Gringo’s Travels
Puerto Rico viewed from a gringo’s perspective
Letter from Obama to Puerto Rico Gov. Anibal Acevedo Vila
Author: The Gringo25 Feb
In this letter from Senator Obama to the Governor of Puerto Rico, Obama is promising that Puerto Rico have the chance to pick if the status of commonwealth, statehood, or independence.
Dear Gov. Acevedo Vila:
Puerto Rico is a vitally important part of our country and Puerto Ricans have made immeasurable contributions to the United States. As president of the United States, I will pay close attention to issues that have an impact on the well-being of the people of Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico’s status must be based on the principle of self-determination. Puerto Rico has a proud history, an extraordinary culture, its own traditions, customs and language, and a distinct identity. As president, I will work closely with the Puerto Rican government, its civil society and with Congress to create a genuine and transparent process for self-determination that will be true to the best traditions of democracy. As president, I will actively engage Congress and the Puerto Rican people in promoting this deliberative, open and unbiased process, that may include a constitutional convention or a plebiscite, and my administration will adhere to a policy of strict neutrality on Puerto Rican status matters. My administration will recognize all valid options to resolve the question of Puerto Rico’s status, including commonwealth, statehood and independence.
I strongly believe in equality before the law for all American citizens. This principle extends fully to Puerto Ricans. The American citizenship of Puerto Ricans is constitutionally guaranteed for as long as the people of Puerto Rico choose to retain it. I reject the assertion in reports submitted by a Presidential Task Force on Dec. 22, 2005, and Dec. 21, 2007, that sovereignty over Puerto Rico could be unilaterally transferred by the United States to a foreign country, and the U.S. citizenship of Puerto Ricans is not constitutionally guaranteed.
I will also work closely with the government of Puerto Rico, its private sector and labor leaders to advance an aggressive agenda of job creation, economic development and new prosperity. The levels of unemployment on the Island over the last three decades are unacceptable, which is why I will propose the creation a federal-Puerto Rico joint task force to study and report not later than Aug. 31, 2009, on specific ways to maximize the use of existing federal initiatives to generate jobs in Puerto Rico or on new federal initiatives to achieve that goal.
In addition, I will work closely with the government of Puerto Rico and Congress to enhance the participation of Puerto Rico in Medicaid and all federal health care assistance programs. My administration will actively work with the Department of Defense as well to achieve an environmentally acceptable cleanup of the former U.S. Navy lands in Vieques, Puerto Rico. We will closely monitor the health of the people of Vieques and promote appropriate remedies to health conditions caused by military activities conducted by the U.S. Navy on Vieques. I will also work to evaluate and expand the existing land use plan for the former U.S. Navy lands to prioritize improving the lives of the Island’s residents and the sustainable economic development of the people of Vieques.
Sincerely,
Barack Obama
2 Responses for "Letter from Obama to Puerto Rico Gov. Anibal Acevedo Vila"
History is repeating itself. Hillary Claims to be a democratic “New York” Senator. Just Seeing what she is doing too the democratic party should turn all Democrats, Especially New york democrats and latinos against her. All you have to do is remember what Mark Green did in 2001 to Fernando Ferrer. He devided the party then, And Blomberg won that year. She is doing the same thing now. As a New Yorker, and a Democrat, I can say that she is no New yorker , And no true democrat. McCaine is starting to look more and more like Bloomberg. He will slip right in.
“It’s Mean Mark Green: Former Front Runner Jostles Freddy Ferrer”
“Racial Politics of 2001; Unhealed Wounds in 2005 ”
“NEW YORK (AP) — Mark Green defeated Fernando Ferrer in the Democratic runoff for mayor Thursday, held exactly one month after the World Trade Center tragedy that transformed both the city and the campaign.”
In previous elections, 60 to 85 percent of the Latino population could be counted on to vote Democratic. Last year, for example, 85 percent of Latino voters gave their support to Hillary Clinton. But this year’s delayed primary and the fractious run-off between Fernando Ferrer and Mark Green caused many in the Latino community to turn against the man they viewed as spoiling the chances for the first Latino mayor of New York City. “The 48 percent of Latinos who voted for Bloomberg were ticked off at Green,” Gonzalez speculated. “If Green gets elected, they figure, we have to wait eight years to elect a Latino mayor. But if we elect Bloomberg we only have to wait four years.”
African Americans gave Green 74 percent of their votes in the general election, but in the 1997 mayoral election they gave more than 90 percent of their votes to Giuliani’s opponent, Ruth Messinger. According to Gonzales, Giuliani’s poor relations with the African American community probably wound up costing Bloomberg votes when the mayor endorsed his fellow Republican. Gonzalez dismissed the idea that Al Sharpton could have rallied the African American vote around Green, and is therefore responsible for Green’s loss. “Al Sharpton has become the chief bogeyman of New York politics,” Gonzalez said. “Not only is he blamed for making demands of Ferrer and losing the race for Ferrer because he made white voters vote for Green, but he is also blamed for losing the general election because nobody came out to vote for Green. People who blame Sharpton for this,” Gonzalez warned, “are doing a disservice to our democracy.”
Hillary is doing the same thing to Obama that was done t Ferrer. Hey who cares who get’s into ffice as lng as it’s nt a latino or black person. Latinos have such a problem with blacks that they would do exactly what whites do to them.
Leave a reply