Lenny McAllister
+ FollowNote to DeeDee Blase: Somos El Cambio
Yes: the way some political folks act makes you wanna scream, but more often than not, the only way to make a change is to stick around long enough to fight the powers that be.
If memory serves me correctly, I had an opportunity to meet Dee Dee Blasé not too long ago. I do believe one such occasion was in Arizona during the 2010 SB 1070 controversy that captured the nation’s attention.
I have followed Dee Dee’s dedication to the causes of Latinos in America and admired her authenticity concerning these efforts. I have followed her organizational efforts as well as the troubles that her journey has encountered.
From what I know, Dee Dee is a well-intended American. I commend her commitment to her beliefs. I wish her well in her endeavors in trying to make America better and stronger nation.
And I ask that she return to the Republican Party.
I understand that to many readers, this sounds like nothing more than a party hack asking another brown face to join (or, in this case, rejoin) the GOP in order to beat back the image of intolerance that stung the party during its 2008 RNC Convention. That’s hardly the case. I can clearly relate to the oft-accumulating mounds of frustration that comes with being a minority within a political party that has the right policy perspectives but also has pockets of insensitive (or, in some case, oblivious) leadership in regards to race. Yet, I also know that whenever change is needed, it is not prompted from outside of the system; it is primed – and even demanded – from within.
I have said it to others before the Justin Velez-Hagan piece hit the internet days ago, and I repeat it now: minority Republicans need to stop running from the political fight if they ever truly want to win the social fights that hamper our nation.
And yes, if you really thought about it, you would realize that you need to be making that case to them as well, regardless of how racist or intolerant you think the GOP is.
It disheartens me from time to time whenever I hear of good Republicans leaving the GOP because of the stonewall of intolerance that is found at varying levels of regional and state parties. The levels of frustration are understandable, but the call to make history and the obligation to the past are both greater in resonance than the power that any angry moment could ever muster.
Simply put: with each minority Republican that leaves the party out of a sense that the party will never change, the worst fears of maintaining the status quo are closer to being crystallized.
Sadly, most minority voting blocs have always fought the American heavyweight championship battle known as politics with one arm tied behind their backs, whether it was during Reconstruction (because of Jim Crow racism) or after the Great Society Movementvthat solidified our collective voting state today. How is the underclass expected to effectively wrestle an opponent with the ever-changing speed of Muhammad Ali in his youth and the awesome power of Mike Tyson in his youth, doing so with the limiting handicap of one-sidedness? It can’t. It won’t. It loses now – and, on this path, it loses for the foreseeable future.
Political balance becoming a reality anytime soon will not occur if the soldiers best equipped to fight for political equality for our communities fail to stick around to win the battle. Say what you want about the freedom of being labeled an independent or the power of non-partisan groups in today’s America. In a government that has been built for centuries with money, tradition, and geopolitical reinforcement, with the intent to support and substantiate a two-party system, the paramount method to solidify and grow meaningful and long-lasting influence is to incorporate oneself into the system and be steadfast in one’s beliefs and goals in the process.
Being involved and not being a sellout is the key.
Any alternative is nothing more than taking a bullhorn. There may be a lot of gnashing of teeth going through this, but gnashing of teeth to endure the frustration puts change in a position to never bite one’s tongue in the presence of history.
It might have been said on the other side of the aisle, but it is a true statement: we are the change that we seek. And because we are that change, we cannot and must not run from our obligation to get our hands dirty and our feet worn, just as our forefathers just several generations ago did not retreat from getting their hands bloodied or their bodies battered for the sake of reclaiming justice in our world. So, I will be here, ready and willing to fight for upliftment of all people and notably for the underclass through whatever political and societal means necessary. Because I know other minority Republicans love people as well, I expect the Dee Dee Blases and others within the minority conservative construct to return beside me so that going “all in” with our communities on some key issues, we can uplift America to a better place.
Lenny McAllister is a political commentator found every Saturday with host TJ Holmes and fellow pundit Maria Cardona on “CNN Saturday Morning” at 10:30 AM Eastern (9:30 Central / 7:30 AM Pacific.) This week’s “Saturday Remix” is now availableexclusively on Politic365.
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13 Responses to Note to DeeDee Blase: Somos El Cambio
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Ben says:
If you look at her facebook posts, you will notice she also has a very filthy mouth. Has anyone bothered to ask why she has never had a Tequila Party event in her own home city of Phoenix? Why not Los Angeles? Why not Houston? Why not Dallas? Why not San Diego? Why not San Francisco? Why not Las Vegas? All of these are major Southwestern cities which according to her are key battleground States for Latinos, yet she has done nothing in these large cities, instead focusing on Tuscon, Wichita and Michigan? Are you serious? Where are the objective reporters who will call her out? Why does she continue to get press? When will we see a reporter actually go after her and press her on these elementary questions? The Tequila Party, just like Somos Republicans are sham organizations with one very clear purpose. Self Promotion for Dee Dee Blase.
