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Abel was right.

Remember when Kanye West famously remarked, "George Bush doesn't care about Black people?" The comment drew so much controversy in part because, in the wake of the Administration's unbelievable and undeniable failures after Katrina, people knew that Kanye was right.

Similarly, when an angry Abel Maldonado told the L.A. Times that Gov. Schwarzenegger's support for Latinos is only paper thin, he spoke a truth that sent shockwaves through the Governor's office and the statewide press corps: "When he needs Latinos, Latinos are always there for him,'' Maldonado said, and "when Latinos need him, the answer's been no." And then, the real kicker: "Arnold Schwarzenegger cares about one thing, and that's Arnold Schwarzenegger."

The truth just sounds different, doesn't it?

Poor Abel couldn't stand his ground for more than 24 hours before bucking to pressure and apologizing to the Governor. And look what that got him. Schwarzenegger won't even return his call.

Fortunately for those of us on the other side, Republicans in California just don't get it when it comes to Latinos. If Abel is their "Ambassador to Latino voters," why wasn't Schwarzenegger willing to take a stand and endorse Abel in the Senate primary against Yet Another White Guy (and a particularly mediocre one at that, Tony Strickland)? Why did the Republicans choose Yet Another White Guy to run against the Democrats for U.S. Senate instead of a well-qualified Latina? Where are the Latino candidates they are grooming and backing? Where are the broad sweeping policy changes that Latino voters are demanding? Where is the strong stand against the Minutemen vigilantes and in favor of a legal path to citizenship for immigrants?

You'll find a lot of that from the Republicans nationally, but you won't find it here. Because when the rubber hits the road, the California GOP, led by Gov. Schwarzenegger, doesn't care about Latinos. They are all pander, all the time.

Abel was right, and it's too bad that no one has had the guts to get his back.

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