Oral history interview with Stephanie Valencia, 2021
Abstract
Stephanie Valencia describes her work on the 2008 Obama campaign, efforts to consolidate the Latino vote, the community's political power, and the role of Puerto Rico in primary elections. She discusses the 2008 transition, the early days in the White House, and the main priorities of immigration reform, the Recovery Act, and healthcare. As principal deputy director of public engagement, Valencia d elves into Latino outreach and engagement, including ensuring Puerto Rico was well covered in the Recovery Act, messaging to historically uninsured communities about the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and including undocumented people in the ACA exchange. Additional policy items discussed are the early fight for, messaging around, and Senate vote on the DREAM Act, as well as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) as an alternative to the DREAM Act. Valencia discusses the "un-conference" approach of the Hispanic Policy Conference; the informal task force of Latino White House staff; and Latinos44, a group of Latino appointees across the administration. Valencia describes her time at the Department of Commerce from 2013 to 2015, the role economic and trade policy can play in foreign policy, and her relationship with Penny Pritzker. Also discussed are Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids, naturalization ceremonies, the nomination and confirmation processes for Justice Sonia Sotomayor and her participation on the Supreme Court, increased partisanship and the politicization of immigration, the pace and scope of deportations during the Obama administration, White House Community Action Summits, Obama's trip to Puerto Rico, and Obama's commitment to having women in the administration
Presidents--United States; Presidential campaigns--United States; Emigration and immigration--Government policy--United States; Undocumented immigration--Government policy--United States; Health care reform--United States; Hispanic Americans--Social conditions--United States; Valencia, Stephanie; Obama, Barack; Pritzker, Penny; Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (U.S.); U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; United States; United States. Congress; United States. Department of Commerce; American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009; Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act (Dream Act)
Format
oral histories
Genre
Interviews
Date
2021
Physical Description
72 pages
Note (Biographical)
Stephanie Valencia served in the White House Office of Public Engagement from 2009 to 2013, as a special assistant to the president and principal deputy director of public engagement. She then served as deputy chief of staff to Secretary of Commerce P enny Pritzker from 2013 to 2015. Before joining the administration, she was deputy Latino vote director for the 2008 campaign and served on the 2008 transition
Note
Interviewed by Nicole R. Hemmer on November 20, 2020, and January 26, 2021. This interview is part of the Columbia University: Obama Presidency Oral History
Note (Provenance)
Stephanie Valencia, Gift, transferred from Columbia Center for Oral History Research 2022