,” Garcia said.

Others, however, question how much of an issue the travel restrictions really are in Miami. Robert Muse, a Washington attorney who has navigated the rules of Cuba visits, doubts the restrictions have had a meaningful impact. “There is no record of a single action taken against a Cuban-American traveling to Cuba in violation of these regulations,” he said.

In the end, the proof of the pudding will be in the ballot box. We shall see.

Posted by Henry Louis Gomez at October 18, 2007 06:37 PM

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