Former Puerto Rico governor criticizes racist language at Trump rally | Puerto Rico

Former Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló has been closely monitoring the fallout from racist remarks during Donald Trump's campaign rally on Sunday.

As someone who has been in politics most of his life, Rosselló — who has supported the Democratic Party in the past — heard reactions from both Republican colleagues and previously ambivalent voters.

“On the one hand, I see that people who were inclined to vote for Trump are now thinking about either abstaining or voting for Harris,” Rosselló said, adding that voters who were once ambivalent about this moment now use it as motivation to vote for Kamala Harris.

On Sunday night during Trump's New York campaign rally, a comedian called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” and made derogatory comments about its people. The comments sparked outrage and anger among Puerto Ricans and other voters across the country.

Rosselló believes the racist comments could lead to huge political consequences for Trump ahead of next week's 2024 election.

“From my experience, I just believe that when President Trump brings up the issue and says flat out, 'I love the people of Puerto Rico, I completely reject the idea that they are trash, they are the opposite .' “They are great people, they are patriots, proud US citizens” – I will give just one example – then you can give something to people straight from the mouth,” Rosselló said. “But if you don’t do that, you leave everything open to interpretation. They leave everything open to create doubt and keep people guessing about the intent. And that’s a dangerous situation.”

Rosselló can speak firsthand about political controversies.

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Rosselló faced enormous backlash in 2019 when leaked messages from a group chat showed Rosselló and members of his cabinet exchanging misogynistic, racist and offensive texts. In some messages, members of the chat made fun of victims of Hurricane Maria in 2017. In response to overwhelming protests, Rosselló, who had served as governor of Puerto Rico for just over two years, resigned.

“I’m not speaking from a theoretical standpoint,” Rosselló said. “I speak from experience. I saw the power of words and what they can do, especially what they can do when you underestimate them or when you don’t think to define them yourself.”

For Rosselló, there is a “traditional idea” that “actions speak louder than words,” but he added: “Words speak louder than actions.” And that is the reality we live in right now – words are powerful things. They can be used for beautiful and amazing visions and constructions. But they can be very destructive and painful.”

Also this weekend, Harris' campaign unveiled its plans for Puerto Rico in Pennsylvania outside Trump's rally at New York's Madison Square Garden.

For some Puerto Rican voters, the stark contrast between the campaigns was significant. Rosselló said it even caused some Republicans he works with to drop their support for Trump.

“Our people are wonderful, beautiful, intelligent and creative people,” Rosselló said. “President Trump must reject these statements. I don't see any other way out. If he doesn’t, his silence will speak volumes and implicitly reinforce the ideas presented there.”

Trump defended the Madison Square rally on Tuesday, calling it a “love fest.”

And while it's unclear whether the Trump administration knew about the impending racist remarks, Rosselló said the Trump administration most likely knew what Hinchcliffe was going to say: “As someone who knows how some of these events unfold – because I'm in the “My question was: How could they let a comedian come and say something like that?” It wasn't something said off the cuff, it was written material. How did this pass the test?”

NBC News reported that Hinchcliffe had taken up the racist line at a comedy club the night before.

Puerto Rico became a colony of the United States after the Spanish-American War and Puerto Ricans became U.S. citizens in 1917. Due to the island's status as a U.S. territory, Puerto Ricans living on the island are not eligible to vote; However, residents of US states are eligible to vote.

Tensions between the White House and the island increased under the Trump administration. In response to the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria in 2017, then-President Trump considered selling the island. Trump also blocked and delayed aid and support to Puerto Rico.

Rosselló, a lifelong supporter of the Puerto Rican New Progressive Party, served as governor during Trump's presidency until his resignation in 2019. His father, Pedro Rosselló, was also governor from 1993 to 2001. Now a shadow member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Rosselló represents Puerto Rico in Congress and also leads a nonpartisan organization advocating for Puerto Rico's statehood.

Economic, political and ecological crises have hit the island hard in recent years. As the 2024 elections approach, Rosselló is calling on the U.S. federal government to grant Puerto Rica its own state.

“I have expressed very clearly and clearly that the status issue of Puerto Rico must be resolved,” Rosselló said. “Territory is the root cause of many of our ills…I think that anyone who seriously wants to help Puerto Rico must leave us a final decision on status to move away from territorial status, which is not working.”

As Election Day approaches, the Puerto Rican voting bloc is notable — particularly in Florida, New York and Pennsylvania, a key battleground state.

“At the end of the day, they just helped us,” Philadelphia City Council member Quetcy Lozada, a Harris supporter, said earlier this week. “You helped the Democratic Party get to where we will be on November 5th.”