Accusing the Republican Party and business groups of stoking "anti-immigrant, anti-Latino" fervor, the Legislature's Democratic Latino Caucus on Tuesday urged Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to denounce "racist" GOP campaign ads mailed during recent Assembly races. Members of the 27-member caucus also called on the Republican governor to speak out against a campaign to qualify a ballot measure that would deny benefits - including driver's licenses - to illegal immigrants. "I would hope that the governor will make a response to these (campaign) tactics," said state Sen. Martha Escutia, D-Whittier, the new chairwoman of the caucus. Escutia invoked the memory of Proposition 187, which she contends inflamed ethnic divisions in California and drove voters away from the Republican Party. Schwarzenegger supported the 1994 ballot measure, which was overwhelmingly approved by voters but gutted by legal challenges. The mailers criticized by Latino legislators were sent out during the final days of the recent election campaign by JobsPAC, formed by the California Chamber of Commerce and the California Manufacturers Association, and the state Republican Party. The ads targeted four Democratic Assembly candidates - who all won their races - and said they wanted to allow illegal immigrants to obtain driver's licenses and other benefits. [more]