Rep. Judith Garcia on migrants in Massachusetts, and Donald Trump's polling among Latinos
BOSTON – Massachusetts State Rep. Judith Garcia, a Democrat from Chelsea, joined WBZ-TV on the first day of Hispanic Heritage Month for a discussion of issues impacting local Latinos. Garcia also weighed in on why she believes former President Donald Trump polls well with Latino voters.
Migrants in Massachusetts
"Massachusetts historically has welcomed migrants, and it's part of our history," Garcia said.
But with federal immigration policies in disarray, Garcia says it will continue to be up to the state to respond to migrant surges.
"We have guardrails that we need to put in place, because we need to keep in mind how much money we have, which space we have, and we need to continue again to [offer] compassion. We've done that, but now we need to focus really on the need of keeping a keen balance of how we distribute our resources," Garcia said.
Why Donald Trump polls well among Latino voters
Garcia, a Honduran-American running unopposed for re-election to a second term in the House, says no one should be surprised to see former President Donald Trump polling well for now among Latino voters.
"We're not a monolith," she said. "A Honduran-American thinks a certain way and very differently from a Venezuelan, from a Cuban, from an Ecuadorian, and all of that needs to be accounted for. Latinos care about the economy, they care about health care, and...when we talk about immigration, they're looking at the individuals who are already here. They want to make sure that we can bring them out of the shadows and provide them with citizenship. So you gotta focus on the details. Just saying Donald Trump is bad is not going to get it done."
Should Massachusetts remove MCAS graduation requirement?
And on ballot question No. 2, the proposed removal of MCAS passage as a graduation requirement, Garcia draws on her own experience as a Chelsea High School graduate dealing with MCAS to inform her position.
"MCAS definitely places a burden," she said. "However, I think it pushed my classes to really put in the work to be able to perform. So I think personally, that the MCAS set a sort of level of achievement that can prepare us to go into higher education."