Immigration Reform Advocates Hope for Administration Action

http://www.rollcall.com/news/immigra...1.html?pos=hln

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus won’t be able to push immigration reform through Congress this year, but a White House meeting Tuesday made its members hopeful that administrative options remain.

President Barack Obama and his advisers told caucus members that the administration is looking into ways to concentrate enforcement resources on criminals “so that we are not using our limited resources on those potentially eligible for an adjustment of status,” according to a White House statement.

The message was a new but anticipated one for the Hispanic group, which is pushing for Obama to pursue immigration reform through administrative means.

“It was what I expected it would be,” Rep. Jim Costa said of the 90-minute meeting. “They talked about trying to work on some issues and ensure there’s prioritization on the enforcement and make it evenhanded across the country.”

The California Democrat acknowledged that not all of the 17 caucus members in attendance were pleased with Obama’s message. Some wanted the president to lay out a set of proposals on how his administration can begin to reform existing immigration laws, and they were disappointed he didn’t commit to any specifics.

Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.), one of the more outspoken members of the caucus, said Tuesday’s meeting was “productive” but added that members were “clear and emphatic about the need for administrative relief and the extent of the damage the deportations are causing to American families.”

Still, immigration advocates said Tuesday’s meeting was a positive step.

“It was better than expected,” said Frank Sharry, executive director of America’s Voice. Obama and administration officials committed “at a minimum” to forming new policies regarding interpretation of current law, Sharry added.

Rep. Dennis Cardoza, who attended the meeting, said Obama could unveil a series of proposals soon.

“I think you will see an immigration policy presentation,” the California Democrat said. “I think they’re gearing up on something on immigration, and they’re going to make some announcements on how it’s going to be.”

Tuesday’s meeting was the White House’s third focusing on immigration in three weeks. Obama also spoke on the issue during an address to students at Miami Dade College last week.

Sharry suggested that Obama was factoring his 2012 re-election campaign into his recent push on immigration, in part because swing states such as New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona and Florida are home to thousands of Hispanics whose turnout could be crucial.

“I want to work with Democrats and Republicans, yes, to protect our borders, and enforce our laws, and address the status of millions of undocumented workers,” Obama told the crowd in Miami.

“I will keep fighting alongside many of you to make the DREAM Act the law of the land,” he added, referring to a top legislative priority for immigration advocates.

Sharry charged that Obama has not yet been bold enough on the issue to rally the Hispanic electorate.

“From my point of view, if he wanted to be political and turn out the Latino vote, he would do something bold and welcome the overreaction of the Republicans,” Sharry said, suggesting that Obama pursue the goals of the DREAM Act through the administration.

But, he added, “they probably fear loss of swing voters.”

The DREAM Act would creates a path to citizenship for students and members of the military. The bill passed in the House last year under the Democratic majority, but it fell five votes short in the Senate.

The December vote in the Senate was considered a last-ditch effort for the legislation, which does not have wide support among Republicans and would not pass the GOP-controlled House.

“Our first priority must be ending the violence at the border — we really can’t deal with other issues until it is secure,” Michael Steel, spokesman for Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), told Roll Call on Tuesday.

So I see it like this, whats more important to Obama, Latino voters or American swing voters? i think there might be more swing voters than latino voter in the U.S. but I could be wrong.

He's catching two birds with one stone man !

Your typical WASP swing voters are hardly influenced by immigration policy, by itself. They usually either take a stand on moral grounds , i.e. abortion, gun-control, same-sex marriage etc., or ideological grounds like lowering welfare benefits, cutting taxes etc.

There are very, very few such voters who might say "I'd definitely vote for Obama if it was not for his stance on immigration". That number is probably negligible in comparison to the swing Latino voters the president can get by actually doing something about CIR.

Frankly, the majority of voters is uneducated, as far as both schooling and candidates' political stance, are concerned. As long as CIR doesn't pass at the end of next summer, right before the elections, most 4-5th generation US citizens won't even remember what the immigration reform actually pertains to, while in the Latino, or any other large immigrant community, immigration is a very hot issue. Any info about immigration usually ends up on the front page of foreign newspaper in the US. If something immigration related actually does pass, it will resonate in that community all the way to the election day, and the lack of education of such voters won't even matter because they will constantly be reminded of who did what and who they should vote for.