Pope Francis vs. Trump

The pope spoke out against all types of walls and said that instead we need to build bridges.

In a country forged by immigrants, Trump’s campaign started out by attacking them, assuring everyone that Mexicans bring drugs, crime and the worst vices into the United States. His statements exploiting nationalism and xenophobia have situated him first in the polls, with a significant lead over his Republican rivals. On average, opinion polls put his lead at more than 7 percent. For the magnate, it’s necessary to throw out all 12 million illegal immigrants and build a wall on the southern border in order to stop all entry attempts. The candidate must not realize that the Mexicans coming in are actually returning to what was their territory, of which they were dispossessed in an unequal war; and that upon entering the country, they work in jobs that no one there wants, charge very little, and make the nation more competitive with their cheap labor.

For Trump, it will be an uphill battle to win the nomination despite his initial success. Right now, and until many of the Republican hopefuls begin to withdraw from the race, all of the attacks are against him, throwing in his face his previous support of Democratic candidates, underhanded businesses, casinos, extremist statements and liberal positions. Of Hispanic-Americans, the most important electoral minority, more than 80 percent disapprove of Trump, and any Democratic candidate would capture that group’s support if he or she were the other option. Another reason he will lose conservative support — they would be presenting a losing candidate.

In the meantime, when Pope Francis arrived in Cuba, he declared himself against dynasties, and in the U.S., he declared himself an immigrant, asking that people respect the human rights of a group that has contributed so much. The pope spoke out against all types of walls, saying that instead we should build bridges through dialogue and inclusion, and urged immigrants to feel proud of their origins. Criticizing unbridled capitalism, he stressed that money cannot be an end in itself because it becomes the “dung of the devil.” It has to be a means of service because he who “doesn’t live to serve, doesn’t serve to live.”