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Guest says:
DeeDee was the first to file recall against Russell Pearce. She dropped it after meeting with Chad Snow. DeeDee did work and help Jerry Lewis get elected. It took a moderate Republican to beat an extremist Republican. She was asked to help in the Lewis campaign by advisors and she did what they asked of her.
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Here is proof that DeeDee worked with high ranking members of LDS Church where it shed positive light on the LDS Church. She hosted the FIRESIDE ON IMMIGRATION which gave attention to the Utah Compact. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-1qlJuZAJo
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Francisco A. says:
Great piece sir.
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LLC says:
DDB has done so much promotion for Barack Obama that it would be best if she stay out of the Republican party. She has inflated her influence and reach beyond a mailing list compiled of subscriptions that do not compromise membership of any type. The best way to impact change is to move up within the Republican organization – get yourself in a position of power and impact the agenda in that format. Something Ms. Blase doesn't understand.
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Pingback: El cambio ya paso, Lenny McAllister | Political News and Opinion from a Multicultural Point of View
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Linda says:
THE REAL STORY: The Misapplication of Conservative Values By Hispanic Groups.
by Alex Gonzalez
I have followed and studied politics long enough to know that politics often is a game of lies and deception in the name of a cause, or patriotism. Politics, at the individual level when candidates run, or as group when organizations seek to manipulate policies, is filled with passions of the candidate, or the passions of those who lead the organizations in the name of community, or a group. And often this lead to organization misleading people. -
Therefore, any platform that based on hate and harsh rhetoric only breeds more hate and tough rhetoric. And the Hispanics community is neither militant nor destructive community that espouses hate. So if Somos Republicans and the Tequila Party are preaching hate propaganda in favor of liberal, or progressive, organizations, they are in effect hurting the Hispanic community.
So how so do we raise awareness of such deceit and misapplication of Conservative values? Raise the awareness. These TWO specific organizations are not to be trusted to be either part of the Republican Party nor are they Conservative. The Latino community and all others believing them to be Conservative should halt any financial donations to help spread such hate. The leader is a deceitful Liberal coining and hiding under the Term of an Independent. That is as much as saying I am lying Coward.
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Has anyone at AP bothered to do any research at all into Mrs. Blase? If they had, they would find out just how fraudulent she really is. Her claims of having "The largest conservative Latino grassroots organization in the country" has never once been substantiated. One simple gauge of an organizations success is the number of "likes" on their FaceBook page. The "likes on Somos Republicans has hit a wall at just over 700, yet she for years has been touting over 6000 members. In fact she has repeated that claim for over 3 years now. In spite of the heavy anti immigrant rhetoric which ought to help swell the membership rolls, it has remained at the so called 6000 number level. Why? Did it ever occur to the AP writers that it is and always has been a phony number?
And why is she still involved in Somos Republicans? She constantly retweets stories under that account. In her latest quest for attention, she claimed to be going to Albuquerque, NM to meet with Tequila party leaders to plan a Tequila Party rally. If you ever look at her activity on both FaceBook and Twitter, she constantly updates her groupies on every activity she partakes in, from where she drinks coffee to where she hikes and runs to every person she meets for lunches and interviews, yet while she was in New Mexico last week she did not tweet or Facebook a single time. To this day she has not ever mentioned the so called Albuquerque Tea Party meeting and the New Mexico leader has never mentioned the meeting on his own page. Doesn't that cause suspicion with anyone? If they were truly interested in growing their organization and spreading the word of the movement would you not immediately spread the word of a good productive meeting?
The fact is simply this. Dee Dee Blase is an attention, seeking self centered individual out for herself only. She used her good looks to trap men into thinking she is a caring individual when in reality she cares only about the attention she seeks. She will lie and deceive just to get press and air time, even if it means selling out her beliefs. -
mentiraexposed says:
This note to to just say that this note on facebook shows that this woman is a liar. She takes money, has affairs, and then says she is independent, and republican? Shameful. She is no good. Then she smokes and says Hispanos are alcoholics with Tequila Party. She is mentirosa. https://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=3110243…
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She is a hypocrite who likes to take credit for the hard work others have done. She continues to try and take credit for the Russell Pearce thing when she was not involved at all. I do remember on one of posts she said that she would not leave the Republican Party. If anyone was hostile and posting obscenities and degrading Mormons it was DeeDee. I still have those posts. With a cigar, and tequila she is not a positive role model for young Hispanic woman.