Betty Cárdenas is part of the Republican Party and one of the people who knows the most about the Latin world. She worked on Donad Trump's presidential campaign to get Hispanic votes in Texas. Born to immigrant parents, she was the president of the National Hispanic Republican Assembly and now she is the visible face of Bienvenido Action PAC, a Latino organization that has the endorsement of the most prominent Hispanic legislators of the Republican Party, from Marco Rubio and Maria Elvira Salazar in Florida to Mayra Flores and Mónica de la Cruz in Texas. In an exclusive dialogue with LPO, she analyzes the campaign leading up to the 2024 presidential elections and talks about Elon Musk's connections with the Republican Party and the Southern border.
How did Bienvenido Action PAC emerge and what does it propose?
After I left the Republican Party, after I gave up my position on Hispanic issues, I said "I'm going to take a vacation and I'm going to put politics aside," but it turns out that we are involved in this and there are no vacations here. Bienvenido came to light in 2018 and I was always fascinated, because it is an organization dedicated more than anything to educating voters, the Hispanic community. We are not talking about a candidate or a party, they make their own decision. The goal is to be participating, giving advice to voters and there we met several national leaders who wanted to run for Congressional offices. For that they need a PAC, a federal organization to be able to launch Hispanic candidates under one party. That's how Bienvenido Action PAC was born. Now it identifies not only Hispanic leaders. If they identify themselves with the values of the United States - for me there is no difference with Hispanic values - it is the same. In fact, our first launched candidate was Mayra Flores.
Mayra Flores was the first Latina Republican to win in South Texas. What is the strategy to win this time in a regular election?
Mayra has a very good chance of winning, in fact we are going to support her. I met her at the end of 2018, when I was president of the Hispanic Republican Party. She called and told me that she wanted to get more involved. She wanted to serve the community more and it's like when you wake up and say "I've just understood something and I want to tell everyone." I met her there and I took her under my wing. She always had a charisma with the public, the audience followed her, it's very easy for the community to follow her because she is not a career politician, she has worked like most people and she identifies herself with most people. So I think that's the feed with her audience, that she is a normal person.
How did she gain so much prominence among Latinos?
When I met her, she registered with the local Republican Party in South Texas and helped Representative Mónica de la Cruz in 2018. She helped her with the campaign and brought Mónica a lot of audience. Then she told me: "I think I'm going to run, I'm going to put my name forward for congresswoman, I helped Mónica, now there are a lot of opportunities in my district." There Bienvenido Action PAC emerge. I said "You know what? I want to support you, and we have to look for an organization that supports candidates like you. And she was the first candidate we supported.
Mayra has grown up in South Texas with her family. It was 150 years under one party, the Democratic Party. For a Republican, winning there is like going against what everyone votes there, 90% are Democrats. She listened to me and volunteered at the local party, she campaigned with Monica, she also helped us with Trump, she is a servant at heart.
What place does the Latino vote occupy today in Trump and the Republicans' strategy to return to power?
I'm not going to speak for the Trump campaign because we have not yet passed the primaries and I'm not in the Hispanic department of the Republican Party either. What I can say from Bienvenido Action is that the Latino vote is the most important vote in history for any candidate and any party, and it is in the air. It's not guaranteed for one party or the other. You must give it your all, and both parties are going to have to make every effort in the world to be able to get the Latino vote. If we go back to 2020, Biden did not pay attention to the Latino vote, he ignored it a lot. Trump paid attention, he rose more in the percentage of Latinos voting, it was historic. And now Biden hired Julie Chávez, who he knows is Cesar Chávez granddaughter, and is the one running his entire campaign. There are organizations like Voto Latino, which have raised millions of dollars, invested more than 70 million dollars, and bought all the Hispanic radio stations in the Southern states. Only they are putting money into the Latino vote, because they know that it will define the next president. The Latino vote is crucial for any party.
Do you think that Biden's strategy with Julie Chávez and the investment they are making in the Latino vote can work for the Democrats?
Investment is very important. However, there is Bienvenido Action PAC, we are also providing information and we are going to invest a lot to clarify what is at stake in the voting. I think that Biden and the Democrats can invest all they want, but in the end the issue is who Latinos and the Hispanic community identify with the most. No matter how much money they put into it, nothing can separate you from your values, from who you really are. I have seen small local campaigns in which Democrats enter with millions of dollars and Republicans win with much less. The important thing is the message that identifies with the community. We are putting candidates who are easily identified, not career candidates.
It is common to hear that Latinos from the Southern states gave Biden victory in the Senate in 2022. What is the message to Latinas who leaned toward the Democrats?
Democrats are very strategic and always take care of the minority vote. Some talk about the PRO-Life issue as a decisive factor, but not necessarily. A year before his re-election, Obama put DACA on the agenda. Now there were the university students who came out to vote and had not voted in many years. Many voted for the firt time because Biden is promising them that they will no longer have student debt, that he will remove it. Imagine, everyone voted for them, and it was unconstitutional. We Republicans knew that it was unconstitutional and was not going to happen. They make these false promises before the elections. So, my message to Latinas would be to not be guided by emotions just before the elections, but to think about their family and the generations to come. We Hispanics are very emotional, but we must be strong in our values, not to move away from the values that identify us. No matter what we watch on the news, no matter what promises they are making to us, the Republican Party is the one that supports families the most, Hispanic unity and empowerment. Don't forget that, no matter if you have the character of someone you don't like in front of you. I like Trump, but if they don't like him, don't think about that but think about the policies he brings.
