Mike Pape, a Republican running for Kentucky’s first Congressional district, released a new TV ad filled with ugly stereotypes about Latino immigrants, complete with huge Mario Bros.-like mustaches, fake accents, and subtitles for the actors, even though they’re speaking in English for the vast majority of the ad.
Three men, presumably undocumented immigrants attempting to cross the border into the U.S., are running to a fence and cutting through it when they reveal their very specific political plans.
One of the men says, “Once through, we’ll stop Donald Trump!” and another man joins in and says, “Si! And Ted Cruz, too!” Then third the third man joins in and suggests they stop “Señor Mike Pape.”
The other men don’t know who Mike Pape is, but once they realize he’s going to “help Trump build the wall” and “repeal Obamacare,” they say, “We must stop Mike Pape!” If you’re still unsure as to whether the undocumented immigrants are really committed to the cause versus simply wanting to make a better life for themselves in the United States, they’re also wearing T-shirts that read, “Stop Trump!” and “Stop Ted Cruz!”
See the full video below:
“He’s just going to the bottom of the barrel, appealing to people’s worst instincts, using crass stereotypes and, really, appealing to the ignorance that begets fear and ultimately hate,” Al Cross, director of the University of Kentucky’s Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, told the radio station WKMS.
Pape’s ad aims to feed off the same anti-immigrant, and more specifically anti-Latino immigrant, attitudes that have helped bolster enthusiasm for Trump’s campaign. Trump entered the 2016 presidential race by calling undocumented immigrants from Mexico “rapists” who “are bringing drugs” to the U.S. Cruz has also benefited off-anti undocumented immigrant sentiments by advocating deporting all of the 12 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S, and like Trump, he has advocated building a wall to keep out undocumented immigrants.
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