After months and months of anti-Trump pundits parading on Telemundo’s Sunday show, something quite out of the ordinary happened on the March 20 edition of Enfoque.
For the first time, Telemundo anchor José Díaz-Balart dedicated an entire segment of the program to hearing – and questioning – two supporters of the man who has led the 2016 Republican presidential field for more than eight months.
It’s something that has never happened on rival Univision (and when a Trump supporter did make an appearance on Jorge Ramos’ Al Punto, back in August 2015, it was reportedly by accident).
For nearly six minutes, Díaz-Balart offered former Hialeah, Florida Mayor Julio Martínez and Ohio realtor Evelyn Stalevicz the opportunity to explain their support for Trump directly to the viewers.
JULIO MARTINEZ, FORMER MAYOR OF HIALEAH, FL: In my opinion, I think that Mr. Trump wins over Ms. Clinton overwhelmingly because polls say that she is the biggest liar among all the candidates, and that Mr. Cli – Mr. Trump will demonstrate it to the American people, that she doesn’t tell the truth, and that’s in the polls, I’m not just saying it.
Martínez was referring to polls that show that Hillary Clinton has a chronic problem when it comes to not being perceived as honest or trustworthy. Throughout the segment, Díaz-Balart bounced back and forth between both guests, asking about their thoughts on Trump’s candidacy, rhetoric and immigration positions.
Meanwhile, on Univision Sunday, anchor Enrique Acevedo managed to inject yet another anti-Trump angle to his interview with the Director of the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness, Juan Pardinas.
ENRIQUE ACEVEDO, HOST, AL PUNTO: Finally, I want to take advantage that you’re here in Al Punto, to collect your opinion about what is going on with the electoral process in the United States. How is Donald Trump’s image seen in Mexico?
JUAN PARDINAS, DIRECTOR, MEXICAN INSTITUTE FOR COMPETITIVENESS: Well, eh, very worried, Enrique. What started as a bad joke, a cretin with political ambitions, well, is taking the helm of one of the parties with the most traditions in the American democracy.
Though the segment was ostensibly about efforts led by Mexican citizens to enact reforms through their Congress to combat corruption and bring transparency to the electoral process in Mexico, Acevedo clearly couldn’t resist goading the guest into joining Univision’s reliable barrage against the Republican presidential frontrunner.
A segment about an otherwise welcome and needed reform movement in Mexico thus became another opportunity to add one more voice to that network’s constant harangue of hate against Trump.
The text of the referenced reports on the March 20, 2016 edition of Telemundo’s Enfoque and Univision's Al Punto appear below:
ENFOQUE (Telemundo)
3/20/16
2:19:30 PM – 2:25:20 PM EST | 5 min 50 secs
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: On Enfoque, Donald Trump insists that he will win the Hispanic vote in the United States. He has said, well, comments that many have considered foolish, even saying they’re racist the comments Donald Trump has made. But there are many people that say no, that they support him, and today we have two Hispanics, here in our studios, that support Donald Trump, and say he would be the best President. Evelyn Stalevicz who lives in Ohio is with us, Evelyn thanks for being with us. You live in Ohio?
...
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: Let’s talk, first, about why, Evelyn, you support Donald Trump, a man that has said undocumented immigrants that cross the border are drug addicts, rapists and more?
EVELYN STALEVICZ: Yes, and one of the reasons why I am very for him is because he is a man that has good character. And he loves our country, the United States of America. Therefore, I have faith in what he wants to do. First, to clean up Washington, D.C. and also want to remove Common Core education, because in the United States each student costs more money than it costs in other countries. Our students cannot read, cannot write, do not know geometry, do not know history, geography do not know, that's a shame.
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: Mayor, why do you support him?
JULIO MARTINEZ, FORMER MAYOR OF HIALEAH, FL: Basically, first of all, thanks for inviting me.
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: Thanks to you.
JULIO MARTINEZ, FORMER MAYOR OF HIALEAH, FL: Basically, I think he is the only person declared today, Democrat or Republican, that can improve the economy and I think that the economy in this country is much more important than immigration is. He is the only man that has proven to be successful in business and in government business is conducted with other countries, and I think he is the best qualified for this, and it is because of that I have been working for him for the last eight months.
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: You have been in politics, do you think that it is realistic to say that it is realistic to deport 11, 12 million people en masse?
