A demonstrator in Los Angeles last month: What should
Republicans do to win Hispanics to their side?
For Latinos, Obama
Renews the American Dream (Le Monde, France)
“Who says the American dream no longer exists? … Thanks to Barack Obama, the ‘DREAMers’ will be able to legalize their status … This was a master stroke, although he would probably have preferred to do it later in the campaign. ... At the same time, he has changed the subject, cutting short Mitt Romney’s economic lessons and dividing Republicans.”
Cover of Time Magazine: The U.S. Border Patrol deported 396,906 illegal immigrants in fiscal year 2011 - the highest annual number in U.S. history. With President Obama's executive order, that number may be diminished this year.
Who says the American dream no longer exists? Young
undocumented Latinos claim it - and call themselves "DREAMers":
activists advocating the Dream
Act, legislation that would legalize children who arrived in the United
States at a very young age, have pursued their studies, but are threatened with
being returned a country they hardly know.
One figure in this movement is Jose Antonio Vargas,
a Washington Post reporter who had his coming out in 2011 when he revealed
that he had no legal status (he then left journalism for civic activism).
Today, Vargas exulted that thanks to Barack Obama, the “DREAMers” will be able to legalize their status (even if
they only obtain residence permits and not citizenship). This involves tens of
thousands of young people. Yesterday, lawyers specializing in immigration were posting
advertisements everywhere: "If you are under 16 and do not have a criminal
past, you may receive an immigrant visa."
Bye Bye Rubio
This was a masterstroke for Barack Obama, although he would
probably have preferred to do it later in the campaign. In fact, Hispanics felt
he had done nothing for them since 2009. This will mobilize young people, who
he needs in order to organize in neighborhoods for “get out the vote” campaigns
on November 6, when their participation could tip the election.
At the same time, he has changed the subject, cutting short
Mitt Romney’s economic lessons and dividing Republicans. Marco Rubio, the young
hope of Florida, had already played the role of Romney’s gadfly by proposing in
the Senate a mini version of the Dream Act, trying to force the hand of the candidate.
His mentor, Jeb Bush, also criticized the party (and the candidate), which
foreshadowed that Marco Rubio had little chance of being selected by Romney for
the vice presidency.
Posted
by Worldmeets.US
Romney, who took some radical positions during the primaries
- was knocked off balance. He confined himself to saying that Obama’s executive
order “made a long-term solution more difficult.” If he was about to pivot to a
focus on immigration, he misfired. ... In fact, his team was divided: some have
made the calculation that a gesture toward the DREAMers
would cost him more votes on the right of the party than he would win among
Latinos anyway.
Decree Against Gridlock
Obama's gesture toward Latino youth matches his move on
same-sex marriage for the gay community. Why so late? The White House realized that
for Latinos, it would not be sufficient to hold out the prospect of legalization
in his second term.
As far as the calendar, the staging could not be better.
Monday, Obama is in Mexico for the G20 summit. The Supreme Court decision on a
law that criminalized the undocumented in Arizona is also expected in the
coming days.
The Dream Act was blocked by hard line Republicans in
Congress. Obama acted by decree, which frankly would not meet the demands of the
former constitutional law professor that he is.
He acknowledged the political impasse (to govern, it takes a
majority of 60 votes in the Senate - not 51...). His action reflects from the presidentialization of institutions at this hour of
gridlock.
