Congressional Democrats are going bigger than ever on the environment. But that focus could create political liabilities in energy rich areas such as heavily Latino South Texas, where many voters turned against Democrats during the 2020 election.
into overdrive, however. It includes language on instituting high fees for polluters and tax incentives for clean energy and electric cars, while introducing new requirements that the nation’s power grid rely more heavily on renewable energy sources.
That feeling is far from universal among Hispanics, however. An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll in September found that 58% of Hispanics say they approve of Biden’s handling of climate change, while 38% disapprove. Still, Gabriel Sanchez, executive director of the University of New Mexico’s Center for Social Policy, said threats of climate change traditionally poll as more pressing concerns among Latinos than the population at large — unless they are presented in terms of job losses. He said that in Texas, New Mexico, Colorado and other energy producing states, “you’ve had tension for awhile.”
“I see this rise in the Republican Party,” said Flores, who campaigns under the slogan “Make America Godly Again.” “People are going to go vote to get their jobs back.”