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Bustamante: Racial Discrimination Behind Criticism of Indian Tribe Donations
Speaks Out on Immigration, the Republican “enemy,” and his Relationship with Governor Gray Davis
“I could win solely with the votes of the immigrant communities.”
Sacramento, CA -- In an exclusive 30-minute interview this week with Univision’s Sacramento station (KUVS-TV, channel 19), California Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante suggested that some of the criticism directed at him for taking millions of dollars in campaign contributions from Indian tribes with gaming interests has been motivated by racial discrimination.
“No one is asking me how much money I get from the Latino community, or from African-Americans, or from people in the Jewish community, or any other group,” said Bustamante. “No one else, just the indigenous tribal governments. Why is that?” When asked if he saw this as racial discrimination, Bustamante responded: “Well, that’s how it is, I think, sometimes. And I believe we need leaders who can unite, not divide, people.”
Bustamante made his comments during a wide-ranging interview, conducted mainly in Spanish, with Univision political reporter Xochitl Arellano. The candidate talked at length about illegal immigration, his Republican “enemies” in the October 7th recall election, and his strained relations with Governor Gray Davis.
“It’s up, it’s down,” said Bustamante about his relationship with Davis. “But we’re in a campaign. We’re in a situation where we’re fighting against the Republicans, we’re not fighting within the family… Married people have [difficult moments] too.” Bustamante played down most substantive differences when asked how he would differ as governor from Davis, answering: “Well, style, I think. I don’t think [I would govern differently on] many issues, but I have my own emphasis.”
The Lieutenant Governor had strong words for his Republican opponents in the recall race. “People who are on the ballot - people like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tom McClintock - want Proposition 187 once again. They don’t want driver’s licenses for immigrants. They are against food. They are against access to colleges and access to schools. They are against the opportunity to organize labor unions. They are against so many of the values we have in our community. I think it’s important to see who the enemy is… It’s the Republican legislators, candidates, and officials who say that they don’t want to solve our community’s problems. That they don’t want children to go to school. That they don’t want driver’s licenses. All of those are Republicans, they’re not Democrats.”
The gubernatorial candidate spoke out repeatedly on his support for immigrants, and expressed his hope that they would support him in the upcoming elections: “If every person in the immigrant communities went out and voted, I could succeed just with their votes.” He reiterated his strong support for the recently signed bill (SB 60), which makes it possible for undocumented immigrants to obtain a California driver’s license.
Bustamante also expressed approval for proposals to make college tuition assistance available to undocumented immigrants: “They need to have someone who will fight for them, someone who says that it doesn’t matter under what situation they are here, that they can have access to school, that they will have access to come here, to have a good home… Hopefully someday any child will have access to everything we have here.”
Below are some of Bustamante’s comments in greater detail (Spanish [uncorrected] in the original, English in translation):
On Indian tribes’ contributions to his campaign: “There are corporations that are giving money to Arnold Schwarzenegger in the millions of dollars, and no one says anything to them. Why not? Because they are Indians? Because they are indigenous people? Why?… No one is asking me how much money I get from the Latino community, or from African-Americans, or from people in the Jewish community, or any other group. No one else, just the indigenous tribal governments. Why is that?” [QUESTION: Do you see this as racial discrimination?] “Well, that’s how it is, I think, sometimes. And I believe we need leaders who can unite, not divide, people.”
On driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants: “I think that those people who will see this in a bad light, with whom this will affect me adversely, will never vote for Cruz Bustamante - because it’s Cruz Bustamante. I don’t care that they don’t think this is important. I know this is important. I know that if we as Latinos do not fight for immigrants, no one else will fight for them.”
On his relationship with Governor Gray Davis: “Well, it’s up, it’s down. But we’re in a campaign. We’re in a situation where we’re fighting against the Republicans, we’re not fighting within the family. We’re a family. The Democratic Party is a family. We have values to improve life, schools, salaries, benefits, and also opportunity for all people. And all I need to see is that a colleague of [Arnold Schwarzenegger] is Pete Wilson - he’s in charge of his election campaign. And I think it’s important that we look at who the enemy is. And it isn’t Gray Davis. Married people have [difficult moments] too. We are a family, and I have a different style than he does. And we’re also going to have different ideas. But the enemy is not within the Democratic Party.”
