In a segment for “The Daily Show” this week, actor John Leguizamo failed to convince a group of Latino Trump supporters to change their minds.
The comedian went undercover as a Trump super PAC member to speak with six “undecided” Latino voters who were considering voting for the former president despite what Leguizamo called his “inflammatory” rhetoric.Â
“Trump’s rhetoric about Latinos is darker than a 12-hour chocolate mole. But does that matter to these voters?” Leguizamo asked in a voiceover.
He first asked the group what they liked best about Trump, who is trying to become the second president ever to win non-consecutive terms.
JOHN LEGUIZAMO SAYS TRUMP IS GAINING SUPPORT AMONG RELIGIOUS LATINOS BECAUSE THEY’RE ‘HOMOPHOBIC’
“He’s not evasive,” one male voter said. “It’s pretty clear, I mean, this is someone that’s been at the forefront for a very long time speaking his mind.”
“When he was in the government, the economy was better than we have it right now. That’s the only part that I like,” a female voter added.
The voters also said they would not be convinced by endorsements from Latino celebrities like Bad Bunny and, humorously, Leguizamo himself.
The comedian began showing clips of Trump’s comments regarding illegal immigrants, such as his promise to launch “the largest domestic deportation operation in American history.” The panel appeared to agree with Trump’s plan.
“It’s an excellent way to fix a very, very severe problem,” a voter responded.
“What do you love about deportation?” Leguizamo asked.
“You have criminals. They should all be removed, no?” the voter elaborated.
Another voter said, “If he’s saying immigration is a problem, it’s like you have a leak in your house. You’ve gotta turn it off, the water supply, fix it, then turn it on. Maybe that’s what he’s trying to do, like, let’s close down the border for a while.”
“But who would you call to fix your leak if all the Latinos are gone?” Leguizamo joked.
He then showed a clip of Trump saying illegal immigrants were “poisoning the blood of our country.” The voters were less comfortable with those comments, calling them “poison” and admitting there were “better words he could use.”
“We all misspeak sometimes,” a voter said.
“He misspeaks from the heart,” Leguizamo replied.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE
Another voter added, “This is stereotyping Latinos, it’s stereotyping immigrants, and the more that you demonize people, it doesn’t bring us together.”
One of the panelists said he would “rather not see” comments like that and said they were the reason “why many will tell you that they don’t like them.”
“Now I understand. The only way Trump is acceptable is if you never see or hear him,” Leguizamo said in a voiceover.
At the end of the segment, Leguizamo revealed himself and gave one last attempt to change their minds.
“Now that I’ve shown you all these awful things about Trump, does that change your vote?” Leguizamo asked.
All the voters unanimously replied, “No.”
In late October, a USA Today/Suffolk University poll showed Trump leading by 11 points among Latino voters.
