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Congressional superstar Rep. Mayra Flores (R-TX) has been blocked from joining the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC.) Apparently, conservative Hispanic voices are not allowed in the CHC.

Top members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) are demanding answers about the recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids of seven Mississippi food-processing plants that led to 680 arrests. In a letter sent to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) acting Secretary Kevin McAleenan and ICE acting Director Mark Morgan on Monday, the lawmakers said the timing of the raids left communities in chaos and argued the agencies left children at risk by failing to provide sufficient warning to school districts. “This raid, which is the largest ICE raid in our nation’s history, is a continuation of the Trump Administration’s...

House Democratic leaders scrambled Monday night to rally support for their border funding bill amid a liberal outcry over the Trump administration's treatment of migrant children — and questions over whether the Democrats' proposal would do enough to protect them. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other top leaders huddled in Pelosi's Capitol office late into the night with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) and the senior appropriators who have championed the border bill. Lawmakers leaving the meeting said they expected changes to the $4.5 billion package to ensure stricter standards for the facilities...

Some 30 Democratic lawmakers left the government shutdown behind Friday on a chartered flight to Puerto Rico for a winter retreat with 109 lobbyists and corporate executives during which they planned to see the hit Broadway show “Hamilton” and attend three parties including one with the show’s cast. Those attending the Congressional Hispanic Caucus BOLD PAC winter retreat in San Juan planned to meet with key officials to discuss the cleanup after Hurricane Maria at a roundtable Saturday. But the weekend is packed with free time for the members and their families on the trip. “We are excited for you...

A meeting between congressional Hispanic Democrats and the Trump administration's top immigration enforcement officer was canceled abruptly Tuesday in the wake of national immigration raids that have roiled Latino leaders. Thomas Homan, the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), told members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Tuesday that he would not be attending the meeting, according to CHC aides. CHC Chairwoman Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-N.M.) and Homan had a phone call at 2 p.m. to discuss the cancellation. The CHC is expected to hold a press conference later Tuesday. Homan's office said it had received too...

© Greg Nash The Congressional Hispanic Caucus is requesting a meeting with U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement (ICE) officials over recent raids on undocumented immigrants. Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-N.M.), who chairs the caucus, sent a letter to ICE asking for “an open and candid discussion” on the enforcement changes, saying the raids "have struck fear in the hearts of the immigrant community.” “It is critical that we meet with you in person immediately to discuss the impact these raids have had on our communities as well as obtain clarifying guidance on how ICE policies will differ from...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is embarking on a partnership with universities across the country in hopes of infusing its ranks with more diversity as it faces civil rights complaints from Latino farmers and ranchers. But some members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus are voicing frustration, saying the agency has been dragging its feet and has yet to adequately address their concerns. The caucus had asked for a meeting with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in October, saying members received reports from constituents indicating significant civil rights violations and discrimination by the agency. Caucus members also pointed to a 2013 review...

Holder lays out timetable "so that by early February we'd have a new attorney general," while Earnest defends lame-duck nods. WASHINGTON — It’s been more than a month since Attorney General Eric Holder announced his resignation, vowing to stay in office until his successor is confirmed. That nominee hasn’t been named. But days before critical midterm elections for the president’s party, a lobbying bloc in Congress has made clear its pick for the job. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus has had President Obama’s ear to an extent, meeting every few months with the commander in chief behind closed doors to strategize...

Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) have called on the Department of Homeland Security to sever its ties with Arizona police in response to the state's new immigration enforcement law. Calling Arizona's recently-enacted law requiring police to question and verify the citizenship of anyone they reasonably suspect to be an illegal immigrant "appaling," three leaders of the Hispanic Caucus wrote Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to demand the termination of its immigration-enforcement partnerships with law enforcement entities in the state. “The federal government should not be an accessory to the unconstitutional actions of the Arizona state government,” Rep....

A congressman from the president’s home state is threatening that he will urge Latino voters to stay home this November if the Democratic Party does not make a concerted effort to pass comprehensive immigration reform. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (Ill.) is arguably President Barack Obama’s biggest Democratic critic in Congress. And he’s not fond of Obama’s top advisers at the White House, either. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) member has strongly criticized the administration’s policy on deportation and questioned its commitment to far-reaching reform. Some Democrats have felt little urgency in pursuing the controversial issue, partly because they see no risk...

Radio and television broadcasters - at least those catering to black and Hispanic audiences - soon may join financial services and auto manufacturers as the beneficiaries of a federal bailout. For the last half year, a group of executives of minority-themed media enterprises have been lobbying Capitol Hill to provide a boost to their money-losing operations. Having natural allies in the black and Hispanic congressional caucuses, they may win additional support from the Obama administration and any number of white lawmakers eager to expand their base of support. As it is, one of its key members already may have coaxed...

The Climate and Health Council, a collaboration of worldwide health organizations including the Royal College of Nursing, the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal Society of Medicine, believes there is a direct link between climate change and better health. Their controversial plan would see GPs and nurses give out advice to their patients on how to lower their carbon footprint. The Council believes that climate change “threatens to radically undermine the health of all peoples”. It believes health professionals are ideally placed to promote change because “we have ethical responsibility…..as well as the capacity to influence people and our...

Hispanic Democrats will have their first West Wing meeting with President Obama on Wednesday morning to discuss immigration reform, according to Democratic sources. The meeting is the first face-to-face sit-down between Obama and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) since the president was sworn in. Some in the CHC have recently expressed frustration that Obama has not talked more about immigration in his first two months in office. Immigration reform is front-and-center on the group’s agenda. CHC is eager to hear the president’s ideas and proposals for tackling immigration reform, not only regarding a comprehensive reform bill that could provide a...

Several members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) and their allies off Capitol Hill were furious that House Democratic leaders urged some of their colleagues to vote for an immigration-enforcement bill. Democratic leaders encouraged members of the Democrats’ Frontline program — which aids the party’s 10 most at-risk incumbents — to vote for the bill to avert Republican attacks that could paint the vulnerable members as soft on illegal immigration, Democratic aides and lobbying sources said. Every Frontline member ultimately voted for the immigration bill, which enjoyed the support of 36 Democrats overall. The move by Democratic leaders troubled Hispanic...

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) voted 14-1 Tuesday night to oppose the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), with four Texans abstaining and one voting against the position. The four who abstained — Democratic Reps. Charles Gonzalez, Ruben Hinojosa, Solomon Ortiz and Silvestre Reyes — are all publicly undecided about the sweeping trade agreement, but pro-CAFTA forces have said they believe they have secured the support of Ortiz and Reyes. keri rasmussen Rep. Charles Gonzalez was one of four Texas Democrats to abstain. The CHC will circulate its opposition statement this morning and make it public later in the afternoon,...