On his Republican opponents: “I’m against the recall, but I think it’s important that people who are on the ballot - people like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tom McClintock - want Proposition 187 once again. They don’t want driver’s licenses for immigrants. They are against food. They are against access to colleges and access to schools. They are against the opportunity to organize labor unions. They are against so many of the values we have in our community. I think it’s important to see who the enemy is.”
On how a Governor Bustamante would differ from Governor Davis: “Well, style, I think. I don’t think [I would govern differently on] too many issues, but I have my own emphasis. In my first year in office, I would have signed the driver’s license [bill]. In my first year, not my third… I also think it’s important to take away the increase in the vehicle license fee… We also have about 123,000 students who won’t go to college this year because we took away the funds. That’s not something we can afford to do here in California, because we’re going to have a dangerous future if we don’t afford access to universities and colleges. We’re going to have something in the future that will be very dangerous.”
On the status of immigrants: “We’re going to have an opportunity to resolve the issue of whether or not people who are here already will have the right to become citizens. I think it’s important that people who are here, who are working, and who are not breaking the law, that they might have the right to become a citizen. Immigrants built this state; they built this country. At one time it was the Japanese, at another point it was the Chinese, at other times it was the Europeans, the Anglos. The same goes today for Latinos. We are building California’s economy, and I think that’s a very good thing for the state.”
On providing free college tuition for undocumented immigrants: “Hopefully someday in California it won’t make a difference - who the person is, what their culture is. A child is a child. They need to have someone who will fight for them, someone who says that it doesn’t matter under what situation they are here, that they can have access to school, that they will have access to come here, to have a good home. And hopefully someday we will not look differently at children of different colors. Hopefully someday any child will have access to everything we have here.”
On his membership in MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan): “When I was in that organization, we would run campaigns for student government. We wanted to gain access for all the kids in the area to attend college, to come and celebrate the diversity we had in the community. I think it’s important, whether you’re a student or a member of the community, that you fight for all the people. I think that’s very positive. [QUESTION: What do you think of the MEChA slogan “For the race, everything. For those outside the race, nothing”?] All the students who were in the organization with me came to college, they graduated, they are raising their families, they are working. I think that, hopefully, the politics of those students who were protesting back then, I think their politics have grown - like mine.”
On the differences between Democrats and Republicans: “It’s the Democratic candidates who are working to help people. There are those, like me and others, who support the right to organize as labor unions to improve people’s lives. It’s the Republican legislators, candidates, and officials who say that they don’t want to solve our community’s problems. That they don’t want children to go to school. That they don’t want driver’s licenses. All of those are Republicans, they’re not Democrats.”
On voter participation among immigrants: “I could win solely with the votes of the immigrant communities. If every person in the immigrant communities went out and voted, I could succeed just with their votes. That won’t be the case. But I think it’s important for them to know that they have the power. In our political system, in a democratic system, the power is in the vote. If they don’t want to make themselves heard, then they don’t have to vote. But if they want to say that it’s important to have someone in a position of power who has experience as an immigrant, who has an understanding of our lives, someone who can improve the life of our community, it’s important that they get out of the house and vote.”
Univision Communications Inc. is the premier Spanish-language media company in the United States. Its operations include Univision Network, the most-watched Spanish-language broadcast television network in the U.S. reaching 97% of U.S. Hispanic Households; TeleFutura Network, a new general-interest Spanish-language broadcast television network reaching 77% of U.S. Hispanic Households; Univision Television Group, which owns and operates 23 Univision Network television stations and 1 non-Univision television station; TeleFutura Television Group, which owns and operates 29 TeleFutura Network television stations; Galavisión, the country’s leading Spanish-language cable network; Univision Radio, the leading Spanish-language radio group which owns and/or operates 65 radio stations in 17 of the top 25 U.S. Hispanic markets and 4 stations in Puerto Rico; Univision Music Group, which includes the Univision Records, Fonovisa Records, and a 50% interest in Mexico-based Disa Records labels as well as Fonomusic and America Musical Publishing companies; and Univision Online, the premier Spanish-language Internet destination in the U.S. located at www.univision.com. Univision Communications is headquartered in Los Angeles with network operations in Miami and television stations and sales offices in major cities throughout the United States.
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