L.A. Mayor: Romney's business record no qualification for president
(CBS News) Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said that neither the business nor government experience of Bain Capital co-founder and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has shown he will be a successful president.
"We know that he piled on a lot of debt on companies, fired a lot of workers, and made a lot of money," Villaraigosa said on "Face the Nation." "That to me doesn't qualify him to be president of the United States."
Villaraigosa added that Romney's economic and immigration proposals will not garner the support of Latinos. ,/P>
"We know that when he was Governor, he was 47th out of 50 when it comes to job creation, and that he added more debt on the people of Massachusetts per capita than any other state. So I don't think those things are going to qualify him to be president of the United States, and I don't think that the Latinos are going to vote for him," he said.
The L.A. Mayor said Romney, who blamed the president for failing to tackle immigration reform during his first term, has "amnesia" about the DREAM Act, legislation which would give undocumented youth access to residency through college or the military.
Also on "Face the Nation:" Gov. Perry says Pres. Obama is using immigration as a "wedge issue"
"I think it's pretty clear that he has amnesia and this is why: 208 Democrats passed the DREAM act in the Congress, with the President's support; 51 Democrats in the Senate supported it," he said.
Villaraigosa said the president took action and that Romney is avoiding taking a stance after he said during the primary that he would veto the DREAM Act.
"The president's deferring action on deportation. If Mr. Romney wants to come clean with what he's going to do, he ought to do it, but you gave him, last week, multiple opportunities to say whether or not he would veto this. He wouldn't answer it," the mayor said.
Villaraigosa added: "If [Romney] wants to take this out of the debate and the campaign, he ought to call on Speaker Boehner, the Republicans in the House and the Senate, to work with President Obama and the Democrats to pass not only the DREAM Act but comprehensive immigration reform."
Watch the full interview here.