Bernie Sanders to Join Latino Leaders at NALEO Conference in Las Vegas
Democratic contender, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, will speak at next week's Latino leaders conference, joining Hillary Clinton at the event. Sen. Sanders has faced some backlash for not mentioning immigration and Latinos' plight in his campaign rhetoric.
In a press release provided to Latin Post, the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) announced Sen. Sanders, one of the Democratic contenders for the party's 2016 presidential nomination, will speak on their annual conference's last day.
The Vermont socialist will speak on June 19 at 11:30 a.m. local time at the event, hosted in Las Vegas, Nevada the day before Democratic candidate Clinton will be speaking.
The event brings together 1,200 Latino elected officials and national leaders. Event organizers have also invited the Republican contenders, granting them a speaking time on June 17. However, according to the Wall Street Journal, the conference has struggled to obtain a Republican presidential candidate.
The event will allow Sen. Sanders to speak with Latino leaders and reveal how he can help the Latino community.
"The race for the White House in 2016 will be decided by the Latino community," Arturo Vargas, NALEO executive director, said in the press release. "We are excited to have U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders join us as one of the leading candidates for the White House in 2016 and look forward to hearing him address our nation's Latino political leadership on the issues most important to the Latino community."
Sen. Sanders did not address directly issues like immigration during his campaign launch, but did mention reforms to other areas that are very important to the Latino community, such as education and the economy.
Yet, at least one Latino leader has criticized the senator for his lack of emphasis on Latino issues, especially immigration.
Speaking with Larry King on ORA TV's PolitiKING, Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill, said Sen. Sanders was not doing enough for immigration reform. Rep. Gutierrez supports Clinton's campaign.
"We've got the socialist, uh I can't remember his name. Bernie Sanders," Rep. Gutierrez said. "I don't know if he likes immigrants because he doesn't seem to talk about immigrants. But sooner or later, he'll tell us. I hope he likes immigrants. I haven't heard him say anything. He's been kind of quiet and silent."
However, Sen. Sanders has supported President Barack Obama's executive actions and supports immigration reform.
"I'm a strong supporter of immigration reform and of the need to provide a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants," he said in a statement after President Obama announced his executive orders. "I support President Obama's action to help working families stay together. I think everyone agrees that the current immigration system is broken."
Aside from including Sen. Sanders and Clinton, the event will also feature Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro and Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez. They will speak at the conference on June 17 and June 18, respectively.
Sec. Castro has been put forward as a potential vice presidential contender to run with Clinton, though he has not expressed interest.
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