Mexico was the focus of the global lens last week thanks to an unexpected and dreadful event: the visit of the most rude and unapologetic US presidential candidate in political history. Why did Donald Trump come here? It was the question that millions of Mexicans kept asking ourselves while saying, “You’re not welcome!”
The Republican presidential candidate arrived in my country offering diplomacy as fake as a $3 bill. He knows that he’s not welcome and was aware of his rejection, by not just Mexico but all of Latin America, and the other countries and cultures he has offended. He has not only gathered the hate and distaste of the world, but with this visit to my country he has confirmed that he is without a doubt someone who cannot be trusted. You only have to look at the stunt that he pulled on his trip to Mexico: a charade to prove the unprovable – civility.
Trump has built his campaign based on the saying “bad publicity is better than no publicity”. It is clear that Trump loves only ratings, not credibility. His campaign is a farce and he has been deceiving his followers since the beginning. But the biggest issue is that he handles information like a virus, which has sickened the American people.
Trump has said that Mexican and Latin American migrants are the ones who bring guns, crime and drugs into the US, that we Mexicans are responsible for violence. But while he points with one hand to Mexico, with his other hand he encourages the American people to arm themselves – according to US government figures, seven out of 10 seized weapons in Mexico come from the United States.
Trump proves with such statements that he doesn’t care about facts, he doesn’t care about reality. Instead he keeps spreading his distorted point of view, suggesting that he’s completely ignorant or he’s lying.
Last Wednesday, in front of the cameras he didn’t have any choice but to recognise Mexico as a commercial partner, and the hard work Mexicans do in the US. Nevertheless, a few hours later, he came out again saying that Mexico would pay for the wall, when our President Enrique Peña Nieto had said otherwise. This vile act offended not only a free and sovereign country, but his own voters as well.
A guy like Trump cannot and will not show the minimum respect for anything, instead making a huge display of selfishness. He used the president of Mexico and all of the country’s citizens to his own benefit. Lies continue to gather – such as his support for the war in Iraq and the fact that he’s paying for his own campaign – and his denigration of women continues unabated.
In my opinion, when someone who calls himself a leader turns out to be deceitful, it is a very low move. And yet he has stooped even lower, using the needs of his followers to validate himself with a speech full of intolerance, racism and fear. There is no way a nation could grow and prosper with no hope, values or responsibilities. History has proved that “leaderships” based on fear and ignorance are doomed to failure.
I know that Trump is witnessing his own demise; he’s aware that every poll is against him. In the middle of all this, he chose to come to Mexico so he could stop his ship sinking, in order to return to his own country and push on with his dishonest campaign.
Well, even though I’m against walls, I’d gladly build one around Trump, to spare the world from people like him. We don’t need you.