My first time voting was in the 1960 Kennedy/Nixon election. I voted straight Republican. The Republicans’ reported policies of lower taxes, limited government, and fiscal responsibility sounded appealing. This was my consistent voting pattern, with only two exceptions during the next three decades.
The first venture away from the Republican candidate was when I chose Lyndon Johnson. He taught school in Cotulla, Texas, after he graduated from college. I spent time in Cotulla. People there remembered how kind and helpful he was toward the Mexican children. That made a difference in my choice.
Another incident with which I was familiar and that influenced my choice for Democrat Lyndon Johnson happened in Three Rivers, Texas. This was a town near where I grew up. A Mexican-American soldier, Felix Longoria, died in combat near the end of WWII. Four years later, the U.S Army notified his widow, Beatriz, that his body was being sent home to Three Rivers (history.com/news/mexicanamerican- rights-longoria-lyndonjohnson- hector-garcia).
Beatriz went to plan arrangements at the town’s only funeral home. They offered to bury Felix in the “Mexican section,” which was separated from the rest of the cemetery by a barbed-wire fence, but the wake could not be held in the funeral parlor. The reason given was because, “the whites won’t like it” (history.com).
Senator Lyndon Johnson sent a telegram on January 11, 1949, expressing his deep regrets to learn of the prejudice that extended even beyond this life. He arranged for Private Longoria’s burial at Arlington National Cemetery—making him the first Mexican-American who fought in WWII to receive this honor. Senator Johnson and his wife, Lady Bird, stood beside the family as this brave American hero was buried (history.com).
Lyndon Johnson did make some bad decisions in escalating the Vietnam problem. If he had run for reelection, I don’t think he would have been my choice.
Jimmy Carter was my next departure from voting for a Republican Presidential candidate. He seemed honest, humble, and compassionate. He cared about helping ordinary people. Again, that made the difference. My impressions proved to be true by his life of service after leaving the White House.
It became increasingly important for me to learn about a candidate’s character in deciding how I should vote. Studies of former Presidents from the past century gave valuable lessons. Republican presidents typically were known for their emphasis on a strong military and financial prosperity.
Republican President Calvin Coolidge said, “After all, the chief business of the American people is business. They are profoundly concerned with producing, buying, selling, investing, and prospering in the world” (President Coolidge, speech to the American Society of Newspaper Editors, Washington, D.C., January 17, 1925).
Republican President Herbert Hoover’s name is synonymous with the Great Depression and his belief that capitalism works best if government involvement is limited. He opposed handouts to the outof- work Americans, believing his system would work if given enough time. But people were starving and could not wait (history.com/news/ great-depression-herbert-hoovernew- deal).
A Hoover policy that had particularly negative effects was the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act. This drastically restricted imports. Foreign governments retaliated by reducing imports of American goods to their countries. This resulted in many more American factories closing, thus putting more people out of work and becoming destitute. Unemployment reached 25 percent (history.com).
I witnessed first-hand President Eisenhower’s “Operation Bracero,” called by the demeaning term “Operation Wetback.” One day in 1954, while I was hoeing in a field along with about a dozen Mexican day laborers, several police vehicles drove up. Officers got out, questioned them, and took several into custody. The reason was they lacked immediate proof of American citizenship (history.com/news/ operation-wetback-eisenhower- 1954/deportation).
Those officers ignored me and did not ask for my identification because I was White.
About 1.3 million people were deported in this program, which was the largest mass deportation in American history. Some of those were U. S. citizens but could not show proof immediately. Many died from hunger and heat exhaustion after being dumped in remote areas with no provisions (history. com).
“Operation Wetback” did not last long. It caused massive labor shortages. Produce rotted in the fields and vineyards. Restaurants and hotels suffered. Construction slowed because the source of cheap and eager workers was gone.
On a personal level, my own family was affected. My mother worked in the fields. She had to drive the tractor while loading watermelons, then drove the loaded truck to the market. We all had to pitch in and work even harder.
Democrat presidents tend to be remembered for their emphasis on social issues. Franklin D. Roosevelt pulled America out of the Great Depression with programs that directly helped people who were desperate. The Federal Depositors Insurance Corporation (FDIC) keeps our money safe if our bank closes. The WPA and CCC gave millions of people jobs and paychecks. Social Security became our Safety Net. Minimum wage laws provided decent wages.
Truman started the free-schoollunch program and integrated the military and civil service. Lyndon Johnson launched the Head Start Program. Obama gave us the Affordable Care Act, enabling millions of uninsured people to afford coverage, even if they had preexisting health issues.
Biden signed the Infrastructure Act that provided the largest funding in American history to rebuild roads, bridges, and seaports, to pro- vide internet for rural areas, and to accomplish many other infrastructure projects. These generate employment and paychecks, all of which have a positive impact on the nation’s economy.
Certainly, not every president, whether Republican or Democrat, has been perfect, because they are human. All have made miscalculations, some worse than others. However, the candidates who demonstrate empathy and provide help for those who need it the most are my choices.
In my view, America needs leaders who are compassionate, have integrity, and resist injustices. I moved under the Democrat tent because history shows me these qualities are far more evident there than in the other party.