We keep hearing that the national Republican Party wants to include more Hispanics and appeal to
more Latino voters. They keep saying that they respect our values and are better able to represent them.
But when one of their own calls a large group of Hispanics in the U.S. drug dealers and rapists, the GOP leaders stay silent. Deafeningly silent.
It has been several days since billionaire one-man clown act Donald Trump announced his run for the U.S. presidency in a speech where he said he would build a wall to keep those big, bad Mexicans out.
“They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. 
And some, I assume, are good people,” he said, throwing that last phrase in for good measure. Some.
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Already, Univision said it would break ties on the Miss Universe pageant and would not honor an agreement to air the Miss USA show — one of Trump’s many investments — for the next five years. Latin Urban Movement musician J. Balvin cancelled his performance on the July show and other Hispanic entertainers have said they will boycott.
In the 305, Doral Mayor Luigi Boria — who has had a love/hate relationship with The Donald, one of the city’s largest property owners — called Trump an ignoramus who needs to read up on the achievements of Hispanic and Mexicans in this country. And Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos “Mr. Giveaway” Gimenez — who just last month was trying to hand Trump our public golf course on Key Biscayne — said he would return a $15,000 check that Trump donated to his re-election campaign.
Pero los republicanos brillan por su ausencia. Translation: But the Republicans stand out because of their absence.
Where is the outrage from the Republican National Committee? Where are the statements from other candidates demanding an apology. Man, they were quick to issue statements on the Obamacare ruling. But they got nothing to say about this?
One would think that at least Jeb Bush, whose wife
is Mexican and whose children are Mexican-American, would say something. Sen. Marco Rubio, who makes his family’s immigrant story central to his campaign, should have also blasted Trump for what were basically statements against all Hispanics, not just the 34 million Mexican-Americans who live in this country (11 million foreign-born and 23 million born here).
Because let’s face it, to people like Trump, Mexicans mean Hispanic. I’m sure he feels the same way about Colombians, Nicaraguans and Cubans. Like journalist Roberto Rodriguez-Tejera said on the radio Friday morning, today, I am Mexican. We are all Mexicans.
And I call specifically on Ladra’s local Hispanic Republican leaders like Sen. Anitere Flores, chair of the Miami-Dade Legislative Delegation, State Rep. and future Florida House Speaker Jose Oliva and county Commissioner Esteban Bovo — maybe even local party chairman Nelson Diaz — to demand that their party leadership denounce Trump and tell him that this kind of divisiveness is not going to be tolerated throughout this campaign.
Especially if they want us Latino voters to believe that they truly respect and represent our values.
After all, talk is cheap. And actions speak louder than words.
‘Latino-loving’ GOP silent on Donald Trump insults added by Ladra on
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