Ocasio-Cortez slams Kimberly Guilfoyle over immigration claims

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) on Tuesday panned Kimberly Guilfoyle, the Republican National Convention speaker who on Monday implied her Puerto Rican mother was an immigrant.

“The woman the GOP picked as their ‘proud’ Latina to tout ‘immigrant experience’ didn’t seem to know that Puerto Rico is already part of the United States,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on Twitter.

In her speech Monday, Guilfoyle called herself a first-generation American, referencing her parents’ places of origin.

“My mother Mercedes was a special education teacher from Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. My father, also an immigrant, came to this nation in pursuit of the American dream,” said Guilfoyle.

The comment was poorly received among many Puerto Ricans and mainland residents of Puerto Rican origin, as the territory’s inhabitants are U.S. citizens.

Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory after the 1898 Spanish-American War; its residents have been U.S. citizens since 1917.

Guilfoyle, a fervent supporter of President Trump who is Donald Trump Jr.’s girlfriend, delivered an impassioned speech, taking swipes at Democrats and attacking California, where she once worked as a prosecutor.

Sergio Gor, chief of staff for the Trump Victory Finance Committee, responded to Ocasio-Cortez’s remarks by saying: “Along with millions of other immigrants, Kimberly’s father immigrated to the United States. She is a proud daughter of an immigrant, and is the epitome of the American Dream.”

Ocasio-Cortez said Guilfoyle’s comments are reflective of a misperception of Hispanic Americans among supporters of President Trump.

“It’s quite on message, bc it reflects their belief that Latinos aren’t real citizens, even when we are Native descendants,” said Ocasio-Cortez.

Updated at 4:20 p.m.