Latinos are both disappointed and frustrated by the failure of the DREAM Act in Congress. The main problem was not that Republicans wanted to derail it– everyone knew that – but that Democrats didn’t have their act together, and some joined the Republicans and voted against it. With those five Democrat votes against, the DREAM Act fell five votes short of passing. If those five Democrat votes would’ve been pro-DREAM, the bill would have reached the Senate floor, and could have passed by a simple majority.
Unfortunately, this shows the reality of the Democratic Party. It is disjointed, and unable to organize in order to vote as one. This leaves Latinos out in the cold, and with no clear option as to which political party to turn to. Maybe now is the time for an independent candidate to come forward for 2012, uniting the Latino vote and taking it away from both parties.
It feels even worse that the DREAM Act failure comes on the heels of the passing of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy reversal, which allows for gays in the military to be as openly gay as they may. The country is focusing in celebrating this great success, of course; however, very little has been said in the media about the irrational vote on the DREAM Act.