Mayor slams Trump for cruel stunt that will leave people homeless
Trump wants to send migrants to Democratic counties in Florida.
Local elected officials in Florida are slamming a political stunt from Trump that would send migrants to two counties there.
As part of his anti-immigrant strategy, Trump plans to send as many as 500 migrants a month to Broward and Palm Beach counties, the state’s two biggest Democratic strongholds.
The idea is part of Trump’s plan to attempt to punish Democratic areas by sending migrants there, out of a belief that residents there are as racist as he is.
The Florida counties are willing to help the migrants but are concerned that they do not have the resources to deal with a sudden influx.
“This is irresponsible policy. To bring hundreds of people here every week without providing the necessary resources to house and feed them is inhumane,” said Mark Bogen, mayor of Broward County, in a statement released Thursday.
“If the President will not provide us with financial assistance to house and feed these people, he will be creating a homeless encampment.”
“In my opinion, the people that we can’t find shelter for and will become homeless,” Bogen said, adding, “I would suggest, that we bring them to the Trump hotels and ask the President to open his heart and home as well.”
“It’s not a good plan,” Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said in a press conference Thursday. “We think it’s a danger to our community, and it’s going to put a real strain on what the resources are.”
The stunt is “so typically Trump,” state Senator Gary Farmer told Politico. “The blatant politics, sending them to the two most Democratic Counties in the state of Florida, is ridiculous.”
“People are coming here with no jobs. Even if they have a place to stay, how do they pay for it?” asked Sophia Eccleston, head of the Homeless Coalition of Palm Beach County in an interview with a local news station.
Notably Trump does not appear to want to send migrants to Miami-Dade County. While that area also votes Democratic, it is home to Cuban-Americans who Trump has been trying to woo with his hardline stance on Cuban policy.
Trump isn’t interested in immigration reform or helping migrants. He believes in cruelty toward a largely Latino population and using them as a political weapon against Democrats. He is trying to hurt families and to win an election for himself and his party.
Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.
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