McCain, Obama Court Hispanic Voters

At Conference Of Latino Officials, Presidential Candidates Discuss Immigration, Targeting Important Voting Block

(AP)  Presidential rivals John McCain and Barack Obama on Saturday sought the love of Hispanics, beginning a four-month courtship with a pivotal swing-voting constituency.

"I come from a border state, my dear friends. I know these issues," McCain told Hispanic elected officials. The Republican senator from Arizona said overhauling the country's broken immigration system, not just securing its borders, "will be my top priority."

Appearing later before the same audience, Obama accused McCain of walking away from comprehensive immigration reform. The Democratic senator from Illinois said: "We must assert our values and reconcile our principles as a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws. That is a priority I will pursue from my very first day."

The two spoke separately to some 700 Hispanics attending the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials conference. It's the first of three such appearances each is scheduled to make to Hispanic organizations in less than a month, underscoring the importance of the nation's fastest-growing minority group.

Both McCain and Obama were warmly received at NALEAO; the crowd gave each standing ovations and cheered loudly. When McCain spoke, the audience shouted down anti-war protesters who interrupted the Republican's speech four times. The audience chanted Obama's name when the Democrat entered later. As he took the stage, Obama said "Si, se puede!" - his "Yes we can" campaign slogan in Spanish - and the crowed echoed him.

Earlier, McCain met privately with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, while Obama stopped by Walter Reed Army Medical Center to visit wounded war veterans.

Hispanics, however, were the primary focus as each makes an aggressive play for this up-for-grabs group that's likely to carry important weight in battleground states of Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico and others with large numbers of Spanish-speaking voters.

A recent AP-Yahoo News poll showed that Obama lead McCain among Hispanics, 47 percent to 22 percent with 26 percent undecided.

Still, Obama, who is trying to become the first black president, doesn't have a lock on this volatile group. During the Democratic primary, Hispanics referred rival Hillary Rodham Clinton to Obama by nearly 2-to-1.

McCain, for his part, senses opportunity and is hoping to build on Republicans' recent inroads in this Democratic-trending group.

President Bush captured about 40 percent of the Hispanic vote in 2004, the most ever for a GOP presidential candidate. His Democratic rival John Kerry won 53 percent, down from the 62 percent former Vice President Al Gore got in 2000.

This year, immigration reform, a touchstone issue for Hispanics, is a wild card.

Both McCain and Obama support an eventual path to citizenship for millions of immigrants in the country illegally, and, thus, the issue isn't expected to be a major point of differentiation in the campaign. Still, Hispanics will be paying careful attention to what is said on the subject.

McCain co-sponsored broad bipartisan Senate legislation last year that would have overhauled the immigration system and improved border security; the legislation split the GOP as critics pushed for a border-enforcement only approach. After the measure failed, and in the heat of the Republican nomination race, McCain emphasized the need to secure the borders first before enacting other reforms, which he said were still needed.

The Republican drew sustained applause Saturday after answering the question of whether "comprehensive immigration reform" - and not just enforcement - would be a top priority in his first 100 days in office.

"It will be my top priority yesterday, today and tomorrow," McCain said. "We have to secure our borders ... but we also must proceed with a temporary worker program that is verifiable and truly temporary. We must also understand that 12 million people are here, and they are here illegally, and they are God's children." He promised to address the issue in "a human and compassionate fashion."

Seeking to reassure skeptics, McCain added: "We will resolve the immigration issue in America and we will secure our borders."

Obama, for his part, used the appearance to poke at McCain.

"One place where Senator McCain used to offer change was on immigration. He was a champion of comprehensive reform, and I admired him for it. But when he was running for his party's nomination, he walked away from that commitment and he's said he wouldn't even support his own legislation if it came up for a vote," Obama said as the crowd interrupted him with applause. "We can't vacillate. We can't shift."

Like McCain, Obama also was asked how broad immigration reform will rank in importance at the outset of his presidency.

Said Obama: "It will be one of my priorities on my first day because this is an issue that we have demagogued. There's been a lot of politics around it, but we haven't been serious about solving the problem. And I want to solve the problem."

Responding to Obama's criticism, McCain's campaign issued a statement that said Obama "worked to kill" last year's Senate legislation by voting for amendments to it that Democratic sponsors opposed.

[brianbwb-2009]

Posted by johnmcsame

And of course you spoke to all the Hispanics. Right, real credible, this bit of info.

[brianbwb-2009]

"DEMONIC-RAT HUSSEIN IS NOT THE SOLUTION,,," Posted by terrorislami

Well, we will just have to see. At least Mr. Obama is not advocating more of the problem.

[brianbwb-2009]

Posted by S_Temper

I''ll take the "Black power supporter" tat says "no more war" over a Bush supporter who says "100 years more war", and "bomb, bomb Iran" any day of any week.

At least he can recognize when the Government has overstepped it''s bounds, and understepped needed services.

[jack3213]

There is never going to be "one Party" so better get into reality and realize the best the USA can succeed at is both parties working together. Obama & Clinton want ONE party- and that is just not reality. Working over the ailes and compromising is the key to accomplished issues and the safety of this country. McCain knows what that means & how to do it.

