A growth in Hispanic voters who cast their ballots for Donald Trump helped him win Wisconsin
and nationally.
Yes, even after Trump promised mass deportations and said immigrants poisoned the blood of
our country.
What were the drivers for Latinos to vote for the now president-elect?
And what will Trump's policies mean for them?
We turn to Jorge Franco, CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Wisconsin, and nice
to see you again.
Federica, thanks for having me, wonderful to be with you again.
So we spoke with you ahead of the election.
Were you surprised the part Hispanic voters played in the result?
I actually was not.
There was a lot of rumblings already.
A big concern for Hispanic voters certainly was the economy, the inflation that was in
some cases just staggering.
And I think that having lived that for numerous years, I think just drove many people to support
former President Trump, now President-elect Trump.
And of course, his numbers show it in all segments, not just the Hispanic vote.
So it was, in particular, those of us who work in the low-income community and community
development, the pain factor is pretty high.
And I think people are looking for a new day, and that's the outcomes spoke for themselves.
So is it your sense that Trump presidency will help reduce the cost of living, even
though he talks about tariffs and other things?
Yeah, and I will say that in my limited understanding, the inflation and the complexity of the factors
that go into that, I'm not holding my breath on that particular note to be candid with
you.
What I'm more focused on is how do we increase the income levels of those in our low and
modern income communities, not just here in Wisconsin, but across the country and my
work in Washington actually takes me down that path.
So already the Federal Reserve mandates to control inflation and to optimize employment
are like this.
They're contrary to each other in many ways, and that leaves them in a conflicted situation
and, frankly, focusing on the opportunities as a result of the job growth in America
is going to be much more fertile and productive than what may or may not happen to the prices
that were all being impacted by.
So now that we've seen the change agents that Trump wants to appoint to his cabinet
and elsewhere, do you take seriously his call for mass deportations?
Well, I do and I don't, and I want to explain.
So certainly the folks that he's entitled, he won the election, certainly a resounding
win for him.
And so any president is entitled to bring their staff in and bring their selecting pick
and choose who they want to come in and work with them, subject to the advice and consent
to the Senate, and all that, we'll see how that all plays out.
But having said that, the question in my mind is, will the people, many of them returning,
some of them already there before during his first presidency, will they be open to objective
analysis and input that helps us all appreciate what's important to GDP for Americans, because
that in great part drives revenue to the government, enabling to pay its bills, and
certainly, you know, the debt, the U.S. debt has got to be dealt with no doubt, you can't
just let that continue to roll out of control.
But there are numerous factors, and the question in my mind is, will individuals be open to
receiving that input, and frankly, in the community, the economic stakeholders like
farmers in Wisconsin, dairy, agriculture, we've got to get ourselves organized so we
have an effective message to share in an appropriate way and at the appropriate time, and sooner
the better.
I know.
Really, because does the need for workers in the U.S. and Wisconsin make these kinds
of mass deportations untenable?
Well, actually, they run in two separate tracks.
The question is whether if there's a movement to go down a path of deportation, which on
its own is no simple task.
I mean, it is so costly to go down that particular pathway with any kind of critical mass, if
I can use that phrase, and I even know we're talking about human beings now.
But so that challenge in its own is daunting.
But they do run in separate tracks, and if we can succeed in helping the president understand
what its impact would be on GDP, on the growth of the American economy.
As I've said before, the Wisconsin economy is so dependent on tens of thousands of immigrants
working in agriculture and dairy and in farming communities, and you take all that
away, and the Wisconsin economy will tank.
What does that mean for the American economy?
If anyone states economy goes in the tank is a whole other analysis and discussion to
have.
But it's a complexity of issues, and we have a history of working with everyone and anyone
in what we do, and that's just the mandate I have from the people who are, you know,
the board of directors of the Hispanic Chamber and our members.
Our my task is to go work with anyone and everyone and do the best we can to help those
issues come to light so the best decisions are made in the interest of the economy.
Great.
Jorge Franco, thanks very much.
Thanks for your time.
You're very welcome, Federica.
Nice to be with you.
That was great.
Thank you.
Thank you so much.
Thank you.
And I'm going to San Miguel.
You will love it, I think somehow, are we okay?
Can you hear me?
Yeah.
You will love some the other day.
I end it.
In fact, I don't know, you know, if you're ever up for the road trip, let's get a little
group together and go do it and maybe even bring the governor along with us.
Marissa would love that.
Thank you.
Thank you so much.
Have a good weekend.
Hope to see you soon.
Thank you.
Bye-bye.
Bye.