Elizabeth Warren criticizes Trump's wall as 'dumb' and cruel in Puerto Rico

By Liz Goodwin GLOBE STAFF JANUARY 23, 2019

SAN JUAN — Senator Elizabeth Warren blamed President Trump and what she considers a culture of crony capitalism in Washington for Puerto Rico’s ills in an impassioned speech on the still-recovering island Tuesday.

“Puerto Rico has suffered enough,” Warren said. “We will not allow anyone to sabotage your recovery — not even the president of the United States.”

Warren, who is three weeks into her formal exploration of a run for president, also criticized Trump’s demand for an “ugly” wall on the Southern border as a tactic meant to sow division among people of different races. The Trump administration reportedly eyed disaster relief funds earmarked for Puerto Rico and other hurricane-battered regions to pay for the wall during the ongoing government shutdown.

“Make no mistake — this wall is dumb,” Warren told a crowd of a couple hundred in a theater in Old San Juan. “But it serves the president’s purposes, turning people against people, particularly against people of color, and stirring up the fear and hatred he so actively promotes.”

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