From the Latin American Advisor:
Q: President Barack Obama announced on June 15 that the United States would no longer initiate deportation proceedings against undocumented immigrants who arrived in the country before age 16, are younger than 30 and meet other conditions that include having clean criminal records. Obama made the announcement five months before the U.S. presidential election in which Hispanics are playing an increased role. What are the economic and political impacts of Obama's announcement? Will it have a significant effect on the presidential race? Is the decision significant for U.S. relations with Mexico or other Latin American countries? A: Louis DeSipio, associate professor of political science and chair of Chicano/Latino studies at University of California Irvine: "President Obama's announcement that many young-adult unauthorized migrants who originally migrated as children and young teens would not be subject to deportation and would be eligible for short-term work permits is both good policy and good politics. In political terms, the policy change reminded Latinos (and other racial/ethnic populations with high shares of immigrants) why they had supported Obama at such high rates in 2008. It has had an immediate effect in opinion polls of registered Latino voters; Obama's support has grown. More importantly, enthusiasm for his candidacy has grown. This enthusiasm is particularly important in that Latinos and other populations newer to the electorate traditionally have lower turnout rates that non-Hispanic whites and blacks..."

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