ABSTRACT
Rapid demographic changes within the United States mean that the country will soon have a majority-minority population. American Hispanics are becoming a critical political population because of this shift. This chapter analyzes the argumentative strategies of two prominent Hispanic politicians: Republicans Ted Cruz of Texas and Marco Rubio of Florida. Hispanic political candidates, like all political candidates, must persuade many kinds of voters to win elections and serve diverse constituencies. The dramatic increase of Hispanic voters potentially gives Hispanic politicians a ready constituency; it also means that non-Hispanic politicians must now consider strategies for garnering Hispanic support. In addition to using identification with the American dream to reach voters, Ted Cruz explicitly targeted Hispanic listeners during his 2012 convention speech. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are Hispanic politicians who needed to attract non-Hispanic as well as Hispanic voters to win political campaigns.
