- Title: Immigrant voters react to first U.S. presidential debate
- Date: 27th September 2016
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (SEPTEMBER 26, 2016) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS OF PEOPLE WATCHING FIRST PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) DREAM ACT BENEFICIARY, PEDRO TRUJILLO, SAYING: "It's something we've seen in other debates where they don't talk about immigration. It's disappointing because we want to hear more about that topic; our lives depend on those laws. It really depends on the law to dictate how immigrants are treated." SHOT OF GROUP WATCHING THE DEBATE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) VOTER, YARITZA GONZALES, ON HILLARY CLINTON'S PERFORMANCE, SAYING: "Overall I really liked what she said, I feel that she had stronger points than Donald Trump, he was yelling during the entire debate, he didn't rely on the facts, just different opinions and he was not addressing the questions." SHOT OF FATHER WATCHING THE DEBATE WITH LITTLE GIRL HOLDING AN AMERICAN FLAG (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CHIRLA (COALITION FOR HUMANE IMMIGRANT RIGHTS OF LOS ANGELES) POLITICAL DIRECTOR, POLO MORALES, SAYING: "The debate, the questions that were made, I wanted to hear more about the immigration reform. What are they going to do with the 11 million of immigrants in this country. They focused in security, but Donald Trump in every opportunity talked about illegal immigrants, about the jobs that are leaving to Mexico, so obviously he's still touching on the same points and he doesn't know how to provide a solution on these topics." CLOSE SHOT OF PEOPLE WATCHING THE DEBATE (SOUNDBITE) (English) VOTER, ANA REYES, SAYING: "I don't think that he was prepared, I think that he was still sticking with the same racist comments that he usually sticks to, speaking about himself not really about the country or about any communities." PEOPLE WATCHING THE DEBATE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) DREAM ACT BENEFICIARY, PEDRO TRUJILLO, SAYING: "I can't vote since I'm a DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) beneficiary. My family has been in this country for 20 years, undocumented. For the last eight years I've been promoting the Latino vote, I've been knocking on doors, not only with my relatives but other Latinos who perhaps don't vote because no one tell them how to, so we invite them to participate and register to vote." CLOSE UP OF AUDIENCE WATCHING THE DEBATE (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIRLA (COALITION FOR HUMANE IMMIGRANT RIGHTS OF LOS ANGELES) POLITICAL DIRECTOR, POLO MORALES, SAYING: "Definitely the questions were more in depth, a lot more time to really unravel what it is that the points were being made by both candidates. I think in a sense Hillary Clinton had a much deeper policy perspective than Donald Trump, he expectedly does that, very broad stroke, not very clear, not very specific and he is very liberal when it comes to using facts, so I don't think that that changed much in the debate today." PEOPLE WATCHING THE DEBATE
- Embargoed: 12th October 2016 05:52
- Keywords: Hillary Clinton Donald Trump Presidential debate debate White House immigration presidential race
- Location: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- City: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Elections/Voting
- Reuters ID: LVA00151C9X6V
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Disappointment for Latinos who gathered at CHIRLA, an advocacy organization for human rights for the first presidential debate who were hoping to hear more about the future of the more of 11 million undocumented immigrants in the country. Immigration has been a heated topic in the presidential race with Republican Donald Trump planning on building a wall and deporting unlawful immigrants to their home countries.
"It's something we've seen in other debates where they don't talk about immigration. It's disappointing because we want to hear more about that topic; our lives depend on those laws," said Pedro Trujillo, a beneficiary of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), an executive action passed in 2012 by President Obama that allows qualified undocumented immigrants who entered the country before their 16th birthday and before June 2007 to receive a renewable two-year work permit and exemption from deportation.
On the other hand, Polo Morales, political director at CHIRLA, said, "I wanted to hear more about the immigration reform. What are they going to do with the 11 million of immigrants in this country. They focused in security, but Donald Trump in every opportunity talked about illegal immigrants, about the jobs that are leaving to Mexico, so obviously he's still touching on the same points and he doesn't know how to provide a solution on these topics."
The airing of the debate at the CHIRLA offices in Los Angeles was watched by Latinos across the spectrum, from DACA beneficiaries like Trujillo, to undocumented immigrants and voters. CHIRLA is an organization based in Los Angeles that advocates for the human rights and social change of the Latino community.
Latinos were a subject of the debate only briefly, when Hillary Clinton pointed out Trumps' derogatory comments about women, including former Miss Universe Alicia Machado.
"And one of the worst things he said was about a woman in a beauty contest - he loves beauty contests, supporting them and hanging around them - and he called this woman "Miss Piggy," then he called her "Miss Housekeeping" because she was Latina," Said Clinton.
Overall, the attendees at the first of three presidential debates felt that Hillary Clinton had a better performance than Donald Trump. "I really liked what she said, I feel that she had stronger points than Donald Trump, he was yelling during the entire debate, he didn't rely on the facts, just different opinions and he was not addressing the questions," said Yaritza Gonzalez, a daughter of Mexican immigrants.
The heated debate was a chance for Donald Trump to appear disciplined and for Clinton it was an opportunity to reassure voters she could be trusted. It remained to be seen how voters would judge their performance. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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