Earlier this week U.S. Senator John Kyl (R) AZ advocated repealing the 14^th amendment to the constitution. As insane as that sounds he’s serious. The 14^th amendment when enacted 140 years ago gave newly freed slaves citizenship.

Sen. Lindsay Graham (R) SC who I had respected, is in support of this insane idea!  The GOP is destroying any political capital with Latino voters. It’s surprising how myopic they are on this issue. If they continue on this track they will not recover. It’s political suicide for a short term political gain.

It’s appalling to see the level xenophobia and desperation on the part of conservatives on this issue. In all honesty I don’t think this would ever occur. All legal experts contend that the 14^th amendment is on strong legal ground and would withstand any attempts to repeal or challenge it. Thank God!

To even consider repealing it is a quantum leap backwards. The GOP is shooting itself in the foot on this issue. As much as they have pandered to the Latino community for their votes you would think they would approach immigration reform in a more constructive manner.

The GOP will cause decades of irreparable harm to themselves with Latinos. They are imploding on the issue of immigration. Whatever short term gains they may get out of the mid-term elections will not justify the long term harm they are doing to themselves.

This is obviously about the changing demographic in our country. Within the next twenty to thirty years the United States will be predominately Brown and Black. That is unsettling for a lot of folks. It’s obvious that this change is not welcome.

Conservatives don’t surprise me anymore with their antics. Everyone who’s running for any office on the Republican side is trying to show that he or she is more conservative than their Republican colleague. It’s shameful the depths they are willing to take this dangerous game.

What’s next? Repeal the emancipation proclamation along with the 13^th and 15^th amendments as well? It wouldn’t surprise me one bit! Seriously! Don’t even mention the politics of fear that is always used to sway voters. The fear mongering and demagoguery is appalling and shameful.

Pandering to white voters fear and racial insecurities serves no purpose what so ever. The media often talks about the post racial era we’re in with the election of President Obama. I beg to differ. Racism has reared its ugly head once again. Playing to the electorate’s racial fears is only helping us take a quantum leap backwards.

I am hopeful that the majority of Americans find this behavior abhorrent and unacceptable. In the end cooler and rational heads will prevail and stop this madness. The constitution has served our nation well and has righted some grievous wrongs in our country’s history. Repealing the 14^th amendment would make us the laughing stock of the free world as well as the biggest hypocrites in the world.

In the wake of Judge Sotomayor’s nominations there has been much ado about her qualifications. One sentence from a remark she made about being a Latina having more insight and sensitivity than a white male has caused a firestorm of controversy. Much to the chagrin of the GOP there’s not much dirt they can dig up on this infinitely qualified Supreme Court candidate.

She has a stellar record on the bench and has sided many times with the prosecution on her cases. Yes, she is a liberal but not some crazed radical that will try to make the law from the bench. She has impeccable credentials and a moving American story. Her rise from the projects out of the Bronx to her rise as an Ivy League judge is no small feat and it plays well in the media.

Given the implosion of the GOP and there need to expand the party, they must tread lightly as they contest her nomination. For Obama’s part, he’s not placating Latino’s. He has their support and is not pandering. The GOP has everything to lose if they go after her too aggressively.

It’s interesting that after 111 Supreme Court justices; all of which have been white with the exception of Thurgood Marshal and Clarence Thomas people would balk at this nomination! All the furor of her using her life experiences to render her decision on major cases. What about Chief Justice William Taney, who in the Dred Scott decision wrote a racist opinion stating that a black man had no rights that a white man was bound to respect,!

It seems like now that the pendulum has swung the other way and people of color have a little power folks are having a cow! We are all the sum of our life experiences. We wouldn’t be human if that didn’t enter into the picture. Bottom line, judge Sotomayor is capable and qualified and would serve with honor and distinction. If we look objectively at her experience and qualifications she is more than qualified and would be an excellent choice to the Supreme Court.

President Obama has shown courage and good judgment in her selection. He is a win win situation. His detractors stand much to lose in try to undermine this selection. If the GOP is sincere about winning latino support, they would be well advised to calm down and play nice.

