President Barack Obama’s uneasy relationship with the Latinos

Summary:

For a while now, President Barack Obama has been losing tremendous amount of supporters who now include the Latinos in America. In the 2008 election, two-thirds of the Latinos voted for President Barack Obama but now some feel that this is a mistake. Strong Latino support helped President Obama win in 2008, but his support among those voters is slipping. The president ran on a platform of immigration reform, but Latinos say the administration isn’t doing enough to push issues important to them like the DREAM Act. Different political analysts say about a quarter of the Latino voters know someone who has been deported and that’s it’s too late to have change in policies this late in the game. Now, the real worry for the president isn’t Latinos voting for the Republicans but that they won’t vote at all.

Analysis:

By President Barack Obama failing to fulfill the immigration reform, he is breaking the Hardball political rule of Dance with the One that Brung Ya which has lead the Latinos to attempt the grassroots mobilization pathway. Two-thirds of the Latinos voted for President Barack Obama in the 2008 election helping him rise to presidency. They voted for him because he ran on a platform of immigration reform. They believed and still do believe strongly in this issue, but he still hasn’t done anything about this issue. The president has to stay loyal to them and since he isn't, this breaks the Hardball rule of Dance with the One that Brung Ya. Since the Latinos were a large part of bringing him to victory, he must fulfill his promise in order for them to vote for him in the next election. A large number of immigrants have already been deported so the Latinos are frustrated at this point. Last summer, immigration rights activists in Los Angeles gathered for a rally, a type of grassroots mobilization pathway, wanting the government to act on immigration. These citizens have mobilized others who care about an issue to attract the attention of the government and influence the direction of law and policy involving immigration. President Obama is trying to get his voters back before the 2012 election coming up soon. By keeping all of his accomplishments right before the next election, Obama will gain more supporters which is also a Hardball political way of getting ahead in politics. The administration has been taking steps to win back the support of Latino voters. President Obama greeted attendees after speaking during the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute's 34th Annual Awards Gala in Washington last month. On October 12, 2011, President Obama will speak at an American Latino Heritage Forum which will be favorable for the Latinos. Although President Obama has not faced the issue right away, he is being smart by doing what his supporters want right before the election.

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