Univision, now seemingly convinced that politicians were not persuasive enough to swing the Latino vote in their favor, resorted to searching for someone in Hollywood who could. Unfortunately for them, the only person available was Ben Affleck.
As we can see in the video below, Jorge Ramos tells the audience that many of the politicians' words get lost. But when the exact same words are said by a celebrity especially to discredit Trump, “we suddenly hear it because it's something different”:
Jorge Ramos: There are times when the words of politicians are lost, why? Simply because we hear them many times or because we no longer believe politicians. But when a Hollywood actor says something harsh and gets into politics, suddenly we hear it, it´s something different. This is the case of Ben Affleck who came to promote his new film, but in Spanish he mentioned to Arantxa Loizaga how he views what is happening in the United States.
Loizaga: We know you've been politically active for many years since the year 2000. We're in a presidential contest.
Affleck: Yes, yes, yes
Loizaga: And in 2003 President Bill Clinton said "Democrats fall in love, Republicans fall in line." Do you think there's a candidate in the Democratic party who's making voters fall in love?
Affleck: That is a very difficult question. We have many candidates who are very different and there is not one specifically for me who I love. I like Bernie, I like Biden, I like Warren but the thing is that most of all; I don't like Trump. He's a man who divides us, who works with fear. Who wants people to... to fear each other.
Loizaga: You mean to be afraid of one another?
Affleck: Sure, and use differences between us to divide us and I think that's a crime. And I also hope that Latinos understand this and vote Democratic because (the other group) is close to (racism) honestly.
Loizaga: You think President Trump's attacks on Latinos and immigrants have increased racist attacks in the country such as what happened in El Paso?
Affleck: Yes, when you use like those. when you say things like (Mexicans are rapists and terrorists) and some very irresponsible things like that, they have real effects on the world, and some people do violent things and make the world a worse place. And I think that's the worst thing Trump does and that's what he says a lot because he's so bad at everything he does.
Loizaga’s first question was whether Affleck believed there was a Democratic candidate “who’s making voters fall in love?” quoting Bill Clinton’s old "Democrats fall in love, Republicans fall in line." The celebrity was unsure, but he knew one thing and that is that he despises Trump, declaring that his fear mongering tactics are dividing people from one another. Additionally, Affleck adds that Latinos should vote Democrat because the “other group” or the Republican party is “close to racism”.
Loizaga later asked whether Trump's attacks on Latinos and immigrants cause violence like that of the horrific shooting at El Paso, Texas. Ben Affleck took the bait, making the false claim that Trump called ALL Mexicans “rapists and terrorists.” With nothing left to say, Affleck concludes that Trump says these things because “he is so bad at everything he does”.
It is not certain whether Univision believed that its viewers did not understand the liberal message, or if Mr. Affleck was in need of a bigger audience. What we can be certain about this interview, however, is that opinions are still opinions whether they come from a politician with years of experience, or an actor trying to promote his latest movie.
