[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 67 (Tuesday, May 5, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Page S2612]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             CINCO DE MAYO

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, the history of Cinco de Mayo is one that is 
largely unfamiliar to most Americans, but to Mexican Americans it is 
very familiar. It is a shame we don't know more about it because the 
story of Cinco de Mayo is one of inspiration. It is the tale of a small 
military force that was vastly outnumbered but refused to capitulate.
  At the Battle of Puebla, 153 years ago, a small Mexican Army force 
found itself outnumbered two to one by the French. The outmatched 
soldiers refused to give up. They couldn't. That was not in their 
makeup. The future of Mexico rested on their shoulders. Unbelievably, 
in spite of seemingly insurmountable odds, the Mexican Army refused to 
give up.
  That is what we celebrate today--Cinco de Mayo. It is not just 
Mexican culture and history, but also the resilient spirit that refuses 
to capitulate. Our United States is better off because of that spirit 
engendered by millions of Mexican Americans and, indeed, the entire 
Latino community. It is that same spirit today that injects new life 
into our communities. It is that same spirit possessed by generations 
of Mexican Americans that has fueled the economics and vibrancy of 
communities throughout the Southwest. It is that same spirit that 
empowers Latino students to push themselves to new heights. And it is 
that same indomitable spirit that inspires Hispanic Americans to defend 
our country on the front lines around the world, as they have done for 
many, many decades.
  Hispanic heritage in this country has never been stronger. Now it 
falls upon us, as Members of Congress, to support Mexican Americans and 
the greater Latino community to reach the promise of the American 
dream. We can do that by investing in working American families, not by 
kicking families off their health insurance, as my friend the 
Republican leader spoke of in this budget that is balanced in name 
only. Really, you can keep talking about how balanced something is, but 
if it is unbalanced, it is still unbalanced.
  The Republicans want to repeal ObamaCare for 16.5 million people--and 
on and on with all the things that are good in that legislation and 
that have so changed America. In this budget, they want to strip 
children's financial aid to go to college or cut job training 
programs--and on and on with what they want to do in this budget.
  They talk about this great meeting that took place to come up with 
this final bill in conference. That conference took about 10 minutes. 
They knew what they wanted to do, and they did it very quickly. The 
Republican budget is unfair, it is unbalanced, it is unwise, and, as 
some have said, it is immoral.
  So as we celebrate Cinco de Mayo today, I hope we will remember that 
unrelenting Mexican spirit that prevailed on the battlefield 153 years 
ago. But more importantly, I hope we will recognize that the same 
spirit is among us today, in the homes of Mexican Americans across 
America.

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