Rich forgeiners can buy their way into the US legally...

[Black]

rjmacs wrote:
[quote=Black]
[quote=rjmacs]
Do you really want to open up a conversation about U.S. immigration laws? It's a complete clusterfuck. These visas are a teeny tiny portion of the overall picture. And, because of how our laws are structured, these visas don't 'take spaces away' from any more 'worthy' immigrants.

On a daily basis I hear the mantra that Obama should not be reelected because he has not addressed immigration reform. It's pretty clear that he's not going to have the "latino" vote next time around. Does not seem to rank as worthy of discussion outside of latino circles, though.
I know many Latinos who, though disappointed in the President's failure to move immigration reform forward, are not one -issue voters. Also, they don't see any promise in the GOP for better prospects after 2012. Latino voters (outside of south Florida) tend to be strong Democratic Party voters, for socioeconomic as much as ethnic reasons. Repeated attempts by Republicans to reach out to Hispanic Americans by appealing to conservative social values or small-government economic ideals have met with failure time and again. The President may not have the enthusiastic "Si Se Puede" turnout he had in 2008, but i don't see those votes going elsewhere this November.
I'm not going to let my statement get painted as having suggested that latinos are simplistic folk who won't look beyond one issue, but I will say that most of the specific individuals that I've spoken to recently about politics don't seem to have the time or inclination to look beyond the main characterization that they're exposed to repeatedly through word of mouth, or spanish-language media, or whatever. They know Obama is "not good" and identify immigration when pressed for any specifics. I'd say the majority of these folks don't think Obama will be reelected and are fine with that.
Will they be inclined to vote Republican? Probably not in droves-- but I've met my share who do vote Republican.

[rjmacs]

Black wrote:
[quote=rjmacs]
[quote=Black]
[quote=rjmacs]
Do you really want to open up a conversation about U.S. immigration laws? It's a complete clusterfuck. These visas are a teeny tiny portion of the overall picture. And, because of how our laws are structured, these visas don't 'take spaces away' from any more 'worthy' immigrants.

On a daily basis I hear the mantra that Obama should not be reelected because he has not addressed immigration reform. It's pretty clear that he's not going to have the "latino" vote next time around. Does not seem to rank as worthy of discussion outside of latino circles, though.
I know many Latinos who, though disappointed in the President's failure to move immigration reform forward, are not one -issue voters. Also, they don't see any promise in the GOP for better prospects after 2012. Latino voters (outside of south Florida) tend to be strong Democratic Party voters, for socioeconomic as much as ethnic reasons. Repeated attempts by Republicans to reach out to Hispanic Americans by appealing to conservative social values or small-government economic ideals have met with failure time and again. The President may not have the enthusiastic "Si Se Puede" turnout he had in 2008, but i don't see those votes going elsewhere this November.
I'm not going to let my statement get painted as having suggested that latinos are simplistic folk who won't look beyond one issue, but I will say that most of the specific individuals that I've spoken to recently about politics don't seem to have the time or inclination to look beyond the main characterization that they're exposed to repeatedly through word of mouth, or spanish-language media, or whatever. They know Obama is "not good" and identify immigration when pressed for any specifics. I'd say the majority of these folks don't think Obama will be reelected and are fine with that.
Will they be inclined to vote Republican? Probably not in droves-- but I've met my share who do vote Republican.
Hey, Black - i honestly didn't mean to paint your statement. I had read your comment that "Obama should not be reelected because he has not addressed immigration reform" as reflecting the prevalent reasoning among Latinos you know. That wasn't exactly what you said, and i may have jumped too far in my inference. Polling of American voters routinely reveals them to be more reasoned, self-interested, and less ideological than the pundits would have us believe. It's the non-voters you gotta look out for!

That being said, unless the numbers really change in 2012 (and polling doesn't indicate it yet), Latinos are still a solid Democratic voting bloc. George W. Bush managed to wrangle about 40%, which was key to his victory in 2004, but that was after a solid attempt at moderate immigration reform. After a tenure of increasingly restrictive immigration reforms during his first term, Bill Clinton won 67% of the Latino vote in 1996. Support for Romney right now is in the teens.