Quote:

---

The blue-and-green signs first appeared early in the year in store windows.

“Juntos con Heller,” (“Together with Heller”) they proclaimed, signifying the business’ support for U.S. Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev.

In May, Heller officially launched his “Juntos con Heller” Hispanic outreach campaign, the result of months of work.

The Heller campaign also has set up a Spanish-language website, deanheller.com/espanol. It is not as robust as the English-language version but does have a summary statement about the candidate.

On both sites, information can be found on Heller’s stance on immigration, including similar sections that address the convoluted immigration system.

“Our nation’s immigration process is bureaucratic, expensive and time-consuming,” the statement reads. “Immigrants who wish to become citizens should not have to spend thousands of dollars on a lawyer to receive an answer from the immigration bureaucracy. For this reason, Dean supports responsible, effective reforms that provide those who wish to remain in our country legally an opportunity to bring their talents and contributions to our great nation.”

Yet, only the English-language site addresses Heller’s stance on border security and illegal immigration:

Quote:

---

"Businesses who knowingly hire illegal immigrants should be held accountable," the English site states. "Dean also believes border patrol must also have the resources necessary to end the flow of illegal immigrants into the United States and opposes amnesty for those who enter America illegally."

Heller is putting a new twist on an old trick, offering one aggressive message in English, while quietly offering a more moderate and accommodating message in Spanish.

On his Spanish-language website, however, his statement indicated concern over Nevada students whose first language is not English.

"No doubt, education is the path to success. Many children in Nevada have the double challenge of getting a good education while still learning to become proficient in English," the site says in Spanish. "Dean has worked for many years to develop quality education, which offers families and communities the resources they need to serve their children."

Derek Washington, president of the Nevada Stonewall Democratic Caucus and a regular at Hispanics in Politics meetings, said Heller was sending mixed signals with his Spanish-language site.

“The audacity of his statement is gob smacking,” Washington said. “He and his party have been so anti-education, so anti-non-English speaking people, anti-immigrant and anti-Dream Act. You’ve got to give him marks for cajones. It’s a little hypocritical to bust out with this ‘poor Spanish-speaking community’ stuff now.”

Heller, through his statements and votes in Congress, has consistently supported limiting or eliminating the ability to conduct government business in any language other than English. Heller has sponsored legislation to limit election ballots to English-only, to mandate that the Free Application for Federal Student Aid only be filled out in English and to make English the official national language. Heller also supported a bill to end birthright citizenship.

Derek Washington, president of the Nevada Stonewall Democratic Caucus and a regular at Hispanics in Politics meetings, said Heller was sending mixed signals with his Spanish-language site.

“The audacity of his statement is gob smacking,” Washington said. “He and his party have been so anti-education, so anti-non-English speaking people, anti-immigrant and anti-Dream Act (Heller has vocally opposed the Dream Act). You’ve got to give him marks for cajones. It’s a little hypocritical to bust out with this ‘poor Spanish-speaking community’ stuff now.” http://m.lasvegassun.com/news/2012/may/28/heller-reaches-out-hisapnics
-foes-say-real-message/

---

"Many years ago, before the advent of modern media and communications, it was fairly common for candidates to play fast and loose like this, delivering a message to voters in one area, then traveling to a new area and delivering the opposite message. More often than not, voters were none the wiser. Heller is putting a new twist on an old trick, offering one aggressive message in English, while quietly offering a more moderate and accommodating message in Spanish".

Heller apparently assumed no one who speaks both languages would stop to read both sites.

Oops.