(This post has been updated.)
Trump infuriated the Hispanic community when he insulted Mexican immigrants during his presidential campaign announcement speech last week. He said most of the migrants crossing the southern border into the United States from Mexico are rapists or drug dealers. He doubled down on those comments Tuesday night at an event in Baltimore, saying he heard that anecdotally from U.S. border agents.
Trump almost immediately tweeted a response to Univision to his 3 million followers – Twitter is Trump’s main vehicle to defend himself against criticism. And he uses it without filter.
Several hours later, he put out a statement (in both third and first person) claiming the Mexican government pressured Univision to back out because he is “exposing to the public, and the world, the significant damage that is being done at the southern border, and the terrible and costly trade deals that the United States is incompetently making with Mexico (these deals are great for Mexico and horrible for the United States).”
Univision did not mention trade in its reason to break its deal with Trump to air and help produce his Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants, but only his “recent, insulting remarks.”
Since Trump officially entered the 2016 race, some polls have shown his candidacy resonating with voters. In a Fox News poll released Wednesday night, Trump surged to second place with 11 percent, trailing only Jeb Bush with 15 percent. However, only 18 percent surveyed said Trump is a serious candidate, while 77 percent said he’s a “side show.”
Univision said it will still cover Trump’s presidential campaign as it does all the declared candidates.
Updated: Trump now plans to sue Univision for terminating its $13.5 million contract, according to Politico.