JULIO MARTINEZ, FORMER MAYOR OF HIALEAH, FL: No, I don’t think it’s realistic, but it was him who started talking about immigration. If he hadn’t, this topic wouldn’t have been touched in this year’s elections for President, and one hopes that everything one says can happen, but I do not think it likely that he does everything he wants, but if you can start and I hope he has success in deporting illegals, I came here legally, my father brought me from Cuba at 10 years old, we were delayed a year to cross the border of this country, although I came by plane, but it took a lot to know that my family was a decent family, and would not cause problems in this country, and that's what Mr. Trump hopes for all who are in this country. Eh, and to give numbers, President Obama has deported many more people than any president in the past. And no one has complained about what Obama is doing. He has deported more Mexicans, that is what we are talking mostly, and other illegals, that all previous presidents.
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: Evelyn, how do you see the future of the United States with a President Trump, like he talks no other politician has talked in the recent history of this country. Does this kind of conversation worry you?
EVELYN STALEVICZ: No, not at all. It does not worry me. It's about time we had a candidate who can express themselves and use our given rights, on the Bill of Rights, of freedom of speech.
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: Rights of liberty of expression.
EVELYN STALEVICZ: Exactly, freedom of expression. And it is very important what he says, what he promises, I mean he is not a violent man, he is a good man, good-natured, you can see a man, a man you can see the kind of character that a man has to see the children and you can see that all the sons and daughters of Donald Trump are flawless.
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: Do you say that a Clinton-Trump race would be easy for the ex-Secretary of State to win it?
JULIO MARTINEZ, FORMER MAYOR OF HIALEAH, FL: In my opinion, I think Mr. Trump wins over Ms. Clinton overwhelmingly, because the polls say that she is the biggest liear among all the candidates, and that Mr. Cli—Mr. Trump will demonstrate to the American people that she doesn’t tell the truth, and that’s the polls saying it, not me.
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: Yes, the polls say Kasich beats Hillary Clinton, they even say Cruz can beat Hillary Clinton and the polls between Trump and Clinton at this time gives it to her, others to him, but the vast majority to her.
JULIO MARTINEZ, FORMER MAYOR OF HIALEAH, FL: Yes, but also the polls said that Donald Trump wouldn’t last four weeks in the race, and look at where we are now eight months later.
JOSE DIAZ-BALART, ANCHOR, ENFOQUE: So both of you consider that despite everything he has said, you continue to support and bet on Donald Trump?
EVELYN STALEVICZ: Of course. 100%. 200% Yes. He is the best candidate, there is no another in the Democratic [Party], there isn’t, he is the only one worthwhile.
JULIO MARTINEZ, FORMER MAYOR OF HIALEAH, FL: I think any of these two or three Republican candidates that arrived in the race can beat Hillary Clinton.
AL PUNTO (Univision)
3/20/2016
10:45:57 AM – 10:52:51 AM | 6 min 53 secs
ENRIQUE ACEVEDO, HOST, AL PUNTO: For the people that live in the United States, the millions of Mexicans that live in this country, what can they do to support this initiative, to push forward this “3 of 3”?
JUAN PARDINAS, DIRECTOR, MEXICAN INSTITUTE FOR COMPETITIVENESS: Well, out of these 300,000 signatures, many thousands were collected by Mexicans that live in the United States, who despite the distance, well, remain very active politically. Now the ball is in Congress’ court. They have to revise the law. And we have to open Mexicans to something that is already tradition in the American democracy, which is a dialogue of pressure and demand dialogue with our representatives in the Senate and in the Chamber of Deputies.
ENRIQUE ACEVEDO, HOST, AL PUNTO: Finally, would like to take advantage of you being here in Al Punto, to collect your opinion about what is going on with the electoral process in the United States. How is the image of Donald Trump seen from Mexico?
JUAN PARDINAS, DIRECTOR, MEXICAN INSTITUTE FOR COMPETITIVENESS: Well, um, really worried, Enrique. What started as a – a bad joke, a cretin with political ambitions, well, is taking the helm of one of the parties with more tradition in the American democracy. It’s – it’s frankly painful to see that the party that – um – of Abraham Lincoln, the party of Ronald Reagan, now, well, I’m not saying is in the hands of, but has a specific and important weight –um—controlled by Donald Trump, facing an internal crisis in the Republican Party, that I hope will not turn into a crisis of the American democracy. Because a person with this profile – the statements not only racist, aggravating that has made about Mexicans, his economic policy would be frankly a disaster not just for the United States, not just for Mexico, but for the entire region.
