A prominent Hispanic political activist in Nevada who was once touted by the Jeb Bush campaign as a supporter has said he will caucus for Marco Rubio next year.
“Marco Rubio is running a grassroots campaign with a positive message that appeals to all cross sections of America,” said Fernando Romero in a statement provided by the Rubio campaign. “His life story is one that resonates with many Nevadans, as he is the son of a bartender and maid. I am proud to announce that I will caucus for Marco Rubio on Tuesday, February 23rd.”
Romero, 69, is the president of the non-partisan Hispanics in Politics, the oldest political organization for Hispanics in Nevada. Reached by phone Wednesday afternoon, Romero said his endorsement is his own and not a reflection of his organization’s views. Until this year, the 48-year resident of the Las Vegas area was a Democrat, but in June, he attended a Jeb Bush campaign event in Nevada and announced he had switched parties. In a video published by the Bush campaign, the former Florida governor is seen hugging Romero as the crowd cheers:
In October, BuzzFeed reported on Bush’s 228-member Hispanic leadership committee, of which Romero was listed as a member. But Romero tells THE WEEKLY STANDARD he was never asked beforehand about being added to the list and was never a committed Bush supporter.
“I was aware [of the list] when somebody called me and let me know I was on that list,” Romero says. “Whoever was in charge of building that list did not contact me.”
Romero says he did organize an event honoring Bush’s wife, who is Mexican, but that his interest in Bush was “misconstrued” to be support. Request for comment from the Bush campaign has not yet been returned. The Rubio campaign tells TWS it does not comment on endorsements.
Romero says he feels “bad” about the misunderstanding but notes he has attended other candidates’ events, including Rubio’s.
“I’ve been to 4 Rubio events, and every time I go I’m more energized,” he says, citing the Florida senator’s appeal to young people as well as his connections to Las Vegas. As a child, Rubio lived for three years in Las Vegas, where he still has family. His cousin, Mo Denis, is a Democratic state senator in Nevada.
Romero is also a champion for comprehensive immigration reform, which he says he believes Rubio can achieve as president. He said it was “unfortunate” that the Gang of 8 immigration reform Rubio championed in 2013 did not pass. Asked if he thought Rubio’s attempts to walk away from that proposal concern him, Romero said Rubio did so because of the “political climate.”
Romero says he became “disenchanted” with his Democratic party after President Obama promised and failed to deliver on immigration reform. He felt he was getting the same empty promises from Hillary Clinton. “I was a Democrat for 48 years, when it appeared there was going to be coronation, I was not very happy with that,” he says. “I don’t like her policies. I don’t like the fact that she made the same promise that President Obama made.”
The Republican party, he says, is where immigration-reform supporters like himself can be effective. “That’s another reason I joined the party is we need to have people on the inside like myself to try to convince people in the leadership that that’s the right way to go,” he says. “Mr. Rubio seems to be heading that way.”
