Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, in an article published this week, compared Latinos who support former President Trump to "Jews for Hitler" as he discussed GOP outreach in the area, and the remark immediately drew accusations of racism from his Republican challenger in the upcoming election.
"For [Republicans] to stay in power, even at the state level, they need to convince at least a percentage, even a small percentage, of Latinos to start voting Republican," Gonzalez, who represents an area that includes some of the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, told The New Republic. "If not, they will eventually lose elections.
"If they didn’t have that racist, divisive element within their party, they would have a lot of Latinos, but they can’t seem to shake that off. The rhetoric you hear from the Republican Party is shameful and disgraceful for Latinos. And, you know, when you see Latinos for Trump, to me it is like seeing ‘Jews for Hitler,’ almost, you know?"
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Democrats have accused Republicans of embracing racist rhetoric in their platform of securing the border and limiting illegal immigration. But the New Republic article emphasized how Trump could win both Texas and the Rio Grande Valley as he pushes to restore the tougher border security measures seen during his presidency amid a record-setting border crisis.
The remarks from Gonzalez drew an immediate rebuke from both the National Republican Congressional Committee and former Rep. Mayra Flores, who is seeking to unseat Gonzalez in November.
"Hispanic voters, especially those living in border communities, know that Democrats are failing them on the border, the economy and community safety. Vicente Gonzalez’s comments are insulting, and he should apologize," NRCC spokeswoman Delanie Bomar said in a statement.
"Vicente Gonzalez’s racist comments are incredibly hurtful to our entire Latino community in the Rio Grande Valley," Flores told Fox News Digital. "While he continues peddling in hate and division, I’m going to focus on policies that uplift our entire community, including lower costs, a secure border, safer communities and a focus on faith, family and more opportunities in TX-34."
Reached for comment Thursday, Gonzalez stood by his remarks.
"I’m stating the obvious. Mayra Flores champions President Trump, who was quoted calling hard-working Mexican immigrants rapists and criminals — saying they’re not our friends," he said. "She threw her lot in with Marjorie Taylor Greene and George Santos instead of with South Texans."
The controversy comes as the border crisis, which is now into its third year, looks likely to be a top election issue this year.
President Biden and former President Trump both visited the southern border this month. Biden has renewed calls for the Senate to pass a bipartisan border funding bill that he supports, saying it is needed to fix a broken system. Conservatives have said the bill doesn’t go far enough.
Republicans say Biden has the power to fix the border crisis, including by restoring Trump-era policies, and passed a border bill of their own last year in the House.
