Former major leaguer and baseball legend David “Big Papi” Ortiz is standing behind the decision by Red Sox manager Alex Cora and several of his players to boycott a visit with Donald Trump at the White House.
Ortiz played on World Series champion teams that visited both George W. Bush and Barack Obama, but visiting Trump is a whole other story, as Ortiz explains as only he can.
“I’m an immigrant. When it comes down to the political side of it, I don’t know much about politics and things like that, but when it comes down [to] the way immigrants have been treated, it’s something that goes a long way,” Ortiz, who was born in the Dominican Republic, told WEEI earlier this week. “You don’t want to go and shake hands with a guy who is treating immigrants like [expletive] because I’m an immigrant.”
Ortiz is a legend in Boston, and his defense of Cora is strong and true.
Cora passionately explained the reason that he won’t attend: the suffering of the people of his birthplace, Puerto Rico. Cora is concerned with the well-being of people who continue to struggle today. Trump couldn’t care less about Puerto Rico, and that’s to be expected from the heartless SOB, but for Cora this is very personal.
But Cora has been clear about his reasons for skipping the White House ceremony, tying the decision to the lingering resentment in Puerto Rico to the Trump administration’s response to Hurricane Maria, which killed more than 3,000 in September 2017. On Sunday, he pointed out Puerto Ricans are “still struggling, still fighting” while lacking “basic necessities” almost a year and a half later.
“It was a decision I made with a lot of conviction,” he reiterated Monday. “… I think the message was clear [and] simple, and everybody understands. I don’t feel comfortable going to a celebration while we’re living what we’re living back home.”
Cora is right. I personally would be totally disgusted going there to shake the little hand of this racist, who gleefully tweets lies about aid to Puerto Rico to gin up his racist base of supporters. Good for Cora and Ortiz for boldly expressing their rebuke of this vile “president.” We are stronger than what’s in the White House, and we will defeat this hate.