Disillusioned Hispanic voters a hurdle for Obama

LOS ANGELES - Armando Navarro is a political science professor at the University of California, Riverside, and a political activist.

He organized massive demonstrations in the spring of 2006 demanding a path to citizenship for immigrants. CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker reports Navarro became one of the first high-profile Hispanic Democrats in California to back the junior senator from Illinois after hearing then-candidate Obama call for comprehensive immigration reform.

"I thought he was the man," Navarro said.

So you might be surprised to hear Navarro today: "He does not have my vote." Navarro cites the issues of war and the economy. Most of all - he feels deceived on immigration.

"Under the Obama administration, massive deportations -- 397,000 deportations as of September 2011," Navarro said. "He's moving more aggressively against us in terms of raids that the Bush administration."

U.S. deports nearly 400K in a year - a record

As Obama courts Latinos, deportation program under scrutiny

Mr. Obama won 67 percent of the Hispanic vote nationally in 2008. Hispanics were crucial to his victory in the key states of Nevada, Colorado and Florida. Now, less than 50 percent view him favorably. Nationwide hispanic unemployment is 11.3 percent - two points higher than the national average.

"Latinos today have been the population that have been most affected by the recession," said Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected Officials. He says Mr. Obama can't count on Hispanics' passionate support in 2012.

"We still haven't seen a strategy that really has moved the needle for Latinos," Vargas said.

If many Hispanics are disappointed in the president, they're disgusted by the heated Republican rhetoric on immigration. But disgust with the GOP doesn't translate into support for the president.

"I think the greatest danger for the president is that Latino voters will not be as enthusiastic in 2012 as they were in 2008," Vargas said, "and may decide to sit it out."

"We have Mexicans and Latinos in every state of this country, and all they need is to be inspired," Navarro said. "We are truly the balance of power, we are the swing vote."

To win, Mr. Obama needs to inspire the level of support he got in 2008. George W. Bush showed Republicans need just 35 to 40 percent of the Hispanic vote to win the presidency.

[InnerView]

""We have Mexicans and Latinos in every state of this country..."

Oh yeah, its Mexicans and then those other Latino's...

Armando Navarro's interest is in only what benefits Mexicans, NOT other Latino's, I can tell. I've heard this kind of talk before by radical Chicano activists. Its all about them.

Clear from his distinction and separatist-like manner in which he differentiates, distinguishes Mexicans aside and apart and having special claims on the USA from other Latino's.

And I have to wonder based on this obvious Freudian slip, if his issue with Obama has something to do with with race. There's a huge sentiment that African Americans also do not belong in "Aztlan". Just look up "Azusa 13 Black cleansing" to get insight to that well hidden sentiment amongst Mexicans and Mexican Americans.

[57vw]

To my fellow Hispanics... Why should you vote for Democrats? Just remember they had COMPLETE CONTROL of government in 2009, the Presidency, 60-40 votes in the Senate, AND 255-174 in the House. When they had the power to do whatever they wanted, they did NOTHING, so what makes you think they will now? As a matter of fact they have deported more illegals than the Republicans!

[Guitfiddel]

Republicans will not only deport you but, if you get to stay here and work for a living, they will OVER TAX you for the benefit for the TOP1%! The Republicans don't even want us here LEGALLY!!!

[InnerView]

As a Latino, I don't vote based on immigration reform to benefit Latino's, my parents immigrated legally and didn't abuse the system with Welfare, nope, not one check. I vote for what will benefit the country and make it better, move it forward, not on how it will benefit me as a Latino. I vote on jobs and the betterment, the enhancement of the USA. And I've seen much of my environment, my city become something it should have become.

[erichsh]

This is the kind of article (albeit a rare one) that stuffs a rag down the throats of the far-left, Republican-hating crowd. The article makes it impossible for them to spew their usual bile at Republicans for heartlessly wanting to deport Hispanics when their Dear Leader is doing the exact same thing - and at a record rate as that, as Brokennews notes.

[Guitfiddel]

I'm more than sure that Mexican Americans or, anyone that understands anything about TAX REFORM won't vote for the idiots that are initially responsible (Republicans) for our country being in this current recession and, only to be over TAXED and lose their social entitlements for the benefit of Corporations, Oil Companies, multi-millionaires and billionaires unless they are very wealthy (which will be the only ones that will benefit), confused, misinformed, ignorant or hateful.

[rightbehind]

Don't throw the baby out with the bath water. I'm personally going to demand the republicrats be sent packing. We need to get the democrats back in a position to set the agenda before we can begin to fix this countries problems.

[Shinran]

I find that it was totally disingenuous of CBS news to report on this story and leave out a key piece of information about the deportation of nearly 400,000 people.

This key fact skewed the bias of this story and I demand a correction on tonight's news. This is the true "guts" behind the numbers:

ICE stressed Tuesday that over half of the roughly 397,000 people deported last year had been convicted of felonies or misdemeanors. That's an 89% increase in deported criminals from three years ago, the agency said. And in August, the Department of Homeland Security announced its intention to individually review roughly 300,000 pending deportation cases in federal immigration courts.

[OnceALiberalNowAModerate]

Once again, an article on CBS tries not to differentiate between ILLEGAL Hispanics, and LEGAL Hispanics - citizens or immigrants.

"Immigration" means that the person has come here through legal channels and is perfectly welcome to enjoy what the USA has to offer. However, if a person - of ANY race or national origin - has come here illegally, then they are entitled to a one-way ticket back home after being fingerprinted, and having had their DNA sampled, so that in the future they can be identified faster.

E-Verify is going to become the law of the land with no exceptions. Then we'll have an easier time sending Illegal Immigrants out of our country.

[DocLorusso]

It takes more than a president to effect change on immigration. It take a congress too.

[Freepress1111]

I think Latinos should stay home or even vote Republican in 2012. I'm sure you would all be very happy with a 20 foot tall electric fence. And I'm absolutely positive that a Republican president would nominate another Latino for the Supreme Court. Maybe the whole country could have immigration laws that mirror Alabama's. I think the slogan for all you anti-Obama liberals should be "Give us everything we want, or else we'll use our vote to destroy ourselves, our families, and our country." Unfortunately, it appears that the far left is just as misguided as the far right. Obama is the only real American in Washington. If you don't believe that, pick up a history book (that hasn't been revised by the right) and learn something about your country's history. This country was founded on, and has survived for more than 200 years because of compromise, now a dirty word for both extremes.

[Guitfiddel]

So true "Freepress1111". You won't believe how many Hispanic Tea Party supporters their are. It's kind of like a bunch of chickens on a crusade advocating for Colonel Saunders to have fried food! lol...

[vpcharan]

The consequences of not voting in 2012 could prove more devastating than the present. In real life, no one gets all what they want. Humans make compromises to get most they can expect to get given the circumstances.

[scooter456]

Please watch Armando Navarro via the link below:

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/482121/armando_navarro_and_his_racist_anti_semitic_homophobic_friends/