Former President Donald J. Trump said in a speech to an evangelical group that he proposed creating sports leagues that pit immigrants against each other.
Appearing at the Faith and Freedom Coalition conference in Washington on Saturday, Trump used his usual dehumanizing language to describe immigrants, calling them “tough,” “from prison” and “nasty and nasty.”
Trump later said he had suggested to Dana White, a former ally of the president and CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, that they “start a league for immigrant fighters.”
He continued, referring to the UFC, “And the champions of the UFC league, the best fighters in the world, fighting an immigrant champion? I think the immigrant guy might win! That’s how tough they are.”
Trump said White “didn’t really like the idea,” but added, “It’s not the worst idea I’ve ever had. These are tough people.”
Asked about Trump’s comments at Saturday’s UFC event, White acknowledged that the former president made the suggestion but said, “It was a joke. It was a joke. I saw people making a big fuss about it online. But he certainly said that.”
Biden’s campaign condemned Trump’s comments, calling his remarks at a conference designed as a “Christian values conference” an “incoherent and confused rant.”
“Mr. Trump’s incoherent and erratic rant showed voters in his own words that he is a threat to our freedoms and too dangerous to ever be allowed anywhere near the White House again,” Biden campaign spokeswoman Sarafina Chitica said in a statement.
As in his last two campaigns, Trump has made immigration a central focus of his 2024 presidential campaign, pledging to conduct thorough investigations and use military funds to build camps to hold illegal immigrants. He has also escalated his denunciations of immigrants, at times using language evocative of Hitler’s racial hatred, saying they are “poisoning the blood of our country.”
“Cage-match fantasies are a distraction from the very real plan that Trump and his team have to deport millions of people who have lived here for decades, causing inflation, unemployment and economic collapse in the process,” said Doug G. Rivlin, a spokesman for America’s Voice, an immigrant rights group that has been tracking escalating Republican rhetoric on the issue. “Republican politicians will have a hard time defending that on the campaign trail this year.”
Jazmine Ulloa Contributed report.
