Dem rep: Delay on immigration cost us in Colorado, Florida

A top House supporter of immigration on Thursday said President Obama’s decision to delay executive action on immigration hurt Democrats running in races in Colorado and Florida.

Appearing on MSNBC, Rep. Luis Gutiérrez (D-Ill.) questioned whether the president’s decision helped Democrats.

“So what do we get? We lost the Senate anyway and infuriated, angered, disillusioned lots of voters that might well have come out to vote in the Florida election and in the Colorado election. Not to mention other elections that might have been close,” he said.

Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.) lost his seat last week, and Charlie Crist (D) was defeated in his bid for Florida governor.

Gutiérrez made the comments less than a day after Fox News reported that the president was on the verge of signing a 10-point executive order aimed at overhauling the immigration system. A part of the order that would reportedly expand the administration’s deferred deportations program is expected to be the most contentious.

Gutiérrez expressed his support for presidential action.

“The president should act in a bold manner, in a generous manner. And he should act quickly and swiftly,” the Illinois Democrat said.

Republicans have said that, if the president signs an executive order on immigration, it would “poison the well” for cooperation between incoming congressional leadership and the White House. But Gutiérrez said that, by repeatedly walking away from any deal on immigration reform, Republicans had already alienated Democrats on the issue.

“They kind of doubled down on poisoning the well,” he said.