Posted on 10/02/2014 6:58:48 PM PDT by jazusamo
President Obama urged frustrated Latino lawmakers and activists to "keep believing" and "have his back" as he promised to keep fighting for immigration reform and take executive action this year.
"We have to be realistic," Obama said Thursday evening at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute's annual awards dinner.
He explained that he delayed executive action on immigration until after the midterm elections because he needed the extra time to explain to the nation "why immigration reform is good for our economy and why it's good for everybody."
"For any action to last, for it to be effective and extend beyond my administration — because i'm only here for two more years — we're going to have to build more support among the American people."
Obama said that eventual executive action was "not a question of if, but when," and pledged he would move before the end of the year. For the president, Thursday's speech was his first public opportunity to reassure Latinos since deciding to put off such action until after the midterm elections, despite having previously pledged to announce new administrative steps by the end of summer.
Obama made the decision with an eye on November, hoping it would boost his party’s chances of keeping its Senate majority. But by punting in early September, Obama earned the ire of longtime immigration reform activists who once again saw their hopes for a policy victory evaporate.
That anger was palatable on Thursday, and the president was interrupted repeatedly by a protester heckling him to move sooner on immigration. Before he spoke, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) said that the room was looking to Obama "for big, bold, unapologetic administrative relief for millions.”
"Mr. President, we need your help," Menendez said.
The president said he knew there was "deep frustration" among those there, and said he shared it.
But, Obama said, "I ask you to keep believing."
"I meant what I said," Obama added, saying that "no force on Earth can stop us" if activists and politicians remain determined.
For the White House, calming the fears of immigration reform activists will be crucial to maintaining the president's political base. The White House has seen a sharp decline in Latino support since it was announced he was delaying his executive action.
A NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released in October showed just 47 percent of Hispanic voters approve of the president's performance, down 15 percentage points from April 2013. Fewer than 3 in 10 Latino voters described themselves as “very positive” about Obama.
In a Pew Research poll released in September, a majority of Hispanic Democrats — 52 percent — said their party wasn't doing a good job on immigration issues.
Vice President Biden hosted a Hispanic Heritage Month reception at his home late last month, and said at the event that Obama was “absolutely committed to moving forward.” Biden added that the president would move ahead “with or without” Congress and that “if they don't get something done by the end of this year, the president's going to do it.”
White House press secretary Josh Earnest told Telemundo last weekend that Obama would “make good” on his promise to implement executive actions to address problems with the immigration system by the end of the year.
“This is a promise the president will keep,” Earnest said.
Obama also used his address to argue that administration policies have benefitted Latinos outside the areas of immigration policy. He noted that the Hispanic poverty rate was dropping and that the Latino drop out rate had been halved.
An outright lie, he delayed it to try to keep control of the Senate.
” immigration reform” which is like saying “legalizing bank robbery”.
Where's the NBC/WSJ poll showing what Americans want as per immigration?? Oh wait- the tide has turned against the left/immigration so we won't be seeing any of those polls...
He was going to do something before the end of summer.
Why doesn’t he do it now if he’s going to do it?
Obama has never had any opposition to anything he’s ever wanted.
He’s telling us that he’s going to circumvent the Constitution and the Congress and the response is nothing.
Sloth is defined as good men doing nothing when confronted with evil. How lazy is Obama’s opposition?
If you thought those “10s of thousands” of “unaccompanied” freeloaders got expensive, you ain’t seen nothing yet. That 11 million figure is BS. We’re talking about somewhere between 30 to 50 million illegal alien invaders being turned loose on the pathway to the BIG pinata. Hold on tight to your wallets. The Kenyan is about to mug us again.
How can he? They’re the vehicle for the ebola virus to kill Americans. This man is pure evil
Speaker Boehner is very, VERY lazy.
The GWB lesson.
When you loose your base voters, you are doomed.
In other word, BO and Guiterrez won’t give up on passing dangerous illnesses around to American children.
And from the GOP we hear ........ Crickets
He had both Houses back when and could have done it but wanted a way to blame Republicans.
