Donald Trump's presence in the crowded field of Republicans running for president could actually be a good thing for Democrats, according to one report.
A Washington Post story argues that Trump, whose statements about Mexican immigrants caused a stir, might end up bringing down the GOP in the 2016 campaign.
"When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best," Trump said when he launched his campaign June 16. "They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems with us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people."
Trump reiterated his comments in an interview this week.
"If you look at the statistics on rape, on crime, on everything coming in illegally into this country, they're mind-boggling," he said.
Trump surged to second place in a
national CNN/ORC poll this week, as he trails only former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush in the Republican field.
Other polls have Trump second in
Iowa and
New Hampshire.
That, argues the Post's Philip Rucker, could be a good thing for Democrats, as the left could now try to convince voters Trump's views represent those of the Republican Party as a whole.
"I am a person of faith — and the Donald's entry into this race can only be attributed to the fact that the good Lord is a Democrat with a sense of humor," Democratic strategist Paul Begala told the Post.
Hillary Clinton, the Democrat front-runner,
called out Trump during a campaign rally last week.
"We need to call out derogatory language, insults, personal attacks, wherever they occur. There is enough for us to debate without going there," Clinton said.
"Recently, a Republican candidate for president described immigrants as drug dealers, rapists, and criminals. Maybe he's never met them. Maybe he's never stopped to ask the millions of people who love this country, work hard and want nothing more than a chance to build a better life for themselves and their children, what their lives are like?"
Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro, a Democrat and a descendent of Mexican immigrants, said Trump's words were "dumb."
"He will be in this campaign in many ways the face of the Republican Party, because he has higher name [identification] than almost all of them," Castro told the Post. "That is a very dumb way to begin a campaign."
Others, however, have praised Trump for his remarks. Rep. Steve King, an Iowa Republican,
said Trump was right.
"I have been down to the border and the number I come back with is 75 percent are sexually abused on the way to the United States," King said. "I say in Donald Trump's defense, somebody is doing that to the kids being raped and abused. It's reasonable to conclude they are Mexicans."
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