In response to President Biden’s withdrawal from the Presidential election, Hispanic Federation President and CEO Frankie Miranda released the following statement:
“Hispanic Federation respects President Biden’s decision to withdraw from the presidential race. After leading our country with faithful and persevering dedication to service and democracy across his own venerable public career, President Biden has chosen to step down and open the path to a new generation of leaders.
In this spirit of humble dedication, Joe Biden’s Presidency has been marked by an unerring commitment to the American people which fueled a historic agenda that improved the quality of life across the Latine community:
President Biden supported our health and wellbeing through measures like the Inflation Reduction Act, which expanded access to health insurance to hundreds of thousands of Latines, while simultaneously giving countless households the means to liberate themselves from indoor pollutants. Likewise, President Biden took steps to expand the opportunities granted by the Affordable Care Act to DREAMERs nationwide, joining health with stability. These measures built upon his established legacy of immigration reform: from his tireless work implementing the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program as Vice President, to his recent steps to enable parole-in-place: policies bringing renewed humanity and compassion to the immigration and naturalization process.
President Biden supported our economic futures through measures like the expanded Child Tax Credit, which lifted 1.2 million of our children out of poverty in 2021, as well as smart actions on jobs and businesses – thanks to which the Latine unemployment rate has fallen to a near record low of 4.9%, and pushed Latine-owned businesses to the highest growth rates in fifteen years. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law created billions of dollars in tax credits and business incentives across the nation to spur this growth. Additionally, his administration invested over $15B in Hispanic-Serving Institutions, facilitating access to the kind of education that will train future engineers, healers, teachers, and citizens.
President Biden supported our planet: promoting truly transformative justice for the Latine community. The Inflation Reduction Act gave us funding to modernize our homes, while the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law did the same for our neighborhoods. Furthermore, after visiting Puerto Rico, President Biden mobilized his administration to secure one billion dollars in energy funds for the Commonwealth. That action represented an “historic investment” and commitment to Puerto Rico to secure energy resilience for generations to come.
Joe Biden advanced our civil rights – becoming the first elected member of the Executive Branch to call for marriage equality. He took historic steps to combat discrimination against LGBTQ people in all walks of life through executive orders. Likewise, he led the charge in the fight to guarantee marriage equality by signing the Respect for Marriage Act – codifying martial equality for couples of all genders – and races and ethnicities.
Joe Biden did this and more because his Presidency was one for all of us. We thank him for his stalwart dedication to moral leadership. To humane leadership. To wise, hopeful leadership. We trust that that same hope and wisdom motivated his decision today, and we thank him for a career of service that brought consistent positive change – to our community, our nation, and our ideals.
Hispanic Federation calls on the next nominee to prioritize initiatives that will benefit Latines, and therefore the entire country. The message of millions of Latines is clear: Embrace bold and humane immigration reform to strengthen our diverse foundations. Fight for reproductive rights that secure our autonomy. Safeguard our environment so that future generations can thrive. Secure economic equity for all Americans across the country and Puerto Rico. But most of all, we call on the next nominee to pledge that they will listen to the millions of Latine voices fighting to build a more perfect Union.
We look forward to working with President Biden in the last months of his illustrious career, and to be able to thank him for his service, his leadership, and for always putting our democracy first.
About Hispanic Federation:
Hispanic Federation (HF) is a nonprofit membership and advocacy organization, founded in 1990, committed to empowering and advancing the Hispanic community, with a focus on low-income, marginalized and immigrant Latinos. With programs in 40 states, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia, HF’s focus areas include immigration, economic empowerment, civic engagement, disaster relief, philanthropy, education, health, and the environment. HF also maintains ongoing public education campaigns and meets the organizational development needs of its member agencies through grant-making and capacity-building assistance.
####
