Check out the email below, in italics, sent by Adrian Saenz, National Vote Director for Obama for America. In it, he claims that Obama “supports the DREAM Act so that children of immigrants won’t be punished for the actions of their parents, and he’s directed the Department of Homeland Security to prioritize the deportation of criminals, rather than DREAMers and family members of veterans or active duty members.”
Interesting, then that Isaac and Jonathan, DREAM-eligible candidates, were both placed into detention as soon as they walked into an ICE office in Mobile Alabama.
It’s getting old. And maybe folks are tired of hearing the same thing, over and over, but it’s true- the Obama administration is not telling the truth about its deportation policy. It is a lie. Perhaps the infrastructure is larger than we understand, and decisions being made in D.C. can’t manage to find their way to places like Mobile, but whose responsibility is it to make sure that it happens? Certainly not ours.
What is worse is the Obama campaign’s clear and blatant manipulation of this issue to build their email lists. It might be okay if they were actually trying to do something to help immigrant communities, but all we have seen are toothless policy memos and lawsuits that pass the buck.
At this rate, we simply can’t blame anybody who decides to place their bets with Newt Gingrich or Rick Perry, who have both alluded to their support for the DREAM Act, or simply referred to those who would “deport them all” (as Obama is currently doing) as heartless. Maybe that’s shameless politicking- but at this point, what’s the difference?
Email below. And let @adriansaenz2012 know how you feel about being manipulated- here are some sample tweets if you aren’t sure where to start:
Dear @adriansaenz2012 We’re still not buying it. Over 1million deported by Obama. Sincerely, @DreamAct
@adriansaenz2012 uses #Immigration issue thru email to gain support & donations. Lies about position. #dreamact
@AdrianSaenz2012 misleads #immigration & #Dreamact supporters by lying about @BarackObama policies
___________________________________
Here’s the original email:
“I wonder sometimes if the Republican presidential candidates realize there’s a cost to what they say.
Even more than usual, they’ve been falling all over themselves lately to get Tea Party support by scapegoating immigrants.
If he wins the nomination, Mitt Romney will have managed to position himself farther to the right on immigration than any presidential nominee in recent memory by saying he’d make all undocumented immigrants in the United States leave.
On Tuesday, Rick Perry was proud to announce the endorsement of Arizona anti-immigration crusader Sheriff Joe Arpaio, saying that if he becomes president he’ll “detain and deport every illegal alien who is apprehended.” And a day before, Newt Gingrich came out in favor of a new South Carolina law that allows police to demand the immigration status of anyone they pull over.
With the Iowa caucuses less than a month away, the GOP candidates are desperate for their party’s right-wing support — and it’s becoming clearer every day that they’re willing to demonize millions of people to get it.
Had enough?
Among the more than 11 million undocumented immigrants the GOP candidates are quick to cast off, there are grandparents, mothers, and fathers who have been here for decades and who have contributed to our communities, paid taxes, and even put their lives on the line to defend our country in the armed forces.
“Rounding up” and deporting them all without any consideration for who they are or how they’ve become a part of our country would undo threads that tie our communities together.
That’s not the America you and I believe in. We believe that instead of dividing or excluding folks, we’re strongest when we’re in it together.
That’s why President Obama wants comprehensive immigration reform that will help us abide by our laws while respecting our heritage as a nation of immigrants.
He supports the DREAM Act so that children of immigrants won’t be punished for the actions of their parents, and he’s directed the Department of Homeland Security to prioritize the deportation of criminals, rather than DREAMers and family members of veterans or active duty members.
There’s going to be a clear choice in this election, and it’s up to us to let the GOP know that we won’t stand by as they attack our communities in their desperate race for Tea Party votes.
Fight back against the GOP candidates using Hispanic families to try to score political points:
http://my.barackobama.com/Stop-Scapegoating-Immigrants
Thanks,
Adrian
Adrian Saenz
National Latino Vote Director
Obama for America”
Related articles
- Obama team pounces on Romney’s equivocations over deportation – Washington Post (blog) (washingtonpost.com)
- Immigration trips up GOP presidential contenders (nbcpolitics.msnbc.msn.com)
- Gingrich Support For Dream Act Amnesty Will Derail Campaign (mybetter4you.wordpress.com)
- Philip J. Williams: The GOP’s Dilemma on Immigration (huffingtonpost.com)
- Lili Gil: Newt Gingrich Outlines His Strategy to Win the Latino Vote (huffingtonpost.com)
