Biden's ties to Obama could hamper appeal to Latino voters

Joe Biden's tenure as Barack Obama's vice president is complicating his efforts to deepen ties with Latinos who could be critical to winning the White House.

For many Latinos, Biden's embrace of the Obama years is a frightening reminder of when the former president ejected about 3 million people living in the US illegally, earning him the moniker of "deporter in chief".

That's one reason Latinos overwhelmingly backed Bernie Sanders during the Democratic primary. But with the Vermont senator out of the race and Biden left as the presumptive Democratic nominee, Latinos face an agonising choice.

They could look past Biden's resume and vote for him or sit out the election and risk another four years of President Donald Trump, who escalated his hard-line stance this week with an executive order freezing some immigration into the US during the coronavirus pandemic.

"The 'Let's go back to how things were' for people who feel like they have a boot on their neck, it's not always that compelling," said Marisa Franco, director and co-founder of the Latino activist group Mijente, which made its first-ever endorsement when it backed Sanders for president.

The record number of deportations under Obama came as his administration sought to show it was serious about enforcement while waiting on Congress to approve an overhaul to the immigration system.

But in the process, it deported a large percentage of people without criminal records, even while publicly saying its priority was removing criminals from the country.

Obama eventually gave up on Congress and changed tactics, extending temporary legal protections to young immigrants through Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which is still being challenged in federal court.

Biden long defended the administration's immigration policy, even telling one activist in South Carolina who decried deportations, "You should vote for Trump."
But just before losing the caucuses in heavily Hispanic Nevada in February, Biden conceded, "We took far too long to get it right. I think it was a big mistake."
"Our community definitely understands and knows the consequences of having Trump as president," said Laura Jimenez, the Biden campaign's Latino engagement director. "This election is about our lives, our safety, our ability to thrive and be in this country and be accepted."