The more vitriol that they spew the more it helps the democrats. The GOP tent is shrinking by leaps and bounds. The Rush Limbaugh’s of the world are only helping the Dem’s cause. They will need a messiah to repair the damage that has been done. Thankfully, we have our own in Barack Obama!

The following is the latest update on a potential serial killer stalking Latina women.

Officers in two Utah cities will make extra patrols Monday, the anniversary of the slayings of two women — one in 2006, the other in 2008 — who investigators believe were killed by the same person. 

Investigators recently learned forensic evidence links the February 9, 2006, killing of a pregnant Sonia Mejia and the February 9, 2008, slaying of Damiana Castillo, police in two neighboring Salt Lake City suburbs announced last week.

No arrest has been made. Both women were Hispanic, and both were found slain in their apartments — one in Taylorsville and the other a mile away in West Valley City.

Authorities are trying to determine whether the date is significant, but they want residents “to be cautious in general” and not focus just on Monday, West Valley City police Sgt. Mike Powell said. Still, police will do extra patrols Monday “just so the public is aware we’re out and about,” he said.

Investigators are not saying a serial killer was involved, Powell said. But the links are alarming for the involved neighborhoods, which are heavily populated by Latinos, the director of a Hispanic advocacy group said.

“[News of the links] is important because, although I think law enforcement doesn’t want to say it, this could be a serial killer type of thing, and there’s concern from our point of view that there could be a guy that could be trying to kill people on a certain date,” said Tony Yapias, director of Proyecto Latino de Utah.

Mejia, 29, was six months’ pregnant when she was sexually assaulted and strangled, CNN affiliate KSL-TV in Salt Lake City reported. She was found dead in her Taylorsville apartment, and her unborn child died, too, police said.

Her car was found abandoned outside a hotel in nearby Murray, Utah, according to KSL. Some jewelry of Mejia’s is missing, Powell said.

Castillo, 57, was found strangled in her apartment two years later in West Valley City, about a mile away from Mejia’s apartment, according to CNN affiliate KTVX-TV in Salt Lake City. Her son found the body, and there were no signs of forced entry, KSL reported.

Police in both cities announced on Wednesday that forensic evidence linked theslayings to one killer, and that they had reason to believe he was a Hispanic male in his late teens or early 20s, standing between 5 feet 3 inches to 5 feet 5 inches tall, weighing 135 to 150 pounds and having short black hair.

Powell declined to say how investigators arrived at those details or what kind of forensic evidence linked the killings. Police haven’t said whether the women knew their attacker.

Investigators haven’t linked the killings to any other but are “not closing the door on anything that might be related,” said Powell, who added he isn’t aware of any other February 9 homicides in the two cities or surrounding communities in recent years.

The link between the February 9 stranglings has rattled some residents in the area, KTVX reported.

“I’m scared for me and my daughter to be here,” West Valley City resident Elizabeth Berrelleza told KTVX.

The police departments said Thursday they’ve created a joint eight-member task force to investigate the killings. The departments had known about each other’s cases and had compared information for quite some time, “but it’s just recently that we’ve been able to link the cases,” Powell said.

“[The significance of the date] is something that we’re looking further into, and if someone has some information that would enlighten us, that would be helpful,” Powell said.

At a news conference Thursday, the task force made a special appeal to Latinos in the area, saying anyone with information — including any undocumented person — should come forward without fear.

“Sometimes they’re worried about their [immigration] status. We’re not interested in that. Come forward regardless,” Powell said in an interview after the news conference.

Police reached out to Yapias and other leaders of Hispanic advocacy groups, Yapias said. Yapias’ group is working with Spanish-language media in the area to spread information about the killings and investigators’ request for information, he said.

“Law enforcement has assured everyone that if someone is undocumented and they have information, they just want the information,” Yapias said. “But if they’re afraid because of their legal status, then I or any other community leader can act as a mediator to make sure they’re going to be protected.”

Anyone with information about the slayings can call the task force’s tip line at 801-965-5121 or send an e-mail to the task force at taskforce@wvc-ut.gov, police said.