Immigration-Reform Advocate to Lead Domestic Policy Council
nationaljournal.com
By Andrew Joseph
Updated: January 10, 2012 | 2:16 p.m.
January 10, 2012 | 1:32 p.m.
President Obama has tapped Cecilia Muñoz, the White House director of intergovernmental affairs, to succeed Melody Barnes as director of the Domestic Policy Council.
Muñoz has spent her entire career focusing on immigration reform and the rights of immigrants. She was a key figure in the negotiations over a comprehensive immigration bill advocated by President George W. Bush in 2006 and 2007. She won a MacArthur "genius award" for her work on immigration in 2000.
“Over the past three years, Cecilia has been a trusted adviser who has demonstrated sound judgment day in and day out,” Obama said in a statement. “Cecilia has done an extraordinary job working on behalf of middle-class families, and I’m confident she’ll bring the same unwavering dedication to her new position.”
Barnes left the post at the end of the year.
Muñoz’s appointment to the White House’s top domestic policy spot is a signal to Hispanic voters that Obama has not given up on immigration reform, despite the lack of progress in his first term. Obama and other administration officials have consistently expressed frustration at the blockade on earned legalization from congressional Republicans, but that has not appeased those who care about immigration reform the most.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Muñoz said she would try in her new position to fulfill the goals outlined by Obama in a speech last month advocating for the middle class. "That was a very clear vision and approach for making sure the American Dream is accessible to everyone in this country," she told The Journal. "That's going to be my guidepost."
The administration has made other steps that are overtly immigrant-friendly in recent months. Last week, the Homeland Security Department announced a tweak to the green-card application process that makes it easier for some minor children and spouses of U.S. citizens to remain in the country while awaiting legal visas.
Immigration-reform advocates were quick to praise the White House’s announcement. Angela Kelley, vice president of immigration policy and advocacy at the Center for American Progress, said that Muñoz’s appointment would improve the lives of all Americans and particularly inspire young Latinas. “She’s always been the smartest kid in the class, and now the American people will benefit from the combination [of] her profound dedication to public service and her blistering intellect,” Kelley said in a statement.
Wade Henderson, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, said that Muñoz “is an outstanding choice to lead the president’s critical domestic policy agenda for strengthening our economy and addressing the civil- and human-rights issues facing our country.”
A Pew Hispanic Center poll released last month found that Obama lost support among Latino voters from 2010 to 2011 but that he still got more of their support than potential Republican opponents when matched head to head.
Fawn Johnson contributed
http://www.nationaljournal.com/white...uncil-20120110
Obama picks former immigration advocate as a top adviser
usatoday.com
By Aamer Madhani, USA TODAY
Updated 8m ago
President Obama has tapped his administration's highest-ranking Hispanic official to serve as the director of the White House Domestic Policy Council.
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By Haraz N. Ghanbari, AP
White House press secretary Jay Carney announced the elevation of Cecilia Munoz, who was serving as the White House director of intergovernmental affairs. She also has served as the White House's point person on immigration issues and outreach to the Hispanic community. In her new post, she will coordinate the White House's policy-making process and supervise the execution of domestic policy.
Carney, however, downplayed speculation that the appointment would play well in the Hispanic community as the re-election campaign heats up.
"She is the best person for the job," Carney said. "She's done great work at the IGA."
Munoz replaces Melody Barnes, who left the White House at the end of 2011. Munoz's appointment comes one day after Obama announced that White House chief of staff William Daley was abruptly resigning and would be replaced by Jack Lew, the current director of the Office of Management and Budget.
The White House has yet to announce a replacement for Lew at OMB, and Carney said on Tuesday there wasn't a timeline for the pick.
Immigration advocacy groups hope the ascension of Munoz, who previously worked for the National Council of La Raza and Catholic Charities, sparks a renewed push by the administration for a comprehensive immigration reform law that would deal with the nation's 11 million illegal immigrants.
"We are heartened that someone who knows the issue of immigration and has that expertise is going to have an elevated role within the administration," said Elena Lacayo, immigration field coordinator for NCLR. "So we look forward to seeing forward movement on the issue of legislation after this announcement."
Obama praised Munoz, who has lead the administration's outreach to state and local governments.
"Over the past three years, Cecilia has been a trusted advisor who has demonstrated sound judgment day in and day out," Obama said in a statement.
"Cecilia has done an extraordinary job working on behalf of middle class families, and I'm confident she'll bring the same unwavering dedication to her new position."
Contributing: Alan Gomez
http://content.usatoday.com/communit...licy-adviser/1
Obama picks member of “racist organization” to head Domestic Policy Council
greeleygazette.com
Posted by Peter Grady
January 11, 2012
President Obama has chosen a woman who was a former senior vice president in what some have said is a racist organization to head his Domestic Policy Council.
On Tuesday, the White House issued an announcement that President Obama had chosen Cecilia Muñoz to replace Melody Barnes as council head. Muñoz was a former vice-president of the National Council of La Raza, which means “the race.”
Critics have said that the organization supports amnesty for illegal aliens and supports MECha (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán or Chicano Student Movement of Aztlán) which has advocated for the “Reconquista” movement. The movement calls for Colorado, California, Arizona, Texas and Utah, New Mexico and parts of Oregon to make up a new country known as “Azltan” the supposed ancestral land of the Aztecs prior to the arrival or Europeans.
La Raza claims on its website that it has never supported separatist organizations; however, it does admit that it provided a $2,500 subgrant to a chapter of MECha. The organiztion claims that MECha has said founding documents on “Reconquista” contain “inappropriate rhetoric.”
La Raza has denied that it is an open borders advocate and illegal alien lobby, however, in the section on immigration reform, La Raza claims members are for “restoring order by getting the 12 million undocumented people in our country to come forward, obtain legal status, learn English, and assume the rights and responsibilities of citizenship” as a key linchpin for reform.
Critics have said the statement is an admission La Raza supports amnesty by advocating citizenship for those who have broken the law to enter this country.
Obama has faced frequent criticism from Hispanic advocacy groups for not doing enough to change the country’s immigration laws. During a speech before a Hispanic group, the President referred to Republicans as Hispanics' enemy.
In what some have said is an attempt to shore up support among these groups for the 2012 election, Obama has enacted several policies including suing states such as South Carolina, Texas and Arizona that have attempted to enforce federal immigration laws.
The administration has also implemented policies that have greatly slowed down the deportation process and has even created a hotline for illegal aliens to call.
Administration officials have denied Muñoz’s appointment was made to curry favor with Hispanic groups.
Obama picks member of
