Democratic Town Hall: Clinton's Immigration Reform Bill Will Be Introduced Within 100 Days in White House
Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton made their final pleas on national television to attract voters, particularly Latinos, ahead Saturday's Nevada caucus.
Bernie on the Issues
From Las Vegas, Sanders was the first to take on questions from diverse questionnaires and moderators Jose Diaz-Balart and Chuck Todd.
Sanders received several questions on immigration, as promoted and expected by broadcaster MSNBC. Sanders said immigration reform is a top priority, but did not set a time frame on acting on it, stating, "I'm not a dictator here" since such progress requires cooperation with Congress.
Sanders defended his votes on Senate immigration reform bills. In 2007, he voted against then-Sen. Ted Kennedy's, D-Mass., comprehensive immigration bill. The Vermont senator explained the 2007 bill was not a perfect bill and a number of pro-immigration rights organizations, such as the AFL-CIO and the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) even opposed the bill. He did vote in favor of the 2013 Senate comprehensive immigration reform bill, which did pass the Senate but was never picked up in the House of Representatives. Sanders said the 2013 was a better bill compared to the 2007 legislation. While the reform has yet to pass Congress, Sanders said his immigration platform is to lift the 11 million undocumented immigrants from the shadows, but it is a job for Congress. He did stand by his platform to even go beyond President Barack Obama's immigration executive actions if Congress fails to act on reforms.
The town hall was also a unique opportunity for the Vermont senator, who has described himself as a "Democratic socialist," to distinguish his view of socialism compared to the Latin American countries of Cuba and Venezuela.
"I'm not looking at Venezuela, I'm not looking at Cuba -- I'm looking at countries like Denmark, Sweden," said Sanders, adding that his single-payer health care plan will not negatively affect the quality of medical care.
Sanders also criticized Republicans, namely Donald Trump, for comments negatively affecting Latinos, immigrants and Muslims. He told a questionnaire in regards to Islamophobia, "People can disagree about immigration and immigration reform. But it is absolutely unacceptable to me that in the year 2016 we have people like Donald Trump and others trying to gain votes by scapegoating people who may be Muslims or people who may be Latinos."
In regards to the minimum wage, an issue many Latinos consider important, Sanders maintained his support to increase wages to $15 per hour, although acknowledged that minor price increases may occur such as the price of a hamburger.
Hillary on the Issues
Perhaps the main headline from Clinton's portion of the town hall is her sudden and staunch stance to introduce legislation on immigration reform within her first 100 days, if elected, in the White House. She also reiterated her platform to even go beyond Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) immigration executive actions.
"I will go further if it's at all legally possible. I will make this a big political issue," Clinton said, also noting she wants to repeal the three- and 10-year bars affecting returning immigrants and provide college vouchers for DACA beneficiaries.
Clinton was asked to release transcripts of paid speeches she's delivered to private groups, such as Goldman Sachs,
"I am happy to release anything I have whenever everybody else does the same because everybody in this race, including Sen. Sanders, has given speeches to private groups. Everybody else does the same because every other candidate in this race has given speeches to private groups, including Sen. Sanders."
She defended herself from Wall Street connections, saying, "I was a candidate who went to wall street before the crash. I went to them and said you are wrecking our economy. I now have the most effective and comprehensive plan to deal with the threat that wall street poses."
In regards to the minimum wage, Clinton hasn't changed her mind on supporting the $15 minimum wage. Clinton favors increasing wages to $12 per hour with states and cities having the right to increase wages further, citing New York and Los Angeles.
National Committees on Clinton/Sanders
Prior to the Democratic Party's town hall, the Republican National Committee (RNC) released a new 50-second advertisement specifically targeting Clinton and her immigration stance.
"Hillary Clinton's extensive record of flip-flops and political expediency on immigration fails to persuade Latinos that she can be trusted. The only constant when it comes to Hillary Clinton is that she will do or say anything to get elected," said RNC Hispanic Media Director Ruth Guerra.
On the other side of the aisle, Democratic National Committee (DNC) Communication Director Luis Miranda, as expected, praise the Democrats' town hall, which competed against a Republican presidential town hall on CNN.
"The competing Democratic town hall offered an entirely different perspective, one in which both candidates focused on how to expand opportunities to ensure everyone in America has a fair shot, and everyone plays by the same rules. And while the Republican candidates said they would continue to stand in the way of fixing our nation's broken immigration system, our Democratic candidates made it clear they understand the impact of Republican obstructionism, not just on families torn apart but also on our economy, which benefits from their hard work," Miranda said in a statement.
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For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com.
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