Obama’s Approval Rating With Latinos Drops

Surprisingly, given President Barack Obama’s blatant sweeping aside of Latino issues while blatantly pandering to Latino voters at the same time, his approval rating with this demographic dropped in March. According to a Gallup poll:

Though majorities of blacks (85%) and Hispanics (54%) continue to approve of the job Barack Obama is doing as president, his ratings among these groups slipped in March and have set or tied new lows. His approval rating among whites, at 39%, remains above where it was in the latter part of 2010…

Obama, elected to office with strong support from minority voters, has averaged better than 90% approval among blacks, and 65% among Hispanics, during his term. Prior to March, Obama’s lowest monthly average among blacks was 88% in July 2010 and December 2010. The president’s 54% March job approval rating among Hispanics ties the low from July and August 2010.

Again, this is not a surprising drop given his administration’s cop-out on the DREAM Act, the absence of Latino staffers in the administration. But, one hopes for more — especially because Latino voters saved the Democrats and the Senate in November and there’s no way Obama is going to be re-elected without their vote.

So why the cop-out?

It feels like the Obama Administration is trying to think of one or two things they can use as a carrot to lure the Latino vote, instead of simply enacting good policy that will benefit Latinos. This is especially true when it comes to look at how budget cuts will affect Latinos. When will the administration learn to treat Latino voters with a little more respect? For all our sakes, hopefully soon.

Follow Sara Inés Calderón on Twitter @SaraChicaD