Over the weekend, The Daily Caller interviewed Melvin Soto Vázquez from the College Republican Federation of Puerto Rico about why his group has suddenly been peddling a six-month-old GoFundMe that wants to build a statue of Donal Trump in San Juan’s Walkway of the Presidents.
Soto Vázquez had nine minutes with TDC’s Stephanie Hamill to lay his case for a Trump statue. He also took the time to blame the “liberal” media for incorrectly reporting about Trump’s efforts to help Puerto Rico. Huh? Does Soto Vázquez actually follow real news? Or did he completely forget about the thousands of lives loss from a natural disaster that President Trump downplayed and even lied about when he was (wait for it) visiting Puerto Rico for a few hours?
The island’s Walkway of Presidents featured those U.S. presidents who have visited Puerto Rico while in office: Theodore Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Gerald Ford (wait, what?), and Barack Obama.
Since Trump visited Puerto Rico after Hurricane María, or better stated, he spoke at an airplane hanger and then tossed paper towels in Guaynabo City, Soto Vázquez argued that Trump should be part of the walkway. The Republican National Hispanic Assembly of Virginia co-sponsored the effort.
The government of Puerto Rico has no money for a Trump statue (hello, debt crisis), so enter the GoFundMe fund (should we repeat the the fund was established six months ago), which is trying really hard to raise $45,000. And organizers are actually serious about this.
As the petition states:
Finally, no matter what his detractors say, following the horrific hurricane of 2017, Puerto Rico is being rebuilt better than it was before, and that rebuilding is due in no small part to the actions of President Trump, who has repeatedly expressed his abiding love for the people of Puerto Rico, such as on September 27, 2017 when he declared that “Puerto Rico is very important to me, and Puerto Rico—the people are fantastic people. I grew up in New York, so I know many people from Puerto Rico. I know many Puerto Ricans. And these are great people, and we have to help them.”
That is why it is now altogether fitting that patriotic Americans in Puerto Rico and throughout the nation undertake this joint campaign to build and facilitate the inauguration of a historic commemorative statue of President Trump on Puerto Rico’s Walkway of the Presidents.
As of this posting, and even with The Daily Caller’s boost, the fund has raised just $6,368. This is over six months of being online. We are sure it will raise more money, but we’ll take a moment to share our collective thoughts about all this:
Stop the propaganda. You are a troil. You are not given the right to objectify my people. We are not a “bunch” or a pack or a group think people. We are a Nation of Noble warriors; you are put on notice. The tribute is one allocated to any visiting U.S. president; President Trump qualifying for his Post-Hurricaine Maria visit. Know thy place.
Yo do know that several people in our group are actually BASED in Puerto Rico, right? Gracias.
You are not a warrior, you are a sellout. You want to erect a statue to.a vulgar white supremacist? Your ancestors are deeply ashamed of you. Will the statue include you kneeling to kiss his ass?
Maria, mira las noticias de el otro punto de vista, no solo las del Trump bashing. Trump hizo mucho por Puerto Rico. Pero en Puerto Rico hay muchos corruptos que se roban el dinero. Rossello trata de quitar la corrupcion, pero si casi nadie lo ayuda, nada va a cambiar. Me allgro de haberme ido de alla hace muchos años. Nunca salen de la desgracia porque no abren la mente a progresar. La mayoria piensa en que es lo menos que puedo hacer, y asi no se llega a ningun lado.
I will support a statue of Trump when he abolishes the Jones Act, also allow Puerto Rico to file chapter 11, bankruptcy. This would allow trade with other countries, strengthening Puerto Rican economy. He will then have my blessing.
Great proposal!
No way do we want or even need a statue of that tyrant. He is unworthy.
How dare you! That these so called “Republican” PuertoRicans could have the audacity to even suggest and support the notion of erecting a statue of such a vile, disgraceful excuse for a human being. Mr. Orange has shown nothing but disrespect for the island of Puerto Rico (yes, surrounded by water, lots of water- recall that idiotic statement made by his orangeness) and all the Americans that reside there (yes, PuertoRicans are Americans- do you hear that, all of you ignorant Republicans on the mainland who have not read or studied American history). Mr. Orange and the current Republicans in Congress do not give a damn about Puerto Rico and it’s people. Do not honor this horrible human being with a statue of him as he has no honor, no redeeming quality, no humanity, no ethics, no morals, I could go on and on….One thing he does possess is a dark soul, if he even has a soul. Please do not even waste your money to financially support this preposterous idea. Please speak out against this insane proposition. The only place that is worthy of a Trump statue is out in a field surrounded by knee deep feces.
Ed, you hit the nail! As a Puerto Rican and far from political partisanship, I condemn the lack of respect of this group to the people of Puerto Rico. Where is the intelligence of this group? They do not read? Are not you ashamed to want to erect a statue to this dysfunctional egocentric lacking the minimum knowledge of values and respect for the human being? I feel embarrassed.
Are you nuts? All those statutes of the Presidents should be taken down! The US has done nothing but consistently taken out lands, ripped us from our culture, tried to take away our language. We have given hundreds of thousands of men and women to fight their wars all while our financial independence has been stripped from us. This POS is exactly just that! Do me a favor… Stay true to our Boriquen heritage… Que Viva Puerto Rico y la Independencia!
Ed, Puerto Rico is an independent Commonwealth. Puerto Ricans have voted on the possibility of becoming America’s 51st state in 1967, 1993, 1998 and 2012. The 2017 vote was disqualified by PPD because only 23% of voters turned out. You take considerably more from our country than you provided, which is okay with most Americans. However, when you call our duly elected president, Mr. Orange and a vile and disgraceful excuse for a human being, I have to take exception. He didn’t cause the hurricane regardless of his position on global warming. I don’t hear anyone criticizing Peruvians for destroying 3050 sq miles of the Amazon Rain Forest last year. Your entire island is only 3515 sq miles and that deforestation is a real contributor of global warming, not someones opinion of global warming. We annually give 21 billion dollars to support your residents. We added over 5.3 billion to cover costs due to hurricane Maria and all of that money needed our presidents approval, which he gave. You don’t have to thank him, but you shouldn’t disparage him either.
Daliz says the US has done nothing but take your land. What land? Puerto Rico is still the same 3515 sq miles it has always been and still controlled by the Puerto Ricans. You chose not to be a state and no one is forcing you to become one now. You are in control.
Tom F
Puerto Rico is not in control of its own resources the US gov is , they are not allowed to have commerce and trade with other countries , and are without control of their shipping lanes. They can disrespect the American ‘resident if they want! As Americans they are practicing their first amendment rights ! If you don’t like it too effing bad!
I say do it! But pose him tossing a roll of paper towels at them!!