President Biden Appeals to Latino Voters at El Portal Restaurant
During a visit to El Portal, a Mexican restaurant in Phoenix, President Joe Biden made a direct plea to Latino voters.
"I need you badly. I need the help," he told the crowd, as he launched his campaign's Latino voter outreach organization on Tuesday. "You're the reason why — in large part — I beat Donald Trump."
Earlier in the day, he emphasized the disparities between his candidacy and that of former President Donald Trump, reiterating arguments about Trump's character.
"This guy despises Latinos," Mr. Biden stated in an interview with Univision radio.
Trump has made incendiary comments throughout the election cycle about undocumented immigrants, claiming they're "poisoning the blood" of the country or referring to some migrants recently as "not people."
The former president is confident that remarks like these won't harm him as he seeks support from Latino voters, who have typically favored Democrats.
Republicans have seen slight advancements in recent years, with the Latino vote aiding GOP candidates in victories in South Texas and South Florida in 2020 and 2022.
"Hispanics, very entrepreneurial people," Trump mentioned to British commentator Nigel Farage in an interview on Tuesday. "They like me, I like them."
Trump and Republicans see an opportunity in that voting bloc to increase support, citing concerns about the economy, crime, and immigration at the southern border. While Mr. Biden still holds the majority of support from Latino voters, his backing has decreased. According to a CBS News poll from late February, Mr. Biden's support among Hispanic voters has fallen by 12 points since 2020, dropping from 65% to 53%.
This decline marked the most significant decrease in Mr. Biden's share among the groups surveyed.
Mr. Biden's campaign is making efforts to appeal to this crucial voting bloc and highlight his administration's advancements on the economy well before the general election. Recently, the campaign introduced "Latinos con Biden-Harris," an organization in battleground states aimed at mobilizing and educating Latino supporters on messaging. Additionally, Mr. Biden visited key Western battleground states with substantial Latino voter populations, such as Arizona and Nevada, discussing topics like affordable housing.
The campaign rolled out three versions of a targeted ad for Latinos: one in English, one in Spanish, and one in "Spanglish," blending both languages. This ad covers abortion and the Biden administration's initiatives to reduce prescription drug prices, as part of a $30 million ad campaign that kicked off in March to target viewers of minority-owned media outlets.
"Our campaign is focused on building trust and support within our community for this election," said Julie Chavez Rodriguez, the campaign manager for Biden, emphasizing their strong track record.
In contrast, the Trump campaign, facing a significant cash deficit compared to Biden's campaign, has not yet launched similar initiatives.
Trump's campaign and the Republican National Committee are actively engaging with Hispanic media outlets, utilizing a designated Hispanic communications director and surrogates who speak to targeted audiences on local and Spanish TV regularly.
"Joe Biden no longer has a base, as key Democrat constituencies such as African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and women are supporting President Trump because they are sick and tired of Crooked Joe's record-high inflation, open borders, crime and chaos," stated Karoline Leavitt, Trump campaign press secretary.
Steve Macias, a Latino voter in Arizona who previously supported Trump but is undecided this year, highlighted immigration policies as a crucial factor in his decision. He remains skeptical about both Biden and Trump's ability to effectively manage the influx of migrants at the southern border.
The former leader, who initially pledged during his 2016 campaign to "construct the barrier" at the southern boundary, has committed to withholding citizenship from offspring with guardians who are not American citizens or lawful permanent residents. Additionally, he has declared intentions to execute the "most extensive expulsion initiative" in U.S. history, patterned after the Eisenhower administration's "Operation Wetback" in 1954, which expelled hundreds of thousands of predominantly Mexican migrants.
"If you heed Trump – it's all about sealing the border, deporting them all. Well, that doesn't resolve anything. And it's not feasible," Macias remarked in a CBS News Arizona discussion panel of undecided voters.
At present, elements that are influencing Macias and other vacillating Latino voters in Arizona against Mr. Biden are the president's advanced age of 81 and their yearning for the economic conditions during Trump's term.
"Age plays a significant role for me. Trump conceals it better because he's always lively and articulate," mentioned Paulina Flores, who supported Mr. Biden in 2020 but is presently undecided. "Biden, at times he's just standing at the lectern and you can discern that he struggles to gather his thoughts, or he requires assistance to formulate sentences. And you're like, 'Oh.' Could we have someone younger?"
Olivia Rinaldi, Jacob Rosen, Weijia Jiang and Gabrielle Ake contributed to this report.
