Trump’s new low for truth

GRAND RAPIDS: A murder victim’s grieving family says Donald Trump falsely claimed he had spoken to them when he used her name in a campaign attack on illegal immigrants.

Ruby Garcia, 25, was found dead by a highway in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on March 22. Her boyfriend Brandon Ortiz-Vite, a 25-year-old Mexican who was in the US illegally, was charged with her murder.

Mr Trump cited the Garcia case in a rally speech in Grand Rapids, where he repeatedly called illegal immigrants “animals” who are “poisoning the blood of the country”.

He told the crowd he had been in touch with Garcia’s family. “They said she had just the most contagious laughter and when she walked into a room, she lit up that room, and I’ve heard that from so many people,” Mr Trump said.

He also incorrectly stated that Garcia was 17.

Garcia’s sister, Mavi, said the family watched the speech on TV in disbelief, having never been in touch with Mr Trump or his team, as he claimed.

“He did not speak with any of us, so it was kind of shocking seeing that he had said that he had spoken with us, and misinforming people on live TV,” Mavi told local media.

“It was shocking. I’d only seen up to that, after I heard a couple of misinformations he said, I just stopped watching it.”

According to immigration authorities, Ortiz-Vite, who was romantically involved with Garcia, entered the US as a child. He was deported in 2020 after his status under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program expired. It is unclear when he returned.

Dana Nessel, the Democrat Michigan Attorney-General, accused Mr Trump of “cloutchasing” with Garcia’s case.

“Ruby was a domestic violence victim murdered by her boyfriend, who just happened to be an immigrant,” she said. The London Times