Rubén Díaz Sr., a Democrat politician from New York who represented the city’s 18th district as a councilmember from 2018 through 2021, as well as the 32nd District in the New York senate from 2003 to 2017, endorsed former President Donald Trump during his historic rally in the Bronx on Thursday.
“I want to join you in having the Bronx great again,” Díaz told Trump in Crotona Park. “Please accept this democrat, this black Puerto Rican with a kinky hair and a broken English. Please accept my endorsement for you as president.”
The two then shared a firm handshake and embraced while the massive crowd cheered.
Elsewhere in his speech, Díaz mocked U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) over her radically off base predications for the rally. After telling reporters on Capitol Hill that she expects low turnout for the rally on Wednesday, she doubled down on Thursday morning when a massive rainstorm blew in.
While the storm was raging, AOC reacted to an X post in which a reporter predicted a washout for Trump’s event, saying “God is good.”
Unfortunately for the far-left congresswoman, the rain cleared up after about an hour, giving way to clear skies and warm weather.
“As a minister, president of the New York Hispanic clergy organization, I want to tell AOC… who wanted to become a prophet,” Díaz began, drawing laughs from the crowd.
“And she said, even God doesn’t want Trump in the Bronx because it’s going to rain. Madam prophet AOC, you have become a false prophet,” the lifelong Democrat continued as rallygoers cheered in approval.
After weeks of hinting at a potential rally in New York City, Trump made good on his word Thursday as he continues to be stuck in the city while dealing with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s dubious criminal case against him.
The former president received a hometown welcome from an energetic crowd made up of a mix of longtime supporters and New Yorkers open to considering a Republican.
“Hello, New York City, and hello to all of the incredible, tough, strong, hardworking American patriots right here in the Bronx. Who would think? Who would think? I’m thrilled to be back in the city I grew up in, the city I spent my life in, the city I helped build, and the city that we all love, New York City,” Trump told the crowd.
“And I’m here tonight to declare that we are going to turn New York City around and we are going to turn it around very, very quickly!”
The former president — who continues to lead President Biden in most national polls, as well as in swing states — was astonished to see that his rally filled up the entirety of the park, as well as a massive overflow crowd. Rallygoers lined up for several city blocks as far back as three hours ahead of the president’s remarks.
While a Republican presidential candidate has not carried New York since Ronald Reagan in 1984, Trump expressed a sliver of optimism that he could do so given Democrat failures in the state.
“Who said we’re not gonna winNew York?” Trump said at one point as the crowd belted out chants of “we love Trump!”
“We’re gonna win New York. If we can win New York, we win the whole thing. Wouldn’t that be nice?”