Latinos who backed Obama are frustrated by lack of immigration overhaul
Sacramento Bee ^ | 2/16/10 | Rob Hotakainen
Posted on Tuesday, February 16, 2010 10:49:31 AM by SmithL________________________
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WASHINGTON – As one of the first Latinos in the nation to endorse Barack Obama, Democratic state Sen. Gilbert Cedillo of Los Angeles campaigned hard for the president, but he's disappointed now.
The reason: Obama failed to act on a comprehensive overhaul of immigration laws in his first year in office, as he promised to do when he ran for president.
"I think he's in danger of breaking the spirit of solidarity and hope," Cedillo said. "More than a broken promise, it's the danger of breaking people's sense of hope in the Latino community." Immigration has taken a back seat to a host of tough issues for Obama, including two wars, a struggling economy and a yearlong effort to get Congress to pass a health care overhaul. The president's defenders say it would be politically impossible to add the volatile issue of immigration to the mix right now.
Cedillo doesn't buy that argument. He said the president knew he would be dealing with other big issues when he made promises to the Latino community during the campaign.
"Those were the conditions that he was campaigning under," Cedillo said. "It's not like those were surprises. I was so proud of him, at how firm and clear he was in those presidential debates. He really provided leadership."
While the president carried the Latino vote by large margins in 2008, many Republicans are out to capitalize on Latino dissatisfaction with Obama and Washington's Democratic leaders – just in time for the 2010 elections.
Republican candidates will gain ground with Latinos once they realize "that what the Democrats offer is just a bunch of empty promises,"
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
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