Mexican Ambassador to the United States Esteban Moctezuma criticized Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) over “vulgar and racist” comments he made a hearing last week.
While questioning Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Anne Milgram about fentanyl moving into the US from Mexico, Kennedy compared the two country’s economies and said “without the people of America, Mexico, figuratively speaking, would be eating cat food out of a can and living in a tent behind an Outback.”
Moctezuma responded in a letter Thursday calling the senator’s comments “vulgar and racist.”
“As I was listening, my initial reaction was to answer you in the same low, uninformed, and arrogant tone as the one you used. But it is always better to use your brain instead of your guts, so I recalled the vibrant relationship that exists between Mexico and the United States,” Moctezuma wrote.
“I thought of the 33 million American tourists who, last year, visited Mexico eager to learn about our culture; the 800 billion dollars of trade between our two countries came to mind; and of course, the delicious Mexican food that most Americans consume in thousands of crowded restaurants,” he continued.
The ambassador also highlight Mexico’s trade relationship with Louisiana and the thousands of families in Kennedy’s home state that benefit from the trade partnership.
“I don’t think the people of Louisiana feel represented by the vulgar and racist words you used,” he said.
The ambassador also called on Kennedy to apologize “to your citizens because what you asserted is not worthy of the state of Louisiana, known for being a cultural melting pot.”
