Ivan Marte: Rhode Island GOP Hispanic Assembly Chairman Quits Party Over Joe Wilson

(AP) The chairman of the Rhode Island Republican Hispanic Assembly and member of the Republican Central Committee says he has quit the GOP because he was embarrassed by South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson's outburst during President Obama's address to Congress on Sept. 9.

Wilson shouted "You lie," when President Obama said illegal immigrants would not receive benefits under his health care plan.

Ivan Marte tells The Providence Journal that Wilson's behavior was "shameful" and "uncivilized."

Marte says he has been disenchanted by the GOP since Gov. Don Carcieri ignored his advice concerning the 2008 executive order
cracking down on illegal immigration.

State party chairman Giovanni Cicione says Marte's contributions to the party were valued and he's disappointed by the resignation.

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Comments

[dawn1041]

For every action there's a reaction. Thank you Ivan.

[hangdogit]

The real story here is that anyone a lower socio-economics class -- such as black or Hispanic -- would join a Republican Party that is dedicated to their continued impoverishment in the first place -- the Clarence Thomas Effect. The same goes for gays, women and any other groups that would benefit from the social progress and economic reform that the GOP opposed. Political Masochism?

[greenriverkate]

This man quit the GOP. He did NOT say he was a liberal!!!! Although I AM, I respect his steps to say enough is enough. He and I may never meet in the middle on politics but morally we are soul related.
He took a stand and followed through. No matter how he votes, he will have my respect for the respect he just showed Americans and showed the POTUS.. THANK YOU for showing we still have some morals and manners left in this country. Being civil to each other has become the cry that is unheard.

[peacegurl48]

I'm impressed!

[1murillo]

Being in one party or another isn't a sign of being evil. Marte, however (along with Spector, Jeffords, etc.) is leaving the GOP because of its increasing use of the Southern Strategy. Look at the 2008 elections, the majority of McCain's votes were from the Appalachia/Southern regions.
Following Limbaugh, Shelby, Sessions, Inhofe, McConnell and Cantor, the GOP uses fear and existing negative stereotypes to run for election.
A new majority party will emerge, but the GOP still sits in the elected seats, so it's a majority party.

[Willow207]

One down....
And how many to go?

[marignymitch]

Mr Marte can't be the first to bail but he can be next of the millions who already have fled the 'party'.

[Don Quixote]

Good for you Señor Marte! Welcome to the club of disenfranchised Republican latinos. I jumped ship back in '06. You're in good company. I would only hope that others could be as true to their core values.

The GOP has been highjacked by the Southern Strategy contingent and they have no need or desire to accomodate anyone who doesn't belong to "their country".

[Matt7]

Good comment.

On another note, OT -- Don, how did you get the tilde?

[rbrinega]

Cut and paste works for me to get symbols not readily available on my US English keyboard, to wit: "Good for you Señor Marte!".

And good for you Señor Marte!

[Don Quixote]

rbrinega's right. I write in Spanish a lot, so I generated the common symbols in Microsoft Word, and then put them into a text file that I keep handy for copying and pasting when posting something on the web.

The way to get the ñ in Word is to press the Ctrl, Shift and ~ keys in that order holding them down, and then let go and press n.

For the accent mark, it's the Ctrl key followed by the ' key, and then the vowel you want to place the accent over.

[laplap]

Method #1:
Cut & paste... but this works only with some software and is very spotty with webpages.

Method #2:
Access the "ASCII Extended Character Set" for PCs by holding down the "Alt" key and typing the two or three number code on the keyboard's number pad (num lock should be turned on)... this works on many webpages. Example:
ñ = {alt} 1 6 4
Ñ = {alt} 1 6 5
(Don't type the brackets "{" and "}" ... I included them only for clarity)

Same idea for Macs, but different codes. For Macs hold down the "Option" key simultaneously with the letter "n" key, then type a letter or number code
Example:
ñ = {op}n n
Ñ = {op}n N

Method 3:
Use embedded html codes for webpages... ignore this if you don't know about HTML tags:
Example
ñ = & ntilde;
Ñ = & Ntilde;
(don't include a space after the "&" ... I added it othewise the code wouldn't display on this blog webpage)

[laplap]

This (and other sites) shows the ASCII and Windows Character sets:

http://academic.evergreen.edu/projects/biophysics/technotes/program/ascii_ext-pc.htm

I've memorized only the few I use frequently. It's much faster than looking for a source to cut & paste from... and of course, you're not helpless when you're not using your computer where you've stashed your characters.

[woodwakr]

You will never escape the Dark Side of the Force, Luke... uh, I mean, Ivan!

[Skygazer]

Any Hispanic who calls him or her self Republican is one twisted mofo. This guy obviously sees the writing on the wall and refuses to go down with the leaky rusting GOP ship, taking water on all levels and quickly heading for the deep. And amen to that. Bye bye...enjoy your watery grave and good riddance.

[stop the politics]

This must be a fairy tale. A Northeast Republican? Next there will be a story about a Southern Democrat. We all know neither of these exist.

[Easyrollins]

Mr. Steele: were there a racial tone to the GOP, NO sir if there was any racism, I did not see it, of course I thought I was blind until I saw you. Being a Republican minority is to be selectively blind.

[TrulyBaffled]

Good for You!!!

[I once had a Crysknife]

This has to be one of the dumbest stories I have ever read. So is he a liberal now? Does he all of a sudden support expanded government, gay marriage, universal healthcare, the right to choose? Could you imagine if President Obama came out and said "I am no longer a Democrat, because John Edwards cheats on his wife." These guys who jump party and change their whole belief system practically over night lead me to be suspicious of them in the first place. If you have a core set of beliefs and are a democrat or a republican and you don't like your parties direction then do something about it. The two parties have completly different views and I don't see how you can go from one to the other.

[Socrmom]

Maybe he was a republican before they all went bat $hit, conservative christian, Sarah Palin crazy. Maybe his beliefs align more with a moderate democrat. Please remember that not all democrats are liberal and if you think they should be then you are just as bad as the republicans who think they all have to be creationism, anti-abortion wack jobs.

[cminca]

Ummmm--it is called "independent."

Perhaps he can better represent his constituents (his actual job) by not being tied to either party.

[I once had a Crysknife]

Well no doubt you are prolly right about that. It would be nice if Independants had a real shot at getting elected, but they give up tons of campain money if they try that route.

[lobear00]

Well' if george bush can and did expand government, why not obama as well! and yet when bush did it, you said nothing.

[hardlyhikin]

I agree with Socrmom with a little twist - maybe little by little, shift by shift, idea by idea, he's been more and more disillusioned and Wilson was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. My guess is that HIS beliefs have not changed but, as we have all seen, the Republican party has changed. My guess is he continues to vote his principles but he distances himself from the actions of this cult/party.

[Witkacy]

That perfectly binary system is something of your imagination. How did you explain the existence of the DLC and its ascendancy to power via the Clinton Administration, all those years? "Core set of beliefs," in American politics? Really? Are you aware that DOMA was signed into law by President Clinton? Neither party is homogeneous and faction-less--nor should either be.

I can only wonder what, if anything, you think of Bernie Sanders.

Should Olympia Snowe "fall" from the GOP ranks tomorrow, I for one think that's cause for celebration. By the same token, there are so-called Democrats who are far too conservative for my tastes--but they are nonetheless still Democrats (cf Secretary of State Clinton, and her past associations with Doug Coe's "Family")

[warriorpatriot]

joe should get a medal ... he is right......... huh