[johnmcsame]

Hispanics have told me that Obama, an advocate of Black Liberation theology, is wasting his time courting the Hispanic vote. The will never vote for a man who is a black supremacist. Fat chance Hussein. Hispanics for John McCain.

[terrorislami]

YOU DO NOT LIKE THE USA IN THE MIDDLE EAST,,,

BLAME THE DEMONIC-RATS,,,

THE DEMONIC-RAT DOCTRINE,,,

On February 16, 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt said the "the defense of Saudi Arabia is vital to the defense of the United States." On February 14, 1945, while returning from the Yalta Conference, Roosevelt met with King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia on the Great Bitter Lake in the Suez Canal, the first time a U.S. president had visited the Persian Gulf region.

The Carter Doctrine was a policy proclaimed by President of the United States Jimmy Carter in his State of the Union Address on 23 January 1980, which stated that the United States would use military force if necessary to defend its national interests in the Persian Gulf region. The doctrine was a response to the 1979 invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet Union, and was intended to deter the Soviet Union%u2014the Cold War adversary of the United States%u2014from seeking hegemony in the Persian Gulf. After stating that Soviet troops in Afghanistan posed "a grave threat to the free movement of Middle East oil," Carter proclaimed:

Let our position be absolutely clear: An attempt by any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on the vital interests of the United States of America, and such an assault will be repelled by any means necessary, including military force. (full speech)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carter_Doctrine

[terrorislami]

FASCIST NAZI TERRORISLAM IS THE PROBLEM,,,

DEMONIC-RAT HUSSEIN IS NOT THE SOLUTION,,,

[wardoglrs]

Just shut the hell up about HELLARY She''s a F*****G
Loser just like any of you who would vote for a *** like that and Obama and McCain all losers. Why dont you try someone with some integrity and honesty

[neobrian-2009]

Posted by terrorislami at 10:24 PM : Jun 29, 2008
Posted by terrorislami at 10:24 PM : Jun 29, 2008
ALL GOP Sect members Are LOSERS,.and Greedy Oil Perverts,..Posted by terrorislami at 10:24 PM : Jun 29, 2008

[neobrian-2009]

W has FAILED Miserably At EVERYTHING But,
Stealing elections And Ruining Everything he touches!
He IS a 100 % COMPLETE MORON !
And He`s the World`s Biggest Criminal !
He`s worn Out three paper shredders using The US Constitution !This War of his has Driven up the Price of OIL,Building materials and EVERYTHING Else!
Thousands of innocent people have lost their lives because of the GOP Sect CRIMINAL GREED !
STOP THIS MADNESS !!! BAN the EVIL GOP SECT !
McSame is MORE of King W !
NO MORE GOP ! NO MORE GOP ! NO MORE GOP !!
Waterboard SHRUB ! Deadeye Dicck Too !
Send ALL RE-CONS Hunting With Dicck,..Give Him Plenty of Booze,..Cindy McHooters will Supply the Beer !If Any return Alive,Jail Them,in Insane A$$YSlums,Divvy up their Wealth,..providing Health Care For the remaining Sane voters, The Democrats!!
The Future of The Planet Depends on US !
UNDER NO circumstances, Do NOT Be Scared into voting for These Career, Criminally Insane GOP SECT Members ANY MORE !Friends NEVER let Friends Vote republiCon!

[txgrouch2006]

Seems like DemsUnity has become McCainsStain.

It''s time to THIN THE HERD...

[mcvet-unity]

Liberals, Transgenders, Terrorist Apologists.

Unity of the Oppressed. Join the Pride Parade.

OBAMA 08!








1-800-DEM-BOYS (donate)
Change We Can Believe In!
Yes We Can!

[txgrouch2006]

JTait2 wrote
We have an Oil Crisis. ...worst Economic crisis we have ever seen. ...Want to rethink Obama? We can still have Hillary.
---------------
Yah, we could be looking at Carter-era STAGFLATION, with double-digit inflation AND double-digit interest rates all over again.

Wait, Carter was a Democrat. Want to re-think he whole DEMOCRAT thing again?

[soulreaver_]

Look within yourself Luke! May the force be with you! These are familiar words from star wars but the are relevant to who are next president is.

[soulreaver_]

Look within yourself Luke! May the force be with you! These are familiar words from star wars but the are relevant to who are next president is.

[soulreaver_]

Look within yourself Luke! May the force be with you! These are familiar words from star wars but they are relevant to who are next president is.

[a98765432102]

Obama sucks to hell and back that freaken Muslim!

[a98765432102]

Hello Omaar
I wish Obama would say that he''s been born again.

[a98765432102]

Hello Omaar
Do I dare ask do we take character into account?

[a98765432102]

A98765432102: You Name them....Its only Fair.

What Do You See in John McCain is the Question ?

Posted by Omaar-101 at 04:30 PM : Jun 29, 2008

OK OMaar
I see In both of them a message of wanting to win?
In Obama I see a man who shares with America he wants change. That he criticizes Mcain on everything. On Mcain I see his experience in regard to national security both here and abroad. The negative of Mcain from what i see is his holding on to Nafta!