Yep, and now he’ll blame Republicans because they didn’t pass a bill and he had to do it by executive action.
The turkey is an accomplished con artist but a terrible person.
Won’t give up?
Demon Rats HAD TOTAL CONTROL OF THE FEDERAL LEGISLATURE AND EXECUTIVE BRANCH FOR TWO STRAIGHT YEARS....from January 2009 until January 2011....and did not act.
For instance, Pro-amnesty people demand that President Obama give work visas to at least 8,000,000+ illegals.
But what pro-amnesty traitors conveniently forget to mention is that many of these 8,000,000 illegals who will get work visas have husbands/wives and school-age children.
24,000,000 illegals get amnesty? My point is this: Pro-amnesty people are not really talking about 8,000,000 illegals, because they secretly know in their hearts that they are really talking about more like 24,000,000 illegals----3 times 8,000,000 illegals--- who will eventually get AMNESTY when President Obama takes his pen and quickly signs his executive order in a few weeks.
how did I arrive at the number of 24,000,000 illegals? I did it this way: I multiplied 8,000,000 illegals by 3.
1. Obviously, illegal immigrant men need their wives and children to keep them company. and many of them are already here.
2. And illegal immigrant women need their husbands to help them with the children.
3. Also, these illegal immigrants with their new work visas will now have no fear that immigration agents will be coming to their home to check to see how many in the household besides the visa holder are here legally.
4. So once they get their work visas, they can invite any number of relatives to live with them without fear that immigration officials will be coming to their unexpectedly to check the status of the people in the home. As long as visa holders pay their rent on time and their children attend school, we can be sure that no immigration officials will bother them and their families.
My point is this: Work visa holders and their growing families will be here forever. Basically, deportation of these illegals and their families will never happen, if President Obama has his way and goes ahead and signs his executive order soon after the midterm election.
5. You see, you can't very well legalize 8,000,000 illegals by giving them work visas, on the one hand, and then, on the other hand, turn around and deport husbands and wives and children of the work visa holders, persons who may not qualify for work visas for one reason or the other.
6. So I believe that multiplying 8,000,000 illegals by 3 is a good conservative estimate of how many illegals will immediately benefit from President Obama's executive order---an estimate based on a household with two parents, one child.
7.Of course, many households will be single households with no children.
8.But, as we know, many, many households of illegals who will be given work visas will have two or more children, so all those many children will easily make up for those households in my 24,000,000 estimate that have no children.
9. So that is the way I concluded that 24,000,000+ illegals will really get amnesty when traitor President Obama gives away our country with the simple signing of his executive order: 8,000,000 million illegal work visa holders times a conservative estimate of 3 member's in each illegal immigrant household.
10. Again, when President Obama quickly signs his executive order soon after the mid-term elections, he will NOT be giving amnesty to just 8,000,000 illegals as the pro-amnesty people want us to believe.
11. Rather, when the smoke clears, anti-amnesty people will wake up one morning and suddenly realize that the pro-amnesty people and President Obama have pulled off one of the biggest scams in history, because President Obama will really give amnesty to 24,000,000 illegals, not 8,000,000 illegals as President Obama will claim when he signs his executive order soon after the mid-term elections.
NOTE: 'Because it was the right thing to do." This is Obama's favorite phrase when he wants to justify his decision on a controversial subject like illegal immigration.
It is as if Obama wants us to believe that his decision is divinely inspired, that is, God himself told him what to do. What a bunch of crap.
So be prepared to hear Obama's phrase---"Because it was the right thing to do"---over and over after Obama signs the worst executive order ever.
It is the worst ever because President Obama will lie to us and give amnesty to not 8,000,000 illegals as Obama will lead us to believe when he signs the executive order, but to an unbelievable number of 24,000,000 illegals. Sick. Sick. Sick.
NOTE: If the government can't handle those hundreds of illegals who crossed the Mexican border recently, how in the world is the government going to process the 8,000.000 illegals that President Obama will give amnesty to in a few weeks after the mid-term elections? No way. No way.
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