Franky Benítez

Little did I know that a simple Facebook message from my friend Bob Quasius of Cafe con Leche Republicans would cause the head of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) to issue an apology for how NAHJ handled a very embarrassing and unprofessional situation.

Yet that is exactly what happened when GOP strategist Hector Barajas expressed his raw displeasure on Twitter after showing up to NAHJ’s conference in Anaheim this past weekend to be part of a Latino voter panel. NAHJ had invited him, but when Barajas showed up to the panel, he was no longer on the panel. The reason, according to Barajas, was that California State Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez, a Democrat, had specifically asked that Barajas not be part of the panel.

From what I understand, Pérez and Barajas are not political friends, and there is a history of animosity.

That news led to a…

It is getting all too common.

The profile of a famous personality tweets. The profile regrets the tweet. The profile panics, deletes the tweet, and thinks all is well.

Not knowing that pretty much everything posted on the Internet can be captured, people with screen grab apps snap a photo of the tweet and within hours, you have a news story.

The list is never-ending: Justin Bieber. Ricky Gervais. Oprah. Eva Longoria. And of course, that Weiner guy running for mayor of New York.

This week, Dr. Phil got into Twitter trouble when his official Twitter profile tweeted the following: “If a girl is drunk, is it okay to have sex with her. Reply yes or no to @drphil #teensaccused.”

The online response, as expected, was insane. By Wednesday, Dr. Phil had to issue a statement. A petition was created for a more public apology. There was outrage. There was…

The Major League Baseball drug suspension angle that few are talking about is that yesterday’s Group of 13 has one thing in common:  they are all Latino.

Antonio Bastardo, Nelson Cruz, Fauntino de los Santos, Fernando Martínez, Jordan Norberto, Johnny Peralta, Jordan Norberto, Césat Puello, Jordany Valdespin: Dominican Republic

Francisco Cervelli, Sergio Escalona, Jesús Montero: Venezuela

Evereth Cabrera: Nicaragua

And yes, Alex Rodriguez, who was born in New York City, but is pleading that his fellow Dominicans give him another chance: “My mom is spending a lot of time in Santo Domingo now and is always praying for me. I want to thank all my Dominican fans, this is a difficult time, I carry the flag on my shoulders and this protects me, also with God’s help. I am very Dominican. Very proud of being Dominican. Very proud that the Dominican team won the crown [at the World Baseball Classic]. I…

I went into yesterday’s Senate hearing about Puerto Rico’s political status with really low expectations. After watching the entire session (twice), my expectations plunged from low to lower that low. Like “how low can you go” limbo low.

The 88-minute Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing was jammed packed with so many issues, so many overarching themes, that instead of trying to tie them all together, I am going to comment on each one. To say I am disappointed is an understatement. This hearing was a colonial bag job.

Only three Senators showed up. Let’s start here. While the Puerto Rican press worked really hard to portray the narrative that Puerto Rico’s political status being discussed in Washington, D.C., was a really big deal, only three Senators showed up. Three Senators, and two of them —Oregon’s Ron Wyden (D) and Alaska’s Lisa Murkowksi (R)— had to be there since…

When you witness a contentious debate unraveling from all corners of your social networks, it becomes more and more difficult to stay silent and not write about it. Such is the case of the #Dream9 story and the extreme opinions this action has generated.

I won’t spend too much time chronicling why this debate is now officially out of control, with its descriptions of “publicity stunts,” private Facebook posts being screen captured to “expose” campaign leaders and hateful words dividing immigration allies. The egos have taken over, and that is never a good thing.

However, I felt that yesterday’s HuffPost Live segment about the Dream 9 put me over the top. It was a comment by guest David Leopold, former president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and one of #BringThemHome’s most vocal critics, saying that the campaign’s supporters were just out to embarrass President Obama. After reading what Leopold…