Rep. Gutiérrez on CHC Statement Calling on NBC to "Disinvite" Trump from Hosting SNL

Rep. Gutiérrez on CHC Statement Calling on NBC to “Disinvite” Trump From Hosting SNL

“Why can’t NBC hold their own TV shows responsible to keep an unapologetic racist from hosting a comedy show?”

Washington, DC – Today, Rep. Luis V. Gutiérrez (D-IL) said he is glad the Congressional Hispanic Caucus voted to oppose the planned November 7 hosting of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” by billionaire Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.  The “Statement of Opposition” was approved by two-thirds of the CHC, which is comprised of 26 Latino Members of the House and Senate.

“When a TV personality calls Mexicans and Latinos criminals and rapists, a corporate network should not give him 90-minutes of free air time in an entertainment venue without his first apologizing to the American people,” said Rep. Gutiérrez of Chicago.  “Did I miss an apology?  Did Trump do what Paula Deen or any other TV personality has to do after they make racist comments in public in order to get back on the air?”

The CHC “Statement of Opposition” reads in part:

[B]e it resolved that the Congressional Hispanic Caucus calls upon NBCUniversal, Broadway Video, and SNL Executive Producer Lorne Michaels to disinvite Mr. Trump from hosting Saturday Night Live because racism is not funny; and

Be it further resolved, that the Congressional Hispanic Caucus urges NBCUniversal to stand by its earlier commitment to end its relationship with Mr. Trump because the values of “respect and dignity for all people” are more important than ratings and ad revenues. 

This comes as news that NBC is being dumped by the Republican National Committee in response to how the GOP candidates felt they were treated during last week’s CNBC debate. 

“So the RNC is dumping NBC because somehow asking questions about regulating gambling on fantasy football in a debate crosses a line but calling Mexicans and Latinos rapists and criminals does not,” Rep. Gutiérrez said.  “So why can’t NBC hold their own TV shows responsible to keep an unapologetic racist from hosting a comedy show?”

Rep. Gutiérrez previously sent a letter to NBC and Comcast executives in which he said allowing Trump to host ‘SNL’ “is a level of endorsement that says to America that every hateful and racist thing Donald Trump has said…is acceptable and no big deal.  Well it is a big deal.”

He has also spoken about Mr. Trump on the House Floor on numerous occasions and has called on NBC to dump Trump from the show:

·         10/27 Speech with video: Rep. Gutiérrez: Trump Is Motivating Voters, Just Not The Ones He Wants. https://1.usa.gov/1GvmKk4

·         10/21 Speech with video: Standing Before #racismisntfunny Sign, Rep. Gutiérrez says SNL, NBC, Lorne Michaels, “I’m Calling You Out.” https://1.usa.gov/1MTp712

·         9/17 Speech with video: Rep. Gutiérrez: Trump and GOP Driving Immigrants Towards Citizenship, Voting https://1.usa.gov/1Kjad1k

·         9/9 Speech with video: Rep. Gutiérrez Calls Pope Francis  “The Antidote” To Donald Trump’s “Venom” In House Floor Speech https://1.usa.gov/1KgcXMQ

Rep. Gutiérrez represents the Fourth District of Illinois, is a Member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, is a Member of the Judiciary Committee and the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security, and is the Co-Chair of the Immigration Task Force of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.  He was one of the main subjects in the PBS FRONTLINE and Independent Lens documentary “Immigration Battle,” a film by Michael Camerini & Shari Robertson, which aired on Tuesday, October 20.

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