If real estate mogul Donald Trump wins the Republican Party's nomination, prominent Hispanic Republican leaders are concerned that his sour rhetoric towards Latinos and immigration will ruin the GOP's chances of taking back the White House,
The Hill reports.
"He would have to start by apologizing to all the people he's offended and for the mockery that he's made out of the presidential campaign," said freshman Rep. Carlos Curbelo, R-Fla.
Curbelo added that Trump's possible election to the White House would be a "bad thing for the country" and "further erode the trust of the American people in their government."
Currently, Hispanic voters are a growing electoral group and especially key in states such as Florida, Colorado and Nevada. And, according to the Public Research Institute, more than three-quarters of Hispanics surveyed this month reported an unfavorable view of Trump with 59 percent of the respondents saying they have a "very unfavorable" opinion of him.
"I represent an immigrant-rich community. Many of us are not happy with those comments," said. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., who backs Florida Gov. Jeb Bush in the 2016 primary.
In terms of Trump's, negative comments, Ros-Lehtinen noted that "some don't think that's a problem. I do."
And while Ros-Lehtinen added that Trump is "his own man," she still believes that an apology is imperative.
According to the Hill, conservative leaders say that Trump's biggest mistake was characterizing Mexican immigrants as drug dealers and rapists.
And, since Trump's campaign launch, he has been entangled in a multi-million-dollar lawsuit against Univision, the leading Latino news network, after it pulled out of a deal to broadcast his Miss Universe Pageant.
"Will there be one or two groups that could support him? I guess. But I can tell you that the immense majority of Hispanic conservative Republican groups would oppose him, would not campaign for him," said Alfonso Aguilar, executive director of the Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles, according to The Hill.
"These are the main groups the Republican Party and campaigns depend on to engage Latino voters. So if you don't have their support, you're going to have to mount your own effort," he added.
While many prominent Hispanic conservatives agree that Trump would be better in office than the alternative of Hillary Clinton, they also agree that Trump needs to start thinking about how to win the general election.
Rep. Raúl Labrador, R-Idaho, a prominent conservative who has played a key role in the immigration debate in Congress noted, that a Republican in office will be "better than any Democrat."
However, on Trump Labrador added, "I think if he wants to win a general election, he needs to figure out how to win a general election. But I'm not going to be telling him what comments he needs to walk back. He just better look within his heart and figure it out."
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