Hispanics should not have to live in fear of raids by immigration agents, Michelle Obama told a Hispanic caucus to the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday.
Sensing an opening because of conservatives' hardline approach to immigration, Democrats are increasing their efforts to reach Hispanic voters in key Southwest states, a move they hope will help propel Sen. Barack Obama to the White House. Republicans, however, aren't ceding the Hispanic vote.
A day after the largest single-workplace immigration raid in U.S. history, Elizabeth Alegria was too scared to send her son to school and worried about when she'd see her husband again. Nearly 600 immigrants suspected of being in the country illegally were detained, creating panic among dozens of families in this small southern Mississippi town.
28 August 2008
A draft copy of the GOP platform, which was obtained by CNSNews.com on Wednesday, says “We oppose amnesty” for illegal immigrants. But Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the presumptive presidential nominee for the Republican Party, has been a leading proponent in Congress for giving illegal aliens a “pathway to citizenship.” The GOP platform is being written in Minneapolis this week in preparation for the Republican National Convention, scheduled for early September.
28 August 2008
Reaching people of faith is a clear goal for Democrats this week, but they are also giving specific attention to Hispanics. A majority of this group identify themselves as Catholic or evangelical and for many, their faith makes it difficult to know which way to vote. The nation's 46 million Hispanics loom as a potential swing vote this year, strategically placed on the electoral map. Faith is another key identity: 83 percent say they're either Catholic or evangelical. Another trend: about two-thirds of Latino registered voters lean Democratic.
28 August 2008
Former San Antonio Mayor Henry Cisneros, an ardent Hillary Rodham Clinton backer in the primary fight, says he will campaign for Barack Obama, including in Nevada, New Mexico and other states with blocs of Hispanic voters. Mr. Cisneros, the former housing secretary under President Bill Clinton, said Mr. Obama will do well among Hispanics. "As long as Obama makes his agenda visible to Latinos, they will vote for him," he said. "Latinos will see a clear distinction between the Democratic and Republican strategies. "
28 August 2008
While members of the Democratic Party are gathered in the Pepsi Center to support Senator Barack Obama as the party’s nominee in the presidential campaign, Mexicans working just seven miles away, on Federal Boulevard, are living a very different reality. Luis Carlos Ruiz, owner of the auto shop Transmissions Ruiz, says that even though he is leaning toward Obama because of his position on immigration, Denver’s immigrant community has been greatly affected by local ordinances that attack the undocumented. "Now, if you're driving without a license, they’ll take your car and you have no way of getting it back without papers," says Ruiz.
27 August 2008
Seventeen million strong, Hispanics have become a critical voting bloc for national and local races. And as the contest between Barack Obama and John McCain tightens, the campaign to woo these voters is raging like never before. For Democrats, who have historically enjoyed the lion’s share of Hispanic support, keeping those voters is more critical, and trickier, for November. Polls show Barack Obama leads John McCain with Hispanic voters, including those in key battleground states in the southwest. But the lingering bruise felt by Hillary Rodham Clinton supporters have some Democrats worried that the New York senator’s Hispanic supporters will either stay home or vote for Mr. McCain. What’s more, Mr. McCain, who hails from Arizona, has aggressively courted Hispanic voter.
27 August 2008
Far from center stage, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa spent the first day of the Democratic National Convention straining to speak over clattering dishes as he addressed a breakfast meeting Monday of the Florida delegation. On the second day, Villaraigosa remained on the sidelines, as early Barack Obama supporters like Federico Peña, the former mayor of Denver, and Rep. Xavier Becerra of Los Angeles took the stage. With no prime-time speaking slot or other major role at the four-day convention, one of the nation's best-known Latino elected officials has been relegated mostly to side events. He has filled the void by feverishly working crowds and the news media and appearing on cable's MSNBC and Fox News. He spoke to delegates from New Hampshire on Sunday, Florida on Monday and Minnesota and Texas on Tuesday.
Added on 22 August 2008
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