Alex Otaola: "Un latino está por llegar a la Casa Blanca, pero no será demócrata"
Elon Musk was recently at the border and you thanked him. What is the contribution that Musk makes to the Republicans in Texas?
I adore his mother (Maye Musk), I identify myself with her a lot because I am a mother, a single mother for the first years of my life. We have made several connections with Elon Musk, especially in Mexico. I really loved that he went to the border. He is a person like me, he doesn't let himself be carried away by what the media say, but rather he verifies, and I am sure that what he is seeing is reality. He listened. He said "It's happening several hours from here". He went and saw what was happening. We are one of the first organizations that supported Representative Tony Gonzales since he announced that he was going to run, he is one of the congressmen with the largest border area. The fact that they both went to see the problem there was fantastic.
What is your relationship with Musk?
Our cooperation and friendship had already been there. And if he is interested, the power he has not only in the business but also with X can be a message. He is very strategic, he always says he is a moderate. He sends you messages of conservatism. He knows that this is a country of opportunities, and he is just like us. That is why we identify so much with him and it is so important that he is in Texas, specifically in a border state, which is where most immigration happen. He was also an immigrant, he also had to go through all those things. He is open to giving visas, to hiring people who come with visas. Many people think that conservatives are not in favor of that, but we are. He is changing the Republican message, and the Republicans, the extremists don't realize that he is inserting the conversation that has always existed but many have evaded.
Does he feel part of the Republican Party? Is he a friend or a Party member?
He is part of the Republican Party, he supports many Republicans, I could say he is like us in Bienvenido Action, he is there with us always. Our list of values is very similar because we are pro-growth, pro-business and pro-immigration for having true legalization. All that identifies us. But he identifies himself more as a Republican, and I think it's more because of his business that he doesn't get much more involved in the party.
What did you do together in Mexico?
We did it here, and it grew for Mexico. We brought the governor of Nuevo León, Samuel GarcÃa, and we did a tour in Dallas. We introduced him to several businessmen, he was in several round tables with them, the result was a second meeting directly with Musk and then a meeting with the governor of Texas (Greg Abbott). So, Musk decided to open his factory in Nuevo León, go to Nuevo León and meet the governor. He went there to meet the governor we were promoting and the deal was made. We also helped with the highway from Texas to Nuevo León, a direct highway to Monterrey. We helped because that also helps Texas businesses so that trucks enter and leave there faster, specifically those with large loads. And there is a deeper check on what is happening, but that is also effective and that is being done through this new road. We had to do with that. And of course, the assistance also benefits Elon a lot, he was very focused on that.
Bienvenido Action PAC works Musk.
What we do at Bienvenido is to connect Mexican businessmen with businessmen in the United States so that they can make an agreement and follow what T-MEC is. We make that connection, and we also connect with the government of Mexico. That's how it works. It's not only Bienvenido and Elon. It's the Bienvenido program supporting businessmen.
Are you thinking on any other joint project with Musk?
We want to do a lot, we cannot talk much, but there are many of his proposals, we want to do more things with Elon.
What is your opinion on the fentanyl crisis?
Many people are suffering, there is a very strong crisis and it's ending with many lives, it's something that comes from China. I mean, let's talk about it as it is. It's something that comes from China and Mexico has definitely not taken the bull by the horns. I agreed that the border must be more secure, almost to the point of literally putting up a wall, but I don't know if that will be enough. Something has to be done, more supervision of those who are entering. Honestly, I have never been a thing like this. Thousands of people are entering and nothing can be done. We don't know what they are carrying, we don't know what they are bringing, good people are crossing, but also people whose plans we don't know. Many on the terrorist list have been caught. This fentanyl thing is very strong, and it's not only the United States, but all nations should be addressing this problem.
Do you agree with the Republicans who demand a United States invasion of Mexico?
Yes. I think that if Trump were in office, he would have already made a deal with the president of Mexico to support Mexico, because the southern border is open. Mexico is a country of asylum, they basically support those in asylum, just like the United States. When Mexico really needs support, I don't know why they haven't declared that they won't go through this and have more security. The biggest problem there is the southern border. If Mexico were stricter on its border, it would not have more than 170 countries crossing its territory, many that don't even reach the United States border. If Trump were in charge, there would have already been an agreement between the two countries to support Mexico and enter with the armed forces and end the drug problem.
Do you think Trump would have convinced López Obrador?
Yes. We must unite with the armed forces and support each other because I know that Mexico has its military, but we must be honest when there is a Republican president in office, the United States armed forces are incomparable. They are the ones leading the entire world. I think Trump would have already come out with a plan to end all this drug issue.
Please do not cut or paste our notes on the web, you have the possibility to redistribute them using our tools.
"Elon Musk está cambiando el mensaje republicano sin que los republicanos extremistas se estén dando cuenta"
