Actor and race merchant John Leguizamo’s most recent appearance on CNN’s Laura Coates Live demonstrates the risks inherent to booking actors to say their own words as opposed to words written for them by someone else.
Watch as Leguizamo closes the segment out by blaming U.S. sanctions for the longstanding humanitarian crisis in Venezuela that basically forces those who can to flee the country:
JOHN LEGUIZAMO: I also want to say something that- America caused a lot of this Venezuelan immigration problem.
LAURA COATES: Hmmm.
LEGUIZAMO: The sanctions that we put in Venezuela are so…killing of an economy and destroying their economy. And that's why there's the runaway immigration from Venezuela. Because they can't eat, they can't- they can't survive. And that's all Americans done- and England. Because it's sitting on the biggest oil reserves in the world. So that's another issue that needs to be addressed then you won't have as much immigration coming to the U.S.
Leguizamo really said that. Were he to have enough sense to ask a Venezuelan before running his mouth, he’s find out that it was Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro, socialist dictators co-opted by the Castro regime in Cuba, who destroyed what was once Latin America’s richest country. The sanctions are a recent matter, and in response to Maduro playing Biden on free and fair elections. And as if this Mensa-grade word salad weren’t enough on its own, he suggests that the U.S and England really just want the oil…that Venezuela can’t pump because they let their equipment fall into decay.
So resoundingly dumb was Leguizamo’s statement that it caught the attention of Televisa-Univision anchor Enrique Acevedo (set to moderate the upcoming presidential town halls), who by the way makes a great point:
Just watched @JohnLeguizamo on @CNN blame U.S. sanctions for over 7 million Venezuelans fleeing their country, blatantly ignoring how Chávez and Maduro drove Venezuela into a humanitarian catastrophe. This is what happens when we elevate celebrities to the role of intellectual…
— Enrique Acevedo (@Enrique_Acevedo) October 9, 2024
What confers this standing to Leguizamo? From whence does he draw the authority to speak on such matters far beyond his depth? His perceived moral authority derives from his willingness to debase himself as a shill for Democrats and denigrate those who don’t think like him. His Professional Latinx persona grants him that prestige among Regime Elites.
And when he is booked on a political show he is expected to tap dance, shill for Democrats, and berate Hispanics not voting for Democrats as "self-hating" or "sell-outs". Thankfully, Leguizamo abstained from his tired "roaches for Raid" joke. This time.
Leguizamo was booked in order to talk about the Hispanic vote but really had no answers for Trump’s growth among Hispanics, which is common for identity merchants. If a group’s identity is supposed to be built upon politics and increasing numbers of the cohort deviate from that politics, then this causes confusion. Leguizamo was clearly confused. The rest of the interview, like Leguizamo’s discourse, was boring and derivative. Click “expand” to view its full transcript.
CNN LAURA COATES LIVE
10/8/24
11:45 PM
LAURA COATES: Well on Thursday, the Kamala Harris media blitz- it's going to roll into Las Vegas, to take part in a Univisión town hall right there. Harris leads Trump by 14% among Latino voters in one of the latest polls, but that poll only tells part of the story. Republicans, and Trump in particular, they're making inroads in the critical voting bloc. In fact, the margin of support the Democrats enjoyed among Latino voters- it's dwindled from a 50 point lead, a 50, 5-0 point lead in 2016 to the 14-point lead that Harris holds over Trump today. Now, it's pretty clear that Democrats have some work to do to shore up support among this growing constituency. With more than 36.2 million eligible voters in 2024, according to Pew Research Center, it's the second-fastest growing ethnic or racial group in the entire country. With me now, actor and comedian John Leguizamo. He's also the creator, host and executive producer behind the new PBS series: Voces American Historia, the untold history of Latinos. So glad to have you here, John, and we could have gone on for a while in terms of your resume, but I'm so intrigued by the work you've been recently doing, especially. Why do you think that Trump and Republicans are gaining so much ground on Democrats?
JOHN LEGUIZAMO: Well, I mean, because Latinos- we’re, economically, kind of at the bottom of the food chain. So what are we concerned with? Food prices, gasoline, house- housing, all that really matters to us and right now, you know, the prices are a little high. And so who gets the blame? Who's ever in government. And Trump, you know, lies, makes big, big promises that he can't keep but Latinos buy it. They believe it, you know? So that- that's the problem right there.
COATES: You know, I often wonder as a black woman, I'm often told how I feel as a voter, as a member of the electorate. And we have to always respond “it’s not a monolith.” Are you experiencing that same frustration at times about trying to suggest, “I know you're trying to capture a vote, but there's not a monolith.” Is there something in particular that you think Harris should express- express during the town hall and have a message that can be more universalized even though there's not a monolith.
LEGUIZAMO: Right. I mean, Latinos are not a monolith. Some of us are very conservative, religiously conservative. Some of us are self-hating. There’s that group who attack other Latinos.
COATES: Not not pulling punches, huh? Okay.
LEGUIZAMO: There’s a small portion of that. But the majority of us- we all do respond to the economy. So that's what she needs to talk about. Specifics. How is she going to help boost small businesses? How- what is the plan? What are the numbers? What are the stats? That's going to make a big difference. The housing that she's promising, what are the numbers? How does that break down? I think, you know, Latina women are the lowest paid worker in America, but the number one in small business creation, which is one of the biggest drivings- drivers of the American economy. Talk to them. Talk to these women. Boost them. They'll talk to their husbands and get- and get them all to vote.
COATES: That's an important point thinking about this. They're focused on small business particularly, and there was a new poll out John, that shows that Trump is holding a pretty significant lead over Harris on the issue of immigration among Latino voters. What are voters wanting to hear from both candidates on this specific issue?
LEGUIZAMO: You know, I didn't realize how immigration was such a complex issue in the Latin community, but it is.
COATES: How so?
LEGUIZAMO: I always thought we were all for, like- because I always thought like, when we say immigrants we're really talking about Latinos and Haitians are Latino as well. So we're talking about Latinos. So you would figure we've all be supportive and empathic and sympathetic to the plight of immigrants, but a lot about immigrant Latinos feel competitive towards other immigrants coming in and they feel like “I paid the dues, I paid the price, why are they getting asylum?” So there's some bitterness there so that- that's that's the problem there. So we're going to have to try to figure out how to deal with that. You know, I also want to say something that- America caused a lot of this Venezuelan immigration problem.
COATES: Hmmm.
LEGUIZAMO: The sanctions that we put in Venezuela are so…killing of an economy and destroying their economy. And that's why there's the runaway immigration from Venezuela. Because they can't eat, they can't- they can't survive. And that's all Americans done- and England. Because it's sitting on the biggest oil reserves in the world. So that's another issue that needs to be addressed then you won't have as much immigration coming to the U.S.
COATES: John, I really appreciate you coming on and having this conversation and the work that you're doing. Thanks so much for stopping by.
LEGUIZAMO: Thank you for having me. What a pleasure. Much love.
