"This Guy Is Just Pure Evil": Luis Miranda on Trump, the Latino Vote, and Building Power in New York

Show NotesLuis Miranda — political consultant, founder of the Hispanic Federation, and yes, Lin-Manuel Miranda's father — sits down with Juan Manuel Benítez to talk about five decades of building Latino political power in New York City. From his radicalization growing up in colonial Puerto Rico to running Fernando Ferrer's mayoral campaigns for mayor, Miranda reflects on what the Democratic Party keeps getting wrong about Latino voters, why 42% of Latino men voted for Trump, and what Zohran Mamdani's victory says about the politics of affordability. Plus: a heart attack, a parking spot, and the show tunes he blasts at 6 AM.Luis Miranda served in three New York City mayoral administrations (Koch, Dinkins, Giuliani) and ran campaigns for Hillary Clinton, Chuck Schumer, Fernando Ferrer, and Letitia James, among others.In this conversation, we discuss: growing up in colonial Puerto Rico and what radicalized him; founding the Hispanic Federation in 1990; the science behind Fernando Ferrer's near-miss mayoral campaigns and how 9/11 changed everything; why Democrats continue to take Latino voters for granted; the 42% of Latino men who voted for Trump; Mayor Zohran Mamdani's victory and his use of Spanish; the "mic" that Hamilton gave the Miranda family; becoming a great-grandfather; and the best advice he ever got — from his dad.Books mentioned📖 Relentless: My Story of the Latino Spirit That Is Transforming America by Luis A. Miranda Jr. — Borrow from NYPL 📖 The Red and the Blue: The 1990s and the Birth of Political Tribalism by Steve Kornacki — Borrow from NYPL Places & institutions mentioned🏛️ The Hispanic Federation 🏛️ El Museo del Barrio 🏛️ MoMA 🏛️ American Museum of Natural History 🏛️ Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico & Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Puerto RicoJuan Manuel Benítez Wants to Know is produced at Columbia Journalism School in New York City.