Given His Collapse In The Polls With Latino Voters, It Appears That Calling Mexicans Rapists And Immigrants Criminals Is Not Winning Him Many Converts
Over the weekend, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus discussed Donald Trump’s plans to launch a Hispanic “engagement tour” following the GOP convention.
That will be interesting.
Donald Trump launched his campaign over a year ago by calling Mexican immigrants rapists, criminals and drug-dealers. He refused to walk those remarks back or apologize for them. He later called Mexicans and other immigrants “killers.” When two followers attacked a 58-year old Latino man in Boston, he called them “passionate.” He then called for the mass deportation of 11 million immigrants by a “deportation force” over the first 18-24 months of his presidency. He called “Operation Wetback” a 1950’s mass expulsion initiative that trampled civil liberties and killed hundreds, a model. He called the children of undocumented immigrants “anchor babies” and promises to revoke their citizenship. He promises a 14th century wall to deal with a 21st century migration challenge, and says he will make Mexico pay for it. He argued that Judge Curiel, a highly reputable judge born in Indiana, could not be trusted because “he’s Mexican.” And today at the Republican Convention, the RNC will do what he often does on the campaign trail—feature families who have lost family members to violence for which Latino immigrants are responsible.
This narrative of Latinos as criminals is as insulting as it is inaccurate. What’s next, Willie Horton ads featuring Mexican immigrants? Nothing would surprise us at this point. Good luck with that tour, Donald.
The fact is that Donald Trump is the most unpopular Republican nominee with Latino voters in modern American history. Three polls released in the past week alone capture just how deeply disliked he is by one of the fastest growing voting groups in the country. Bear in mind that John McCain won 31% and Mitt Romney won 27% of the Latino vote on their way to being routed. In fact, Republican pollster Whit Ayresand the experts at Latino Decisions both estimate that for the Republican nominee to win the presidential election, he’ll have to achieve Latino support in the low to mid-40s, up slightly from what George W. Bush won in 2004. Per recent polling:
Latino Decisions: Clinton leads Trump by 74% – 16%. A whopping 78% of Hispanic voters have an unfavorable opinion of Donald Trump, including 69% who have a “very unfavorable” opinion. This compares to just 17% who view Trump as “very” (8%) or “somewhat” (9%) favorable.
Wall Street Journal/NBC News/Telemundo: Clinton leads Trump by 76% – 14%. A total of 82% of Hispanic registered voters view presumptive Republican president nominee Donald Trump unfavorably.
Univision: Clinton leads Trump by 67% – 19%. Trump is viewed unfavorably by 77%, and a whopping 73% of respondents believe Donald Trump is a racist.
According to Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice, “If there was ever a campaign in dire need of outreach, it is Trump’s. But outreach won’t overcome a year of racist remarks, radical proposals and constant fear mongering. We have a recommendation for the Trump campaign: before he gets on his plane to share taco bowls with hand-selected supporters, he should denounce his radical immigration policy stances and give a sincere and abject apology for demonizing and dehumanizing Mexicans and other Latinos who contribute every day to their communities and country. Short of that, we suspect that his polling numbers will continue to break records and that many uninvited Latinos will greet him on his engagement tour.”
