OPINION:
Many political pundits have decided that Hispanics are moving over to the Republican Party. Those pundits are wrong — Hispanics have already made the move.
It’s been happening for years. But a Quinnipiac poll last month showed that President Biden has a 28% approval rating among Hispanics. This shocking number proves that the movement has already transpired. The Republican Party is now the Hispanic Party.
How did this happen? I might know something about the answer. As a two-time world champion boxer, I grew up in a tough neighborhood, and like many in this country, we had to fight for our chance at success. Growing up, our family was Democratic like most Hispanics in previous generations.
Now, I am a proud Hispanic Republican running for Congress in Nevada. And the reasons that led me to leave the Democratic Party are the same ones that led so many other Hispanics to leave.
First, Hispanics believe in American values. We want to be treated based on our character, not our skin color. The idea that the left can win our votes by pandering to us with offensive ideas like critical race theory is absurd. We don’t view ourselves as victims. We believe we are all in this together, and we believe America is the country of the future. And we want to be a part of it. And when the left started creating a new racial name for us — “Latinx” — we laughed.
Note to Mr. Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — Hispanic people don’t use the term “Latinx.” That’s just a word white liberals use.
Second, Hispanics believe in the American dream. We support growth and opportunity. I am a professional boxer and a small business owner. Why would I support government policies that overtax and overregulate me? Other Hispanic small business owners feel the same way. They work hard every day only to have the government take away huge chunks of their earnings in payroll taxes, property taxes, sales taxes and income taxes.
The Democrats, with their big government and big spending, of our money, have driven our national debt to 30 trillion dollars and inflation to a 40-year high. At the same time, elite liberals tell the people that they should have planned for inflation. Hispanics see inflation as what it is, theft of the working class.
Third, Hispanics want to live in a safe neighborhood. We support the police. Huge numbers of Hispanics are employed in the U.S. Border Patrol and police forces around the country. So, when the Democrats started pushing to defund the police, Hispanics took that seriously and went to the only party that is serious about security in our neighborhoods and on our borders.
Finally, Hispanics believe in the rule of law. When Mr. Biden promoted open borders and undermined the Border Patrol, he thought it was smart politics. And while “The Squad” might have loved it, the proudest day for many Hispanics in this country is when they become a U.S. citizen. We believe in legal immigration and don’t understand why immigrants shouldn’t come in the front door of our country. Hispanics support border security and support our border patrol.
So, to me, it’s no surprise that the Hispanic community has given up on Mr. Biden. In many ways, he gave up on us. He took our votes for granted and assumed we all wanted the left-wing identity politics he was selling.
We don’t. What we do want is a fair shake. And we also want the government to do what it’s supposed to do — keep us safe in our communities and on the borders, unite us around a common American culture, and let us keep more of our hard-earned money.
On April 30, I’ll be in the ring again fighting at Madison Square Garden. It’s my job, and I’m blessed that I get to do what I love and accomplish my dreams in America. I’m also blessed to have the opportunity to run for political office to help my community by fighting for conservative values. The same conservative values have made the Republican Party the natural home for millions of Hispanics, just like me.
Leftists, if you want to use the term Latinx, perhaps you should start with the real LatinEXIT because it is here.
• Jessie Vargas is a two-time world champion boxer running in the Republican primary in Nevada’s 4th Congressional district. He will fight Liam Smith on April 30 at Madison Square Garden.
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