WASHINGTON- The power of the Hispanic vote was the resounding theme during President Barack Obama’s recent speech to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s 37th annual gala.
The audience filled with lawmakers, business leaders and community activists cheered as Obama told them if they mobilized during campaigns and elections Hispanic American voters can bring about stark changes in government policies.
“If we want that legislation to happen sooner rather than later…I need you to talk to your constituents, your communities, and you’ve got to get there out there to vote!”
According to Pew Research, a record 11.2 million Hispanic/Latinos voted during the 2012 presidential election. However, that is only 48 percent of the overall community of eligible voters, leaving room for improvement.
Obama also said he planned to act on immigration reform with or without the cooperation of Congress.
“I said before that if Congress failed to live up to it’s responsibilities to solve the problem, I would act to fix as much of our immigration system on my own and I meant what I said.”
But he added a cautionary note: “Anything I can do can be reversed by the next president. To move beyond what I can do in a limited way, we are going to need legislation.”
