Bilingual Bernie Sanders Ad Makes Last-Second Appeal to Latinos Ahead of Super Tuesday
Bernie Sanders may not have a hand in it, but a bilingual Facebook video released Saturday is urging Latinos to vote for the Vermont senator in Tuesday's Florida Democratic primary.
The sentimental 2:28 minute video follows a college student, a gardener and a nuclear family as they describe what being Latino means to them, and what Sanders could do for the Hispanic community.
"I wouldn't say I make a lot of money. Average, I make enough food for my family," said the unnamed landscaper. "To support my family. I don't have any other choice." Sanders earned his vote by proposing a minimum wage increase; the Democratic presidential hopeful wants it raised to a "living wage" because many of the country's bottom-earners work 40 hours a week and still live below the poverty line.
Each participant touches on subjects at the forefront of the 2016 election season. Aside from income inequality, the college student cites Sanders' free college education proposal; the family says they like his immigration reform policy; and a mother holding her young son said Sanders fights for social equality.
Florida Super PAC Campaigns for Sanders
Do the Right Thing, a South Florida-based political action committee created by lawyers Elizabeth and Jared Beck, created the video as part of their ongoing series aimed at addressing social issues ahead of November's general election.
The grassroots super PAC recruits activist filmmakers for their JAM PAC project, first with award-winning documentarian Dan DeVivo and now with Washington Digital Media owner Ricardo Villalba. The "Proud Latinos for Bernie Sanders" ad is the first one directly endorsing a candidate.
"We saw a void in the area of multimedia explaining Bernie Sanders' core campaign platform to Spanish-speaking voters," Beck said in a press statement. "As our first video juxtaposed the candidates' disparate views on the disproportionate incarceration of African-Americans, the current video puts issues that matter most to Latinos in America."
Beck made headlines last summer when Republican front-runner Donald Trump insulted her for leaving a deposition to breastfeed her three-month-old daughter. Trump called the Miami lawyer "disgusting" before walking out of the room.
"Trump's behavior was inappropriate and calls into question his ability to be an effective representative of the people," said Beck. "We want to send a strong message to the candidates and to the voters by creating a new kind of super PAC for a new era."
Catching Up to Clinton
A Quinnipiac University poll published Monday gave Hillary Clinton a 26-point advantage over Sanders in the Sunshine State.
While the competition is much closer in Ohio, registered Florida voters are giving the former secretary of state an overwhelming lead in nearly every category save those who identify as "very liberal." Sixty percent of men, women, and college educate Democratic primary voters sided with Clinton, compared with 35 percent or fewer of others; 88 percent of those surveyed said their mind is made up.
"Ohio is the real contest on both sides," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University poll. "Sen. Bernie Sanders has a closed 9-point deficit to the smallest of margins. Sanders has the momentum, but the question is whether he can win as he did in Michigan or just come close as in Iowa."
Watch JAM PAC's "Proud Latinos for Bernie Sanders" ad below:
Subscribe to Latin Post!
Sign up for our free newsletter for the Latest coverage!