Groups representing Latino voters, a key component of any Democratic presidential candidate’s path to victory in 2020, are concerned Joe Biden’s campaign is operating under the assumption that they’ll support him for the nomination no matter what.
The former vice president has skipped a number of cattle-call events where his rival Democratic candidates have showed up and made their case for the Democratic nomination and the right to challenge President Trump in 2020. In May, Biden attended neither the California State Democratic Convention nor the Unity and Freedom Presidential Forum, held by immigration activist group FIRM Action. Nearly every potential Democratic front-runner attended at least one of those events, including long-shot candidates such as California Rep. Eric Swalwell.
“We need candidates to come into [Latino] communities. We want candidates to be specific,” Thomas Kennedy, political director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition, told the Washington Examiner. Noting Biden’s absence at this week’s NALEO presidential campaign forum in Miami, Kennedy added, “We were disappointed, but not surprised that he wasn’t there. He hasn’t been attending any forums like these.”
Beyond missing key events in California, Florida, and Iowa, Biden’s campaign has done virtually no outreach to Latino groups for the two months he’s been in the field.
“Joe Biden is by no means our favorite. He hasn’t been a leader on the issue of immigration. I think in the long run his lack of engagement will hurt him. There are 23 candidates running, after all,” Kennedy said.
At fundraisers and in stump speeches, Biden has yet to even use words such as “Latinos” or “Hispanics.” In terms of specifics, he only gestures to ideas such as “comprehensive immigration reform” and border security.
In an increasingly diverse electorate, Latino activists want a candidate who can relate kitchen table issues to their own community. Simply pointing out things such as income inequality and stagnate wages isn’t enough to demonstrate a sincere understanding with Latinos.
“Candidates need to actually talk to voters. Some campaigns think Latinos don’t vote, so why should they reach out to us? But it’s not enough to just go to fundraisers in Hollywood or Silicon Valley,” the Latino Community Foundation’s policy director Christian Arana told the Washington Examiner. “Do we feel snubbed by Biden? Of course we do. I feel like Biden has had a series of problems lately. Somebody like him can’t just expect us to support him.”
In contrast, Latino activists point to the likes of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders or former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke as examples of candidates who have been willing to spend hours speaking to members of the Latino community. Before their speeches at the California State Democratic Convention, the two met with the state’s Latino caucus and left positive impressions, a party insider told the Washington Examiner.
“I’ve been impressed with people like [former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development] Julián Castro and [South Bend, Ind., Mayor] Pete Buttigieg. They seem to really want to sit down and speak to people like us. There aren’t that many Latino political forums, so it doesn’t make sense why you’d want to miss so many of them. If you remember when Biden accepted the position to be Obama’s VP, he said he’d do it only if he was the final person consulted on key policy issues. Well, did he object to the deportations under Obama? These are questions we want to ask.”
