Trump’s reported racist insult about Mexican American soldier draws bitter backlash — and staunch denials

Latino Los Angeles10/25/2024

1 minute read

A racist comment former President Donald Trump is reported to have made about murdered soldier Vanessa Guillén is drawing backlash from some Hispanics, but it could be tempered by her sister’s support for Trump and the current political divide among Latinos.

The Atlantic magazine reported that Trump , when he was president, complained about the cost of paying for Guillén’s funeral as he had promised her family he would do in a meeting at the White House in July 2020. Citing two unnamed sources who attended a December 2020 meeting and notes from the meeting, when he was told the $60,000 price tag, Trump responded, “It doesn’t cost 60,000 bucks to bury a f—ing Mexican!” He told his chief of staff at the time, Mark Meadows, not to pay for it, the magazine reported.

NBC News has not confirmed The Atlantic’s reporting.

Meadows and Trump campaign spokesman Alex Pfeiffer denied he made such a comment, the magazine reported.

Guillén’s sister, Mayra Guillén, who was not at the White House meeting at which Trump is alleged to have made the comment, came to his defense on X .