Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid on Wednesday criticized presidential candidate Donald Trump and the Republican Party for not condemning his words against Mexican immigrants.
"I've heard the comments. They're distasteful, disgusting," Reid told reporters,
according to Politico. "And frankly I'm terribly disappointed that my Republican colleagues here in leadership positions in the Senate and those running for president have basically kept their mouth shut."
Story continues below video.
The Huffington Post noted that Trump's GOP primary opponents Marco Rubio, a Florida senator whose parents are Cuban immigrants, and Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor whose wife is a native of Mexico, both have criticized Trump.
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham also condemned Trump's words on Wednesday,
The New York Times reported, saying, "My party is in a hole with Hispanics. The first rule of politics when you're in a hole is stop digging. Somebody needs to take a shovel out of Donald Trump's hands."
Trump sparked controversy when he said in his June 16 announcement that Mexico is "not sending us their best" people. Some he said are bringing drugs, and some are killers and rapists. He has declined to back down despite losing several business deals as a result.
Graham sounded a lot like Reid, saying after a foreign policy speech in Washington, "I hope every Republican candidate would say the following: 'We disagree with Donald Trump …' most of the people here illegally are good, hard-working people. And if we're not willing to say that as a party we're going to lose in 2016."
Related Stories:
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.