Latin Times : What are the democratic / republican plans to make the U . S . economy better ? Ana Cruz / Democrat : The Democrats first and foremost want to bring about a responsible end to the war in Iraq and redirect the billions of dollars we are spending fighting a losing war back into our own country . Tax breaks for the middle class , increasing the American job industry , ending the mortgage crisis , and real leadership to build a new energy economy are all on the agenda . Unfortunately McCain seems to still be in denial about the real predicament that the economy is in right now . The candidates ’ recent responses to the Wall street crash was very telling in terms of their policies . Obama reacted swiftly to the news by acknowledging our financial problems and laying out a plan . McCain appeared genuinely surprised , and once again maintained that the economy was holding “ strong ”. This isn ’ t surprising given the fact that he ’ s been subscribing to the Bush administration ’ s flawed economic policies for the past 8 years now .
Latin Times : What is your party doing to prevent U . S . companies from moving to foreign countries in search of lower cost production , leaving millions of Americans without jobs ? Ana Cruz / Democrat : The Democrats are really focused on the problem of outsourcing American labor this election . It ’ s critical that we create jobs and stimulate the economy in this country . That means ending tax breaks for companies that send jobs overseas . Why should companies get billions of dollars in tax deductions for moving their operations overseas while American workers suffer ? Obama and Biden are proposing to encourage companies by awarding contracts to those who have shown themselves to be committed to American workers . For example , Obama introduced the Patriot Employer Act of 2007 to provide tax credit to companies that maintain or increase the number of full-time workers in America relative to those outside the US ; maintain their corporate headquarters in America if it has ever been in America ; pay decent wages ; prepare workers for retirement ; provide health insurance ; and support employees who serve in the military .
Latin Times : Would your candidate continue the search for Osama Bin Laden if he is chosen to be president ? Ana Cruz / Democrat : One of the Bush administration ’ s greatest failures was its inability to orchestrate a successful counterterrorism plan , one that culminated in bringing Osama bin Laden to justice . Senator McCain , only offers a continuation of the Bush administration ’ s lamentable policy . Obama has said that he intends to continue searching for Bin Laden , and wants to work together with the Pakistani government to find Osama and have him tried for his terrorist crimes once and for all .
Latin Times : What would your candidate do to have a better relationship with two of the most controversial Latin American leaders : 1 . Castro & 2 . Chavez ? Ana Cruz / Democrat : Another one of the republican administration ’ s policy problems has been its inability to negotiate with foreign countries on any terms other than those dictated by their own leaders . Obama has stated emphatically that Latin American policy has been negligent toward our friends , ineffective with our adversaries , and incapable of advancing our interests in the region . As the Americas have changed , we have sat on the sideline , offering no compelling vision and creating a vacuum for demagogues to advance an anti-American agenda . It ’ s no surprise that dictators like Hugo Chavez have maintained their power bases in Latin America . His predictable anti-American rhetoric and authoritarianism government are not in line with most Americans ’ traditional views on civil liberties . But the United States is so alienated from the rest of the Americas that no real diplomatic progress has been made for many years . Obama ’ s policy towards Chavez is a simple one : what ’ s good for the people of Venezuela is good for the United States , and this starts with mutual diplomatic relations .
Castro ’ s regime is one of oppression and Obama has made it clear that as long as there are political prisoners locked away in dark prison cells for the crime of speaking the truth he won ’ t stand for the injustice . George Bush ’ s strategy has done nothing to advance freedom for the Cuban people . That ’ s the political posture that John McCain has chosen to embrace as well , and the results so far have been dismal . Obama has said decisively that his policy toward Cuba will be guided by one word : Libertad . And the road to freedom for all Cubans must begin with justice for Cuba ’ s political prisoners , the rights of free speech , a free press and freedom of assembly ; and it must lead to elections that are free and fair .
Latin Times : Does your party agree with the search of petroleum in US to lower high gas prices and to limit their dependency in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries ? Ana Cruz / Democrat : Obama is very much concerned about America ’ s dependence on oil and rising gas prices . He has recently advocated tapping the nation ’ s emergency oil supply in hopes of driving down prices at the pump . But make no mistake , he has a clear vision for America ’ s future as a green energy independent country . Yet he still understands that limited oil and natural gas drilling will be necessary in the short term , as we transition to renewable energy . The key here is that his plan isn ’ t a quick fix , to just keep drilling until all the oil resources evaporate , which experts agree eventually will happen . Oil is not a renewable resource and this isn ’ t a problem we can drill our way out of . Obama ’ s overall plan calls for a $ 150 billion investment in solar and wind power ; $ 1,000 tax credits to consumers buying hybrids and $ 4 billion in incentives for auto industry hubs like Detroit to produce more energy-efficient cars . The ultimate goal is to wean America off foreign oil within 10 years time .
Latin Times : What would the democrat / republican party do for the millions of undocumented immigrants in the US ? Ana Cruz / Democrat : This is a candidate that understands America always will be a nation of immigrants . Obama spent parts of his childhood in Indonesia and his background is one of multi-racial as well multinational genealogy . He proposes that undocumented immigrants be brought out of the shadows once and for all . There are millions of immigrants who would like to fully embrace our values and become legal members of this country . For the millions living here illegally but otherwise playing by the rules , the Democratic party has shown initiative in supporting their transition from illegal workers to full fledged citizens . The immigration bureaucracy right now is fundamentally broken and overwhelmed , forcing legal immigrants to wait years for applications . Barack Obama supports a system that allows undocumented immigrants who are in good standing to pay a fine , learn English , and be given the opportunity to become citizens .
Latin Times : Why should Latino / Hispanic citizens vote for your candidate ? Ana Cruz / Democrat : I think it ’ s an issue of really taking a look at the candidates before us and their policies towards issues important to the Latino community . Three in 10 Hispanic registered voters say immigration is an extremely important issue to them and with good reason . In fact Obama has recently renewed his promise of moving towards passing an immigration bill during his first year in office . Hispanics are a critical swing vote and the majority of them say that Obama is the candidate that best represents their concerns . I think he is making strides with the Hispanic community , and it ’ s not just about courting votes either . He genuinely cares about creating a more inclusive America that represents all of its citizens equally … be they Hispanic , white , or African American .