Obama's political calculation on holding back action on immigration until after the mid-terms looks like it may backfire. The LA Times:
As Democrats struggle to hold the Senate, limit their losses in the House and maybe gain a few governor seats Nov. 4, they are counting on strong support from Latino voters, a rapidly growing part of the electorate and a big reason states like California, Nevada and Colorado have gone from red to blue in their presidential preferences.
But Latino voting tends to drop in midterm elections and, as Trujillo's sentiment suggests, that may prove all the more so next month, given deep frustration with the president.
He drew a record Latino turnout in 2012, but since then has repeatedly deferred action after pledging to push through comprehensive changes in immigration law, acting without Congress if necessary. For many, that failing seems to trump anything positive Obama has accomplished.
"All the air has been let out," said Matt Barreto, a University of Washington political scientist who conducts extensive polling among Latinos nationwide.
His research suggests Latino voters, who typically vote heavily Democratic, could make the difference for the party in more than three dozen races across the country, including House contests in San Diego, Sacramento and Ventura County, gubernatorial races in Arizona, Florida and Illinois, and contests for governor and U.S. Senate in Colorado as well as Georgia.
That supposes, however, that Latinos cast their ballots in large numbers, something Clara Puerta regards with growing concern. The publisher of a Spanish-language newspaper, El Nuevo Georgia, Puerta, 36, volunteers for the state Democratic Party, working to build Latino support.
Asked her feelings about the president, a guilty look flashed across her face. "Obama has not responded to our community," Puerta replied, a hand absently bobbing one of the red balloons decorating her booth at a Latino health fair in Lilburn, one of Atlanta's far-reaching suburbs. "He promised us a lot of things and has not followed through. A lot of people are upset and they don't want to vote."
