The rumor from Los Angeles is that the city's major Spanish-language daily, La Opinion, will make an endorsement in the Democratic primary tomorrow. The move would be historic, as the paper does not usually endorse in primaries. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama's differing tones on immigration policy are said to be key to the editorial board's decision, which I'd guess bodes well for Obama. Clinton has earned more support from the Latino political class, and Bill Clinton's administration was known for promoting Latino leadership. But in recent weeks Obama has reached out to grassroots immigrants-rights organizations, speaking about his record of using progressive economic politics to bring Chicago's African American and Latino communities together.Both Clinton and Obama support the comprehensive immigration reform bill that failed in Congress last year, but the devil is in the details. Obama supports driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants; Clinton does not. And at last night's debate, Obama's tone on immigration was much more conciliatory. In response to a question about whether illegal immigration is responsible for African American unemployment, Clinton basically agreed with the premise, while Obama said:I think to suggest somehow that the problem that we're seeing, in inner city unemployment for example, is attributable to immigrants, I think, is a case of scapegoating that I do not believe in, that I do not subscribe to.In Nevada, the support of the Culinary, a major labor union which represents many Latino workers, couldn't carry Obama to a decisive win. Would an endorsement from La Opinion move voters in California? Obama's got to be praying for that: The latest polls are showing him behind by less than 5 points.--Dana Goldstein
