Charlie Rangel did a rather amazing interview with Juan Williams of Fox News Latino yesterday that centered around the question of how Mr. Rangel can win in a majority Latino district, and whether or not this campaign will cause a rift between blacks and Latinos.

It was amazing for several reasons.

First, Mr. Rangel pointed out to Mr. Williams that this is not the first time that he has received a challenge from a Latino.

You are passed over Adam Clayton Powell, who was a candidate against me who was born in Puerto Rico which shows you how little difference it really makes in a campaign. Because the fact that he was born in Puerto Rico was never never never an issue in that campaign. And the fact that I won in all the Puerto Rican districts.

Mr. Rangel is correct on both counts–Adam Clayton Powell IV was born in Puerto Rico, and it wasn’t an issue in the campaign, but part of the reason for that was that Mr. Powell never really identified strongly as a Latino in public life, partially because he is the son of one of the most famous African-American leaders in the country.

Regardless, then Mr. Rangel went off the rails a bit. Read More