Are California Latino lawmakers ‘hiding under the covers’ over Joe Biden asylum order?

Reality Check is a Bee series holding officials and organizations accountable and shining a light on their decisions. Have a tip? Email realitycheck@sacbee.com.

At first glance, California Latino lawmakers seemed united against President Joe Biden’s action Tuesday to bar migrants from receiving asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border.

“As the Chair of the California Latino Legislative Caucus, I urge President Joe Biden to remember the promises he made and reconsider implementing an asylum ban,” Democratic Assemblywoman Sabrina Cervantes said in a statement on behalf of the group.

The reality is much more complicated.

Not all of the group’s 35 legislative members have come out strongly against the order. In fact, more than two-thirds of them declined to even state if they supported or opposed the policy when contacted by The Sacramento Bee this week.

Their varied, and cautious, views are a sign of a nationwide shift in how Americans feel about immigration. The change is evident even among Latinos, some of whom are undocumented or are the children and grandchildren of immigrants.

Take Sen. Melissa Hurtado, a Democrat from the Bakersfield area and the daughter of Mexican immigrants. In an interview, she said her feelings are more nuanced than the group’s statement.

She did not agree with the demand for Biden to reverse the ban, saying it could provide a short-term solution to a “severely broken” immigration system. At the same time, she said it was not a long-term fix. The country, she added, needs to have a “more humane pathway” for people who are fleeing their homes seeking asylum.

“I’m not 100% on board with the Latino Caucus (statement), but I’m not 100% on board with the action in itself,” Hurtado said. “I think that a lot of people are feeling that way as well.”

When asked if she supported or opposed the policy, Democratic Sen. Caroline Menjivar of the San Fernando Valley said: “Are you allowed to put 0.5 on each one?” She worries the ban will impose barriers for asylum seekers. But also acknowledged the country currently lacks the resources to process all the migrants seeking help.

Part of the hesitation from other Latino lawmakers to speak out is likely influenced by the fact that it comes during just months before the general election.

Beyond that, the race features former President Donald Trump and his ardent anti-immigrant beliefs, said Fernando Guerra, a political science and international relations professor at Loyola Marymount University.

He argued that some Democrats remain quiet on the matter to not undermine the president’s efforts to thwart Trump’s message on immigration. Elected officials, particularly Latino ones, he said, are engaging in a “subtle dance.”

“If this was, six to eight months ago, or six to eight months from now,” Guerra said, “you’ll get a very different reaction.”

Recent polls show that U.S. Latinos are deeply concerned with the border and are in favor of strong restrictions, including giving the president authority to shut it down during a surge in migrants. That said, California has long led the nation in pro-immigrant legislation, given its high number of foreign born Latinos and a decades long history of pushing back against restrictive immigration policies.

Biden’s order keeps restrictions in place until the number of migrants crossing the southern border drops below a certain level.

In comments Biden made while signing the policy, he tried to distance himself from Trump, saying he would not demonize immigrants or separate children from their families.

Still, 10 caucus members expressed opposition to Biden’s action in statements to The Bee. The comments ranged in their degree of disapproval including that of caucus vice chair Sen. Lena Gonzalez of Long Beach.

Gonzalez, a Democrat, released a separate statement. Her comments did not urge the president to reverse his action.

“While I understand the President’s desire to tackle this issue in light of the Congress’s inaction,” Gonzalez wrote, “it is imperative to adopt a comprehensive approach that does not unfairly impact individuals seeking asylum.”

A spokeswoman for Gonzalez did not respond to a question asking why the vice chair’s name was not on the caucus’ statement, alongside the chair. A spokesperson for the group pointed to past statements in which Cervantes commented solely on behalf of the caucus.

Staff for 23 lawmakers did not respond to requests to comment, said they were not able to meet a deadline or declined to state their view of the decision altogether. That included the office of Robert Rivas, a Central Coast Democrat and the top lawmaker in the Assembly.

Assemblyman Eduardo Garcia, a Democrat whose district runs along the border, said he was surprised the action was taken, adding there are “a lot of other pressing issues.” His views aligned with the statement issued by Cervantes, on behalf of the caucus, Garcia said.

“As a nation, we cannot afford to return to Trump-era immigration policies that threaten the lives of refugees or delegitimize migrants for the sake of political expediency,” Cervantes, who represents the Riverside area, said in the statement. “These policies would only criminalize the fundamentally human act of fleeing from violence, torture, or oppression.”

Mike Madrid, an expert on Latino voting trends, sees a double standard in how Democratic Latino lawmakers are reacting to Biden’s order.

“If this were Donald Trump, they would be lighting their hair on fire and marching down K Street,” he said.

The Bee also reached out to all four Republican Latinos in the Legislature who are barred from joining the caucus because of their party affiliation. Three did not respond to a request for comment.

Sen. Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, a Republican representing the San Bernardino area, is the daughter of Mexican immigrants. In a statement, she supported Biden’s action and felt “it could have been done sooner.”

Regardless of their political party, Madrid called the differing views on the policy an “extraordinary moment” for Latino politicians across the country.

“Now, what you’re seeing is a true reflection of the community, where some members are coming out in support of it,” he said. “Some members are coming out opposed to it. Most of them are hiding under the covers because they don’t know what to do.”