WASHINGTON, DC- President Joe Biden thinned his throat and began to sing “Happy Birthday” to Representative Nanette Díaz (California): “Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday Nanette. Happy birthday to you. God bless you, little girl”.
Her interpretation unleashed the first of the 24 series of applause that the attendees of the gala 45 of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI ) the president was given a speech this Thursday at the Walter E. Convention Center in Washington, DC
Other applauses occurred for various reasons, such as when Biden spoke on immigration and the need to approve protection for ‘dreamers’ and other immigrants, after criticizing Republicans for using this population as a “political weapon”, after the governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, send to 22 non-citizens, most of them Venezuelans who applied for asylum at Martha’s Yard, in Massachusetts, apparently under deception, according to the first reports.
“We have a process to manage migrants at the border. We’re working to make sure it’s safe, orderly and humane,” Biden defended. “Republican officials should not interfere with that process by performing […] these political tricks.”
He hoped that there would be progress in the Senate to provide definitive protection for immigrants.
“Senate Republicans should have come to the table a long time ago and provided a path to citizenship for dreamers, workers temporary workers, agricultural workers and essential workers,” he said. “We need to modernize our laws, so businesses can get the workers they need and families don’t have to wait decades to be together. It’s time to do it”.
That unleashed the round 20 of the applause, which made him stop for a few seconds. The others 19 cheers occurred for various reasons, including the Inflation Reduction Law that will benefit Hispanics or Latinos with investments on different fronts, such as the environment, and aid in health.
The Hispanic Dream
President Biden was also celebrated when he spoke of the need to “take roots in dreams”, when he quoted the CHCI motto, mention his cabinet, including the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra, who that night received the Medallion of the American Dream 2022.
“My cabinet is here. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, tonight’s American Dream Medallion honoree,” Biden said. “Everyone here tonight embodies the same idea: rooting in the strength to achieve our dreams.”
Becerra had already honored, after which he spoke about his personal history, his family and his career as a public servant, both in Congress as attorney general in California and now as head of the Ministry of Health. It was presented by Senator Alex Padilla (California).
“I look everywhere and I see myself surrounded by memories accumulated over the years in this place”, he expressed in a speech about the challenges, crying in the process of moving forward or “trying”. He thanked the distinction for the Medallion, awarded for his career and contributions to the community as a Latino leader.
Other leaders also spoke, such as the representative Raúl Ruiz (California), chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), who recalled his childhood in the Coachella Valley, where he lived with farmworkers and other Hispanics struggling daily. That motivated him to obtain his degree as a doctor, to return his knowledge to that community, help them, and now represent them before the Chamber.
“At the age of four, I made a promise to myself that one day I would become a doctor to serve that community that gave me so much,” he recalled.
From joke to strength
Representative Díaz, who had already given a speech, was responsible for introducing President Biden, who arrived making jokes and adding the detail of the “Happy Birthday” to the congresswoman.
“Sit down, please, if you have a table”, the president joked before the almost 3,000 attendees. A source from the event said that when the president confirmed his attendance, the request for tickets to the gala increased considerably.
This also caused an intense road operation with the closure of the surrounding streets and an exhaustive search of the guests, most of them long dresses and tuxedos.
When President Biden gave his speech, Dozens of attendees did not hear the organizers sit down, they wanted to see it as close as possible. In the end between the work of the staff and the Secret Service, people had to return to their seats.
Civil rights and pro-farmer activist, Dolores Huerta , was the finishing touch for the figures of the event. Her words were of encouragement and “strength”. She recognized the retirement of Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard and presented her with the Legacy Award 2022.
The gala was the closing of the CHCI congress, which trains young Hispanics on different fronts, including public administration and legislative processes .