SABER RATTLING
TRUMP SENDS TROOPS TO MIDEAST AS WARNING TO IRAN
Undocumented immigrants canned from President Trump’s ritzy golf clubs in New York and New Jersey are crashing his 2020 campaign kickoff in Florida to shed light on what they consider his “cruelty and hypocrisy,” their attorney told the Daily News on Monday.
The five workers — who were axed along with scores of fellow undocumented Trump employees after The News and other outlets reported on their situation earlier this year — were set to travel to Orlando on Monday afternoon to hold a Tuesday morning press conference outside the Amway Center, where the president is expected to officially announce his reelection bid later in the day, said Anibal Romero, a lawyer for the immigrants.
“No one knows better than Trump himself that immigrants are hardworking individuals who support a multitude of industries across the country, including his restaurants, golf courses, wineries and hotels,” said Romero, who represents 44 undocumented immigrants who used to work at Trump properties.
“And no one knows better than the undocumented workers who worked for Trump, how urgent it is for Congress to pass humane and sensible immigration laws so that immigrants can continue contributing to their communities and to our nation, just like they did for Trump and his family.”
The group that’s heading down for the Tuesday rally consists of Sandra Diaz and Victorina Morales, former housekeepers at Trump’s Bedminster, N.J., club; Winston Garcia, a former dishwasher at Trump’s Westchester County club; Margarita Cruz, a former housekeeper at the Westchester club, and Adela Garcia, also a former housekeeper at the Westchester club.
They will be joined by advocates and union leaders to tell their stories and advocate for a “path to citizenship” for the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the U.S., Romero said.
“These workers, many of whom were subjected to workplace abuse and wage theft, spoke out in order to shed light on the hypocrisy and cruelty of Trump and his attacks on immigrants,” Romero said.
A spokeswoman for Trump’s 2020 campaign did not return a request for comment.
Also waiting for the president in Orlando will be “Baby Trump” — the giant inflatable blimp depicting the commander-in-chief as an angry toddler in diapers clutching a cell phone.
“With 167 small-dollar donors in under 24 hours, we raised enough funds to bring Baby Trump to Orlando!!” organizers of a protest rally set to be held near Trump’s event posted on its successful $3,500 online fund-raiser.
The president made clear last year he was running for reelection in 2020, but Tuesday’s event has been billed by his campaign as the official announcement. First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and his wife, Karen Pence, will be in attendance.
Many of Romero’s clients allege higher-up Trump managers knew about their undocumented status but let them work anyway while using their precarious situation as leverage to underpay them and not give them benefits.
Some of Romero’s clients also say managers helped them procure fake immigration papers — which could be a federal crime.
The Trump Organization has consistently denied knowing of the workers’ illegal immigration status.