I. Obama Deports Record Level 1.2 Million Hispanics
I. Overview
By
a ratio of more
than two-to-one
(59% versus
27%), Hispanics
disapprove of
the way the
Obama
administration
is handling
deportations of
unauthorized
immigrants,
according to a
new national
survey of
Hispanic adults
by the Pew
Hispanic Center,
a project of the
Pew Research
Center.
Deportations have reached record levels under President Obama, rising to an annual average of nearly 400,000 since 2009, about 30% higher than the annual average during the second term of the Bush administration and about double the annual average during George W. Bush’s first term.
Even as deportations have been rising, apprehensions of border crossers by the U.S. Border Patrol have declined by more than 70% — from 1.2 million in 2005 to 340,000 in 2011. This mirrors a sharp drop in the number of unauthorized immigrants entering the U.S. since the middle of the last decade.
More
than
eight-in-ten
(81%) of the
nation’s
estimated 11.2
million
unauthorized
immigrants are
of Hispanic
origin,
according to Pew
Hispanic Center
estimates.
Hispanics
accounted for an
even larger
share of
deportees in
2010 — 97%.
Not all Hispanics are aware that the Obama administration has stepped up deportations of unauthorized immigrants. In response to a question on the Pew Hispanic survey, a plurality (41%) of Hispanics say that the Obama administration is deporting more unauthorized immigrants than the Bush administration. Slightly more than a third (36%) say the two administrations have deported about the same number of immigrants. And one-in-ten (10%) Hispanics say the Obama administration has deported fewer unauthorized immigrants than the Bush administration.
Disapproval
of Obama’s
policy is most
widespread among
those who are
aware that
deportations
have risen
during his
tenure. Among
this group, more
than
three-quarters
(77%) disapprove
of the way his
administration
is handling the
issue of
deportations.
Among those who
are not aware
that an increase
has occurred,
slightly more
than half
disapprove.
Awareness of the level of deportations is higher among foreign-born Hispanics than among native-born Hispanics — 55% versus 25%. It is even higher among those who are most at risk of deportation. Seven-in-ten (71%) Hispanic immigrants who are not U.S. citizens and do not have a green card — a group that closely aligns with the unauthorized immigrant population — say the Obama administration has deported more unauthorized immigrants than the Bush administration.
These findings are from a new national survey of 1,220 Hispanic adults ages 18 and older conducted by landline and cellular telephone, in English and Spanish, from November 9 through December 7, 2011. The margin of error for the full sample is plus or minus 3.6 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
Immigration Policy Priorities
In
recent years,
the debate over
undocumented
immigration has
often been posed
as a choice
between two
competing
priorities —
increasing
border security
and enforcement
or providing a
path to
citizenship to
immigrants who
are in the
country
illegally.
Hispanics are nearly twice as likely as the general public (42% versus 24%) to say the priority should be a path to citizenship for immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally.
About as many Hispanics as the general public (46% versus 43%) say equal priority should be given to enforcement and legalization. Just 10% of Hispanics say priority should be given to better border security and enforcement, compared with 29% of the general public.
The 2012 Presidential Election and Hispanics
The
Pew Hispanic
survey also
reveals that,
heading into the
2012
presidential
campaign, Obama
and the
Democratic Party
continue to
enjoy strong
support from
Hispanic
registered
voters.
In a hypothetical match-up against former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Obama wins 68% to 23% among Hispanic registered voters. And in a match-up against Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Obama wins the Hispanic vote 69% to 23%. These results closely match the outcome of the 2008 presidential election, when Obama carried the Hispanic vote over Republican John McCain by 67% to 31%.
Even among those who disapprove of the way Obama is handling the issue of deportations, a majority support his reelection over either of these two potential Republican challengers. Obama would carry this group by 57% to 34% against Romney and 61% to 31% against Perry.
The survey also shows that identification with the Democratic Party among Hispanic registered voters remains strong. Two-thirds (67%) of Hispanic registered voters say they identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party, while 20% say the same about the Republican Party.
And when asked which party has more concern for Hispanics, 45% say it’s the Democratic Party, while 12% say it’s the Republican Party. The share that identifies the Republican Party as the better party for Hispanics is up six percentage points since 2010.
Obama’s Job Rating among Hispanics
Despite Obama’s strong showing among Hispanics when compared with potential 2012 Republican rivals, he has suffered a decline in his overall approval rating as president. Today 49% of Hispanics approve of the job he is doing, down from 58% in 2010. Among the general public, Obama’s approval trend has been more stable during the past year. His current rating — 46% — is still somewhat lower among the general public than among Hispanics, but this gap has narrowed significantly in the past year.
Among Hispanics who disapprove of the Obama administration’s deportation policy, just 36% approve of the president’s overall job performance while 54% disapprove.
Top Issues for Hispanics
The
survey finds
that jobs,
education and
health care are
the top issues
for Hispanic
registered
voters as they
think about the
upcoming
presidential
election. Half
identify jobs as
extremely
important to
them personally,
followed closely
by education
(49%) and health
care (45%).
These top three
reflect the same
three issues
Hispanic
registered
voters
identified as
most important
in 2010 and in
2008.
One-third (33%) of Hispanic registered voters say immigration is extremely important to them personally, statistically unchanged since 2010. About a third also describes taxes and the federal budget deficit as extremely important issues.
Among the report’s other findings:
-
More than half (56%) of all Hispanics say they are dissatisfied with the direction of the country today, while 38% say they are satisfied. Among the general public, 78% are dissatisfied with the nation’s direction while 17% are satisfied.
Deportations
-
One-quarter (24%) of all Hispanics say they know someone who has been deported or detained by the federal government in the past year.
-
The share of convicted criminal deportations among all deportations reached a high of 44% in 2010, up from 29% in 2008.
Immigration Policy
-
Nine-in-ten (91%) Hispanics support the DREAM Act, legislation that would permit young adults who were brought to the U.S. illegally when they were children to become legal residents if they go to college or serve in the military for two years.
-
More than eight-in-ten (84%) Hispanics say unauthorized immigrants should be eligible for in-state tuition at public colleges if they went to a high school in their state and were accepted at a public college.
The 2012 Election
-
More than half (56%) of Hispanic registered voters say they have given little or no thought to the candidates who may be running for president in 2012.
-
When asked about their opinion of Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, more than half (54%) of Hispanic registered voters say they have never heard of him, can’t rate him or responded “don’t know.” Rubio, who is of Cuban ancestry, has been mentioned as a possible Republican vice presidential running mate.
-
Among Hispanic registered voters, 35% describe their political views as conservative, 32% describe them as moderate and 28% describe their political views as liberal.
