By Janet Murguía
The top priority of most Americans coming out of the November elections, including the vast majority of the nation’s 64 million Hispanics, was addressing cost of living issues such as inflation, housing prices, the need for better-paying jobs, and access to health care.
Yet, we heard precious little from the President on these core concerns either in his address or in the reports of the new Administration’s Day One Executive Orders. The President should keep in mind that voters want to hear first and foremost about the economy and that his Administration will be held accountable by what he does or doesn’t do to help Americans cope with rising prices and other daily economic challenges.
On immigration, our polling has shown that Latinos want to see constructive solutions on the border and action taken against drug traffickers and human smugglers. Hispanics, though, prefer policies that are firm, fair, and free of cruelty over extreme policies such as mass deportations. The community wants a balanced approach to these efforts that includes protecting DREAMers and providing relief to the long-term undocumented with families and deep ties to our country. These are individuals who contribute to and strengthen our nation’s economy.
Many of the president’s proposed Executive Orders, however, are strictly punitive measures such as changing enforcement targets to include schools, churches, and hospitals, and are designed to inflict pain on the most vulnerable – families, children, and even the sick and injured. Other proposed measures are textbook government overreach that would open the door to abuse of power. And internal enforcement actions such as workplace raids will disrupt and upend neighborhoods, businesses, and communities all over the country, and put the safety of all Americans at risk. It is clear that orders such as ending birthright citizenship are beyond any president’s authority and will be immediately and rightfully challenged in the courts.
The President’s proposed Executive Orders will not only harm the civil rights and lives of millions of people in this country but the damage inflicted on our economy, estimated to be in the trillions of dollars, will be felt by every American.
Janet Murguía, is President and CEO of UnidosUS, the nation’s largest Latino civil rights and advocacy organization.
