In Total Disagreement With El Diario La Prensa By Senator Reverend Ruben Diaz

One more time, I need to take the opportunity to express my disagreement with El Diario la Prensa "the champion of the Hispanic community" and its editorial of Sunday, November 30, 2008.

In its struggle to motivate the Hispanic people to continue to be Democrats and its commitment to maintain a Democratic majority in the State Senate, El Diario la Prensa has written a negative editorial about the Republican Party. In its editorial, El Diario la Prensa said," Last year, when it came to a policy that would have allowed undocumented persons to access a driver’s license, it was mostly Republican fear-mongering that killed that initiative."

El Diario la Prensa is less than forthright by blaming the Republicans for this failed legislation. The reality of the matter is that we, the Hispanic legislators, came with an agreement with the Democratic Governor Eliot Spitzer and we obtained a commitment from the Governor to issue undocumented immigrants drivers licenses in New York State.

Governor Eliot Spitzer, together with all of us legislators, called a news conference to announce this achievement. After everything was ironed out and after the press conference, it was the Democratic United States Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton who opposed this legislative initiative claiming that because she was running for US President, it would hurt her chances to win. It was Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party who were the ones who forced Governor Eliot Spitzer to retract and give an about face to the promise he had given us.

It was I, the only Democratic legislator, to criticize the Governor about his retraction – I called him a chicken and a traitor. I don’t remember El Diario la Prensa ever criticizing the Governor for going back on his word.

Therefore, ladies and gentlemen of El Diario la Prensa, our Hispanic community will do better and go forward the day that we hold the Democratic Party accountable to its promise and commitment to us. After all, it is the Democratic Party who always gets our votes and support – not the Republicans.

I am a Democrat. But I will always tell our people about the ones who hurt us and the ones who always take us for granted. Yes, ladies and gentlemen of El Diario la Prensa, I am in total disagreement with El Diario la Prensa’s editorial which tries to blame the Republicans for the sins of the Democrats.

Furthermore, it is the Democratic Governor David Paterson, the one who is trying to cut the services to our needy and minority communities. It is David Paterson, a Democratic Governor who is trying to cut services to senior citizens and cut the Medicare for poor people. He wants to increase tuition for our young people. He is cutting money for our children’s education in public schools, and it is he who wants to close the hospitals in our communities. These cuts presented by the Democratic Governor are being supported by State Senator Malcolm Smith who is in line to become the Senate Majority Leader in New York State.

I ask myself, Why is it that El Diario la Prensa hides these facts? How come El Diario la Prensa does not inform our community about the abuses and this disrespect toward us? It may be that this happens because they want to see gay marriage become a reality? I don’t know. Who knows?